Apparently I Crochet Now

I tried to take up crocheting around Christmas last year, but I hit a little snag on my first project and got a little discouraged and put it down for awhile.  Then, during the move, I needed something to do that didn't require a lot of equipment while we were on the road or living in temporary housing with all of our stuff in storage and I finally worked up the gumption to give that old project one more try.

Here it is!

It is destined to be a pillow front. It's not actually finished. It still needs to be squared up and blocked and all of the ends need to be buried, but, you know, those steps are boring so they can surely wait.

My next project was a blanket for our new couch. I took tons and tons of pictures while I was making it, but then I dropped my phone in the pool and now there are only these two that I took today. Sad face.

I was going to finish this one, I swear, but then our couch hasn't been delivered yet and so this one also needs squaring and blocking and burying and all that good stuff. Do you sense a theme?

I had no idea how much yarn I would need to make a blanket, so with the leftovers from my first big blanket, I made this one.

Rupert helped with this one.

Cats and yarn, I'm tellin' ya.

Here it is all finished!

Psyche.

It's totally unfinished just like all of the other things I have crocheted so far. It's kind of my thing.

15 Wishes

When the road trip was over, we swung back through San Jose to pick up some stuff we packed specially for temporary housing and, of course, to pick up Molly and Rupert.

Also we had this 15¢ that we needed to "spend".

We found a dime and a nickel on our road trip and we hoarded them because we wanted to try to gamble them on the slots in NV. However, we were thwarted since all slots are electronic now and you can't just play coins in any machine you darned well please. Sad face.

But I had a plan. A plan for if we could find the time on our last day in CA to make it to the San Jose Rose Garden, where we loved to hang out and volunteer when we lived in the neighborhood.

We stood at the little fountain in the rose garden as dusk fell and we made 15 wishes (one per penny, that is) for our future together in Portland. Then we tossed our coins into the fountain!

Apparently, this is what I look like just after I throw something.

My coin made it into the second tier of the fountain!

We also, you know, looked at all the pretty roses.

Here's to a brand new future in a brand new city!  Look out, Portland, here we come!

Road Trip: Last But Not Least, Napa

Our last stop on the road trip was Napa Valley and it was actually perfect.  We got to do tons of our favorite things and just generally relax before heading back to San Jose.

Turns out, most of our favorite Napa stuff is eating things. We started out with a trip to Fremont Diner.

They have a dog friendly patio.

Also chicken friendly.

The best oyster po'boys you'll ever find.

We also went to Chandon.

It's our favorite because the grounds are just so beautiful and it's laid back. Also dog friendly!

We finished off the evening with *the* most romantic and cozy table at PRESS.

Which means, of course, that the next day we hit Farmstead on the way out of town.

Best chocolate pie that has ever or will ever exist.

Can you believe that's the end of a 2 week road trip?! I think Eddy and Norman could believe it.

It absolutely could not have been a better vacation!

We Came for the Submarine and Stayed for the OMSI

One of the first things we noticed about Portland was all the bridges.  Probably the second thing we noticed was that from one of those bridges you can see a submarine!  Turns out, it's a submarine you can tour at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). We totally had to do the tour.

Before you go aboard, they actually make everyone step through this little hole, so you know you're in for fun.

It was basically the most fun we've ever had and now all I want to do is tour so many more submarines. Any Westbrooks want to take a trip to Cleveland?!

We went for the Submarine tour, but turns out the OMSI is no slouch either.

Eddy especially liked the name of this restaurant in the museum.

Also, he forced me to collaborate with him to assemble this wooden puzzle.

The man loves puzzles.

Nothing works up a thirst like a day full of Science, so we ended up here at Chapel Pub (or beer church, as I like to call it.) This joint is totally homey. Rumor has it they have delicious tots. Also, it's in our new neighborhood, so we might as well just have all of our mail forwarded here.

Road Trip: Goodbye Tahoe

When we were living in CA, we went to Tahoe just about every winter.  We wanted to make sure on our road trip to swing through, this time in the spring!

The first thing we did was take Norman to check out a waterfall.

If it looks like he hates sitting on my lap, that's because it's true. He just could not get very sure footing on the rocks by this fall. However, he did have pretty sure footing in the snow.

It was just a really beautiful area.

Next we went to, surprise surprise, a beach!

This one was rocky, though, and that water was icy cold. When we got here, I warned Eddy not to throw the tennis ball further into the lake than he wanted to go to retrieve it since I know Norman doesn't like to swim when the water is cold. Next thing I knew, Eddy was stripping off his pants to get a ball that went too far out!

Oh, that Eddy!

In the afternoon, we found a beautiful little trail down by the Truckee River.

Eddy climbed up on this river rock.

And you know if Eddy did it Norman would have to do it too.

With all of this excitement, it wasn't too log before Norman decided he had enough excitement for one day.

Don't worry, though. By early next morning he was back at it again!

Goodbye beautiful Tahoe! We will miss you!

Next up: Napa and the end of the road trip!