and i'm back

Thank you all for your time-away well wishes, they were much appreciated and all that well-wishing must have worked because the family de la archivist had a fabulous time.  It was really sunny and warm, and though I don't love the whole overly hot thing, I had a big appreciation for the weather on the left coast after our flight home was delayed due to ice on the New York runways and trying to dig out our car from the snow and ice (nothing says "welcome back to New England" like defrosting your car in 7 degree weather!).  And although I was rather ambitious in the (5...yeah, I know) knitting projects I took with me, it should take no genius on anyone's part to figure out that I didn't spend my whole time away knitting.  While I didn't get a ton of knitting done, I did do some other fun things, like...

I learned that Little Sir is afraid of grass (you know, the kind that is grown in lawns and parks...you know, the legal kind with no medicinal purposes whatsoever).  I tried Pat.  We thought he would have so much fun...no...no.  He won't even touch the stuff.  And it's pretty sad that his parents kept trying to get him to experience the fun that is crawling and rolling around in the grass purely because of his averse reaction to it, seriously people it was funny if not a bit cruel...(and the winners for parents of the year are....).

Although he was not a lover of flora and greenery in general, he was quite a fan of the animals that ate them... like giraffes.  We loved the San Diego Zoo (thanks Parikha for the snack insight, very handy).  And really, who doesn't love a giraffe or two?  I think giraffes might be my new favorite animal.

I was able to make some yarn acquisitions from here and here, both are fantastic places and they are literally down the street from each other.  I am very happy about my purchases.

No really, look how happy I am, even Little Sir got excited about the yarny bits of our trip.

While in San Diego I was able to meet up with a knit blogger.  And while I was excited to meet Theresa who blogs at Knitting Underway, clearly our socks were also ecstatic about the meet-up.

It was fun to meet someone from the knit blogging community.  She was even nicer than I imagined her to be based on her blog.  And I got to see her bright and sparkly ring up close and personal, and she got to see Little Sir up close and personal...who’s to say who got the better deal?!

While in San Diego , I was also able to meet up with my best friend from college.  She happened to be at a house that was a 15 minute bike ride from the Zoo.  The reason we were able to meet was because she did a weekly check of my blog and saw that I was coming to southern CA (yet another reason to love the whole blog thing).  While you might think this wasn't so serendipitous, let me correct you.  She is something of a wandering spirit (who does not knit, the travesty!).  I thought she was in Thailand or Arizona (I know, big difference, just work with me) ...not so much...

On Part 2 (sort of) of our trip we visited Fallbrook, apparently Tori Spelling and her baby's daddy (I have no idea what his name is--ah, Dean...that's right...) just opened a B&B there--in case you are interested. We were there because we have family there and look at the view they get to see every sunset and sunrise.

I get to see street and my neighbor's pick up...

There was a park in Bakersfield , CA (part 3 of our California adventure) that has bark on the playground instead of grass.  Little Sir likes bark, it’s much better than grass.  Apparently bark is the new cool, who knew?

As much as he loved the bark, Little Sir loved the swings and slides most.  I had some great swing shots, but I thought this picture from the slide captures the joy of childhood (well, at least my kid's childhood) perfectly.

And as much as I enjoyed my much needed time away, I think Little Sir enjoyed it more, he was kind of sad for it all to end.

I will have some more evidence of knitting done on the trip to post in the coming days, but there will be a lot of posting fun this week.  There's a big celebration happening at the end of the week and I hope all of you take part in it.  There will be crazy posts and some fun give away action going on (no contests here, life is a big enough contest as far as I am concerned).  And hey, spring, it's just around the corner!

Comments

[Brenda]

Welcome back!
Sounds like you had a great trip (even with the whole grass problem)! What is Little Sir going to do when spring comes to New England?!

[Theresa]

It was fabulous to meet you, and Little Sir, and Big Sir, and definitely your sock. Glad the rest of your trip was as enjoyable.

[Felicia]

I just love that Hello my name is Trouble tshirt. Brilliant!

[Christy / Not Hip]

I think maybe I am a little cruel too, as that first picture made me laugh before I even read the story. My niece was scared of grass for awhile. She would refuse to step on it. Sounds like it was a great trip.

[Stacey]

I'm glad you had such a great trip -- love the pictures, especially Little Sir on the slide!! :)

[Heidi]

Ah, that LS is too cute. Glad you had a fun trip!

[margene]

How wonderful to see all the smiles!!

[Ashley]

What a fun trip! You look like you had a really happy time. And i have to say, you are exactly the kind of parent I respect: one who is willing to put her own amusement as the top priority ;)

[Elli]

Awww...look at how cute y'all are! Looks like you had a fab trip.

[Rachel]

Okay, the authorities are probably going to do a mandatory sterilization on me when they read this, but that afraid-of-grass thing cracks me up. That picture is hilarious. If it were my kid I'm sure I'd be putting him on the grass all the time just laugh at the oddity of his fear. And here come the authorities now.

I'm glad you had such a nice time away! And fortunately spring seems to be thinking about coming here in New England, so the re-entry shouldn't be too painful in the long term.

[kathy]

Uh, hmm... someone was in Bakersfield and didn't mention it? That's okay, you want to see Pin and not me, I'm okay with that! Of course, since I was frantically finishing my paper, I couldn't have met up anyway.

Little Sir is now my new desktop. Yes, I laugh each time I think about him being scared of grass even though you were cruel. Cheer up Rachel, I don't think the sterilization will hurt that much; just let me know when they're done so I'll know they're on the way...

[tiennie]

Looks like a fun trip - well, except for the grass thing. My oldest was terrified of grass too for awhile!

[Marie]

Hee! Little Sir is so adorable and so absolutely hilarious! I love the minimize-all-contact-with-the-grass picture. :) Glad you had such a fun time! If you ever come up to Northern California, be sure to drop me a line. :)

[Pat]

Sorry about the grass!!!
Look at that poor child.....

[Beth]

Love the pictures of your get away. You look like you had a great time. Giraffes are cool animals but my girlfriend once had one throw up in her hand. It kind of ruined the whole giraffe thing for her.

I LOVE the picture of Little Sir being scared of grass. Kids are funny creatures. I know that one of my boys was scared of sand but I can't remember which one.

[diana]

Welcome back! It's hilarious (is that mean?) that Little Sir is afraid of grass.