Happy Valentine's Day

I wish I could say this was the most romantic Valentine's Day ever but that would be an untruth since I had a school board meeting tonight.  All in all though, it was a very nice day.  Guitar Guy started several days ago by sending me a photo of flowers he would have gotten me if our cats didn't eat them.  Then he got me some instant Starbucks for the days he decides to drink my last cup of coffee before work.  Today he had a card and gift bag waiting with new headphones for listening to my audio books! 

Our local Italian deli has homemade Chicken Parmisan in the freezer section so we enjoyed a lovely dinner together and now are watching the Phoenix Suns and playing on our respective computers.  Nothing exciting but comfortable and relaxing.  It's all good.

Hope your day was full of love and good times (or at least some chocolate).

Go Giants!

Today is a serious football day at our house since Guitar Guy's Giants are in the Superbowl. The machaca is in the crockpot for later today.  I'll starting making the pico for chips in a little bit and tv is already showing us a chronicle of the season.

Game on!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

Lake Havasu Balloon Festival January 19-22, 2012

Today is the last day of Balloon Festival for another year.  60 Balloons were in town to grace us with their beauty.  Although it was too windy yesterday for them to go up, the other days have been a joy.

This picture is from a friend who walks down by the London Bridge most days and happened to catch this view!

That's the big news for this week.  In updates from last week, I survived the dinner on Wednesday and most people felt it went very well.  It is pretty exciting stuff having a college campus open in our community.  I got involved with the efforts because I wanted to see more educational opportunities in our area.  Now I also recognize the important economic impact this could have on our town. 

Not much new on the knitting front.  I've been pretty lazy in the evenings and am ok with that.

Have a great rest of your weekend. I know I plan to.

Knitting progress

Sleeve for Steggie Sweater - Vanna's Choice

Fingerless mitts toddler size - Sunshine Yarns Forest

I thought it was time for a knitting update since I actually have been getting a lot done.  Much of this was over Christmas vacation when I had time to knit for hours but I'm making slow steady progress on my projects.

I'm not crazy about the Intarsia on the Steggie sweater.  I was cruising along until I hit the sleeves but it will get there.  I've only made top down sweaters before so am not looking forward to all the seaming on this one.  I also have to put in a zipper.  Not crazy about the Vanna's choice but I was too cheap to buy wool for a toddler sweater.

Over Christmas I made the first fingerless mitt for DIL and left it in Iowa.  Rowan immediately thought it should be his and wore it to bed LOL. I took that as a hint he needed his own to match his mommy's. 

I promised my business partners I would make them socks for Christmas and didn't get it done so the first two pairs are for them.  I've always heard the people like Socks that Rock but it was a terrible skein full of knots.  I really like the Hermione pattern - easy, quick and nice and stretchy.

Fingerless mitt mommy size

 The embossed leaves socks started out being for me but once I got this first one done, I decided the top wasn't stretchy enough for me and that I really don't like that cast on.  Fortunately they will fit my DIL perfectly so I'm finishing the second one now.

Today I need to wash and block everything and next week disperse all the various presents. Once I get the sweater done I can start drooling over new projects :-)

 Socks that Rock, Harlot plain sock

 Indie Dyer  - Pattern Hermione

 Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga, Pattern - Embossed Leaves

It's a new year!

I admit it, I hated 2011.  WITH A PASSION.  Guitar Guy keeps reminding me that there were some very good times but over all as years go - that one needed to be gone.

Realistically I know that turning a calendar page doesn't make bad things less likely to happen but at least it gives me hope for a fresh start.  My goal for the year is health and healing.  A little money would be nice as well.

I'm not one to make big new year's resolutions I know I will not keep but the cooler weather does give me more energy to get things done.  I'm trying to balance Netflix and knitting with cleaning out closets and sorting through old paperwork for shredding or filing. 

Work is starting to pick up a little and I have a big nonprofit dinner with the President of Arizona State coming up on the 18th so life is humming along.  I thought I got out of planning the annual dinner when I handed it off last year but no such luck.  Thankfully I have a very capable co-chair to work with, as planning these kinds of events is not my favorite thing. 

I have promised the cats that I won't do any traveling for a while (at least March) so they are speaking to me again.  That may not be a good thing at 3 AM when 16 pounds of fluffy is sitting on my chest meowing in my face.  He's also taken to "helping" me with my knitting.  Ah it is good to be home.

Hope your year is off to a good start.  Anything good going on in your world?

There is nothing more fun than watching a small child on Christmas morning.  It took Rowan all of one present to figure out how the whole ripping paper off thing works. 

We are all thoroughly sick of the singing Elmo but Rowan loves it.  As you can see from the picture, his mother's parents got him a beautiful toy box.  Now we just have to convince him that he's really not allowed to play inside it.

We are having a lazy day and eating left overs for simplicity.  Rowan's mommy is quite sick with a virus so we are saving the Christmas dinner until she feels better. 

Hope you and yours are having a wonderful day!

Remembering

I'm physically back from a week in Florida helping my husband and siblings prepare for my mother-in-law's funeral.  Emotionally I'm still in that numb neverland fog that can accompany the death of a loved one.  My multi-tasking sucks and I haven't even put up the Christmas tree since getting back Sunday.

The service was very nice and my husband did a great eulogy. It was nice having everyone together and we had great fun going through old pictures.  The cats are mortally offended that we left them for such a long time.  We aren't breathing a word about Christmas travels lest they act out more.

Since we won't be able to spend Christmas all together this year, Guitar Guy and I are having a celebration with Nicole and Patrick next week and then with the Iowa clan for the actual holiday.  We had planned to do a brunch but Nicole will be coming off 3 days of 12 hour shifts and probably won't be moving until the afternoon.  We determined the quiche and pumpkin pancakes can certainly be served in the evening so all is good.

Christmas shopping is mostly done and shouldn't take long to wrap. Christmas letter isn't even started but I do have envelopes.  Baking probably won't happen, for which my spreading waistline is grateful.  Unfortunately with my trip to Florida, Rowan's stocking won't be done for this year.  But I've got next year covered!  I may try to get his dinosaur sweater done.  It uses intarsia on the sleeves to make the steggie plates.  Since I've never done that, we'll see if I can figure it out.

Off to take more decongestant for the lousy cold I came home with :-(