I estimate that I'm about halfway through this hat and so far I added another stripe. Maybe I'll finish it by the time we hit Mammoth.

How Big They Grow

Last week, Tyler and Josh took a really cute pic and here it is.

Latest hobby

When I was about 7 or 8 years old, my mom taught me how to knit and crochet. I really enjoyed it but all I could make were flat squares. I don't think my mom knew how to follow patterns so I never learned. I did make lots of nice blankets for my dolls and later a scarf in college.
So I was at Barnes and Noble yesterday to check out some books on Italy. We are thinking of an Italy trip in October so I found a couple of books to keep me occupied. While I was there, I browsed the crafts section and found some knitting books. There is one called Knit Hats! that has 15 different hats that are so cute. Since I bought the books, I had to go to Joann's to get yarn and knitting supplies. I chose an elf hat pattern that uses 4 colors of yarn. Tyler's hat is my first attempt at real knitting so he is excited about it. The hat will be red, blue, cream and gray.
It took me a while to figure out how to knit an I-cord then switch to different colors and knit in a circle. Once I got the hang of it, the hat started coming along. So far the hat is taking shape into a cone that will fit a doll and has 4 stripes. I need to knit about more stripes and hopefully it'll be done in a few days. Pictures to follow.

Extra Day Off

As some of you might know, we're taking off for vacation soon to Mammoth Lakes, CA. We planned on leaving March 7th which takes about 5-6 hours travel time then start on snowboarding the next day. I received an email from Dr. J who does Hector's schedule. He had tweak the schedule a bit but it turned out to give Hector an extra day off starting March 6th. Woot! Hector and I had to think what we could do. Hector has a dentist appt on the 6th but we can reschedule that. Of course, I had to find lodging for the night since the condo we're renting is way too much just for us one extra night so we will staying at the Holiday Inn in Mammoth on the 6th. That will give us an extra day to spend with the kids and play in the snow. We are set then. He-man & She-ra don't know of our early head start but they will be joining us the following day. We plan on doing some sledding and sliding (same thing) and having quality time with each other (our family) then have our group vacation. I'm excited!

Happy

Hector arrived home last night and we all are very happy. I kept the kids busy Saturday by starting the day off at Kids Concepts where they could run and play for a couple of hours. Home for a quick lunch then we're off to the O.C. to shop at the Block for Tyler's Hawaiian shirt. Monday is Hawaiian day at his school and he has outgrown his shirts. So we went to Hilo Hattie's to check out their assortment. We found some shirts and luckily the saleslady caught the price difference. I had grabbed a Medium shirt which said $39.99 and she mentioned that they had childrens' sizes which are less. I found another Medium (kid's size) that was $24.99 so I was happy she noticed the price otherwise I would have spent $15 more.
Hector came home around 8pm so we're happy that he is home and that Hector had a great time in Tahoe. Only 2 more weeks til Mammoth and more snow time.

Countdown

Only 2 more days until Hector comes home. He called to update me on their trip. They are taking the day off snowboarding since a storm is coming in. He said it is snowing and they were headed to a casino for a buffet lunch. This year only 3 guys are there when they were expecting about 6 guys. Oh well, Hector won't rent a big cabin again next year and let the others find their own accomadations. That's a big drawback when planning for a group. Oh well he tried to organize a trip where all the guys could stay together but it just didn't work out as well as he thought.
That will bring me to our next mountain trip in early March. I usually plan the vacation and book the condo & ski lessons. This year we included our friends He-man & She-ra with their recently added kiddies so it was good that I booked a spacious condo with 3 bedrooms and 3 baths. Hopefully the next few weeks will dump lots of snow before we arrive in Mammoth. Tyler is excited about his ski school and he gets to miss real school too.
I was catching up on Tivo last night and I focused on CSI Miami episodes. I was shocked by the episode where Delko gets shot in the head and appears dead. Then it was to be continued but thankfully I had 3 episodes to catch up on. The next episode info says that a CSI is dead so I'm thinking,"Noooooooo! Why would they say that?". So I'm expecting Delko to die as he is rushed to the hospital, when they have to use the defibulator (sp) paddles on him 3 times, when the MD plunges a syringe of epi into Delko's chest and rushed off to surgery. Of course, he did technically die when they jump started his heart but I wasn't sure if he could still be a CSI after being shot in the head (temporal lobe). Well, the 3rd episode shows him back on the field with a buzz cut and a surgery scar on his head. Then they talk about Delko being back to work too soon only a few weeks after getting shot! Ugh....puhleeze. I think he would need a LOT more time before he was allowed back. Oh well, it's good TV. Infuriating but good.

Flower pics

I decided that flowers are a good subject since they don't move much, have rich colors and are interesting. Besides that I don't have anything else to say. The bird of paradise is in front of my house and I can't take any credit. They were here when we moved in and I have done absolutely nothing to nurture their growth.

The purple flowers are on my way to Tyler's school. I noticed them this morning but took the pic on my way to pick him up. How thoughtful of people to provide me with beautiful flowers to shoot.