Bring on summer!

It was such a wonderful weekend! Here in northern California, we really couldn't have asked for better weather. While it has turned on us this morning, more mild than usual, a bit breezy, and the threat of rain looms, Scooter and I still made preparations for the summer that we know will be here very quickly. Since some of my grandchildren now live within bicycle distance a couple of streets from us, we decided to surprise them with a pool for the summer. We debated for quite some time on this, especially in light of the drought we are in, which is one of the reasons we chose a fairly small (12x36) one. We made the decision to not water our backyard anymore, and cut back to once per week on our front yard. It's not going to look very pretty, but in time, we know when our water situation here improves, we can just lay new sod. Rather than put the pool over at my daughter's house, we also wanted it here because she has two little ones, and didn't want to take any chances. My daughter has a key and knows she is welcome in my home at any time! So, here is what my husband calls his "oversized hot tub" (lol)....I can't wait for the children to see it today! Oh, and like Scooter says, "this will also give us a chance to see if a permanent pool is something we want to have put in." I agree!

 

One of the first things I do in the morning, while the coffee is brewing, is I love to go out and have a peek at my garden. This morning was no exception, and I was giddy with excitement when I discovered at least four (that I could see) cherry tomatoes on one of my plants!

 



Quite a bit of knitting happened over the weekend as well. I am having so much fun with this pattern (Vodka Lemonade by Thea Colman)...such a lovely knit and I'm very pleased with the yarn I chose too!! They pair up nicely! I'm about halfway through the sleeve shaping, so it won't be long before I will get to start separating for the arms.

 

I know I have plenty of other works in progress that I need to get off my needles, but I couldn't resist starting a crochet project. I purchased several cones of lace weight alpaca/silk blend one year at Stitches West from Webs, and it's been sitting in my stash ever since. I found the perfect shawlette/scarf pattern for the red cone, which I will tell you more about as I progress a little further. Currently, this is what it looks like for now...

 

 

I hope your week is off to a fantastic start!!