Home again, home again

A week in Florida was almost all that I needed. I saw friends, I saw family, I saw beach, I felt warm again. A few selected highlights in no particular order:

• My best friend's two week old baby. Pictures of his finished just in time booties will be posted soon.
• The five minutes we spent at the beach before Lorelei decided she'd had enough.
• Miami Metrozoo - it was a lot bigger than I had imagined, though it was also a lot hotter so we didn't stay long. But I have decided to visit the National zoo again very soon (I still haven't seen Tai Shan).
• Dinner with my extended family - turns out my great aunt (who I rarely see) was a professional knitter and has a giant stash. I may need to go visit her in Chicago sometime.
• My niece - she's a week older than Lorelei and I haven't seen her in almost a year. She's turned into a real cutie and it's interesting to see the differences between the two cousins - Lorelei is outgoing and very active, Isabella is shy and calm. But both are too cute for their own good.
• Florida was a lot more damaged by the hurricanes last year than I had thought. There are still blue tarps everywhere you look. After living in Florida for 20 years, the last two years have brought the worst damage (other than Andrew in 1992).