Xcaret and a Knitting Lesson

We arrived home from a wonderful Christmas in Cancun late Sunday. Christmas week is a good time for my DH to take a break from his busy schedule for sun and some fun activities. Many of his students travel to see family, ski or are involved in school activities.....so a perfect time to steal him away!

I went to the Yucatan with our daughter a few years ago and spent a fun day at Xcaret. This was Greg's first visit. We bought the "all inclusive" and added a snorkeling package. It was a very full, fun-filled day. The evening show was truly spectacular. We saw a Mayan ball game, an early version of field hockey played with flaming balls (I have video), flying men, mariachi, equestrians, and many dancers. Here are a few pictures-

Xcaret is a huge park with more features than you could take in in just one day. Last time I was there I swam the underground river. This trip we walked the grounds and saw some different things...

Yes, there is a yarn experience to be had at the park!

Back at the Grand Mayan for a day of sun and relaxation, when I least expected it....

Greg came over and said, "I think someone needs knitting help over there." He indicated an area near the pool's sandy beach and a woman in a black bathing suit. He wasn't kidding. I went over and easily found Nina (from Wisconsin) who had unraveled her twirly scarf for the third time. She needed a few pointers and was good to go in no time. Who would guess that knitting skills would come in handy at the Grand Mayan pool?

I did finish the Jack-in-the-Box mittens over the break. You can check them out on my Ravelry project page. They are a fast knit and a good pattern.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well!

Jack-in-the-Box Mittens

A customer came into Skein last Tuesday who had seen some flip-top mittens that morning at Nordstrom. She decided to investigate knitting a pair for herself. I whipped out my iphone to check a pattern source on Ravelry (boy is that convenient) and found that several people had made this pattern and were happy with the outcome. It comes from a book, Knitting New Mittens & Gloves, that I happened to have in my collection. My DH was on his way into Pasadena when I called to see if he could drop it by the store...and he could. Eiko was thrilled that she was able to start the project and selected some Lamb's Pride in a soft pink, purchased needles and cast on for the cuff. One cuff was finished before she left and the other will be finished before she comes in this afternoon. The plan is that the first will sit on waste yarn until she completes one mitten. When I got home that evening I went stash diving and came up with yarn (color: Wild Oak) to start my own pair of mittens!