A stitch in time.

I've been home from Colorado since Tuesday, and I sure miss my Jessica. And the whole Ryan troupe! It was great to see everyone, and I am ever grateful for their endless hospitality. Hugs and kisses to them all! The trip started off with an eager, full-on running hug greeting from Jack (once Jess and I determined how we could both be underneath the Alaska Airlines sign at the airport and not see each other [opposite floors!]) and the love just continued from there. Mountain trips, nature viewing, storm dodging, and lots of just-being-togetherness ensued. It was the perfect trip.

On the front porch of the Stanley Hotel

At Barr Lake State Park

What else did we do, you ask? Go ahead and take a peek (if everything works as it should, click below for the full photo album)!

Colorado

Oh yeah, and we knitted!

Jessica taught herself to knit ages ago and I've been jealous ever since. She sent me a knitting care package this winter, and I tried to teach myself. Birgit gave me a lesson this spring, which definitely helped (thanks, Birgy!), but I still couldn't quite get the technique down.

My plane landed around 11:30 or 12 last Friday. I would say by 1 Jess had me knitting into the round! First up, a baby hat for Tracy and Fred's newborn, Owen. And I'll be damned, if I wasn't finished with the hat by Sunday morning or so. :) Now... I had Jess sitting next to me all weekend to help, fix, etc., so will I finish my next project with such ease? We shall see. Monday she took me to Michael's to get a few supplies to start my next project, a shawl for me.

Yeah for hat!

Fast forward a few days and a few trips to a real yarn store (oh la la), and I am now the proud owner of my own (sort of) stocked knitting bag! I even added a mini bag to hold my needles and markers. I feel so serious!

*thanks to Lexi's for the free and perfectly sized and shaped bag!

I've been working on my shawl, practicing my straight needle work, and experimenting with different types of yarn. This is my cute cotton yarn/carry around in my purse project (it's a few inches long now -- I am so pleased with myself!):

I took a picture of my shawl project to post on Ravelry (Facebook for knitting, sweet) and was able to see some mistakes I'd made (I don't know how to fix them myself!) and the more I thought about it, the more it bugged me, even though I plan to keep it for myself. So after a nap yesterday (I've been falling asleep, dreaming about, and waking up thinking about knitting), I decided I would finish the super secret project I'm working on, then I would go back to the shawl and start over with some fuzzy yarn (I've also been rethinking the color [black]). This new hobby couldn't have come at a better time, either -- Brad's been watching golf ALL weekend. But do I care? Nope. I can just knit knit knit away and he can watch his boring golf! :)

One last thing before I get back to my project... My nephew Jordan turned FOUR on Friday. Four!!! WHAT a sweetie he is (even when he's pouting, ordering me to get away from him, and making me chase him to take photos).