Lace Pattern

I'm working on my swatch (yes, we have the fastest AND the slowest knitters in North America in this knit-along), and well, my "lace" looks nothing like the pretty diamonds of butterfly. How many rows should I have to work before I start to see the pattern? I'm worried that I may be doing something wrong, but I've been following the charts exactly (at least I think so). I'm also gaining stitches, so I think I must be doing something wrong... but I sure can't figure out what!

Oh, and what is the best decrease to do for the "dec 2" step? It doesn't specify.