...a little traveling music...

Finally, the promised post about Stitches West. It started like this...

and ended like this...

with a lot of this in between.....

Etta Mae and I had more fun (if that's even possible) than ever! We laughed a lot, ate a bunch, saw some stuff we can't talk about (not without a bunch of therapy), saw some dear friends and made a few new ones! There are a bunch of thank yous that need to be given:

cupcakefaerie ~ thank you for the Sprinkles! (especially the red velvet!)

Kathy ~ thanks for the sock monkey! I love him!~

Etta Mae ~ thanks for being the most awesome traveling partner......(my stomach hurts...)

Gene & Lew ~ thanks for sharing your beautiful lace with us! You are charming!!

Arco Gas Station ~ thank you, again, for the hilarious stickers. We can't make a trip south without stopping to see you!

Irishgirlieknits & Tapmouse2 ~ thank you for your help, hugs and humor. We love you both!

Steve and the webkins ~ thanks for the fun evenings! Always great to see you guys!

And finally, depravedDyer, thank you for trusting us with this awesome job. We love it and you, more than you can ever know!

Up next.......Sock Camp. If you have never been, this is something not be be missed! There are a few spaces still open (i can't believe it!) so run, don't walk and get yourself signed up. It's sure to be a Seussical experience!

I leave you with this:

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." ~Dr. Seuss

...it was the best of times, it was the best of times....

So I am finally home again from camp and have had a good night's sleep. I can now reflect on the past week and all of it's fun and insanity. I know that there were equal parts. Here they are.....
...fish tycoon.....a lot of fish tycoon......

...knitting campers......

...knitting, popcorn and movie night...

...brand new spinners.....(Yay, Alice!)

..."crab hands".....nice job Stormy!

...Sarah and her beautiful shawl, which she knit from her own spindle spun yarn....in 10 weeks (i told you there was insanity.....)

...lots of color.....(the one on the bottom is actually Angela's hair, pretty!)

special friends....Stephen and is mom, Ann......


...did I mention the color? These are MY hand dyed that I got to create with my beloved depraved dyer.....


...meet de-stoned........

...and peeking periwinkle.....

...of course, new knitted socks...these belong to irishgirlieknits....

and last but certainly not least....tearful good-byes.....

...i told you it was the best kind of fun and insanity.......sriously.........

...camp knitty ha-ha: first installment....

So the campers have gathered and the fun has begun.....

We are here with a lovely, wonderful group of people and it has been so good to see old friends and meet new ones. We've had sock stuff, yoga, great food, wine, dyeing and........

Joe's Crab Sack.

It is a class to make a project bag that I taught today. I think everyone had a good time and most everyone finished their bags. Anyway, my class responsibility is done at camp and now I can enjoy the campers and teachers even more.......if that's possible.

I did find this while looking out our window this afternoon.....

...the song "Someone to Watch Over Me" comes to mind........

...more to come tomorrow........

...stitches road trip: the final installment....

Tuesday was our final day on the road coming home from Stitches. We left Redding, CA in the morning, in the rain. By the time we got to Weed, CA, there was 3 inches of snow on the ground.

We did have chains in the van, but luckily we sailed up and over the pass (a little on the slow side) and down into Ashland, OR without having to put them on the tires. And you know what's in Ashland? That's right, our favorite gas station.

I told you there would be more on this in a later post.
Anyway, we first discovered this station on our trip south last year. We stopped for, of all things......GAS. It's the kind of place that you have to go inside to pay for your gas. The nice guy filled our tank, and I went in to settle up and what do I find? Only the best stickers in the world. See what you think....

...story of my life...

....uh huh......

....ever think about this?

...a special purchase for Hotflash, she lost the one she bought last year.....actually, I think someone stole it....

Seriously, the stickers there are the best. We bought others, but they have been "gifted" to friends before photos could be taken of them. Well, enough about the stickers......no wait, that is the best thing about the gas station! If you need to use the restroom while traveling through Ashland, OR......DO NOT STOP HERE...... I don't think it's been cleaned since the Carter administration.....just saying.....ick.......

But it is a must for sticker shopping.

All in all, it was a tremendous trip, great to see old friends and make new ones! I could not end this post without a thank you to several people.

1st ~ Ettamae - my co-pilot. Fun in the car and at the show! Thanks for sharing Bond with me, over and over and over again!

2nd ~ Nathania, Sandi and the gang at Purlescence - for bringing ALL of our stuff to the show, including the handcart that you have stored since last year, (Kevin, thanks for checking in on us!)for hosting us at the shop on Saturday night, for massages, hugs, smiles and friendship....oh yeah....cute baby, too!

3rd ~ irishgirlie and tapmouse...ladies, what can I say that would express how much you guys mean to me.....aside from the way you rocked the booth, you both have a very special place in my heart.......folding or no folding......mjiyn.......you know. Can't wait 'til camp...

4th ~ to each and every one of you wonderful knitters that came to the booth, endured the line, and smiled through it all. You guys made it more fun than work!

and last, but never least ~ depraved dyer~ for giving me the unbelievable opportunities that you have. If someone had told me 10 years ago that I would be in the extremely lucky position I am in now, I would have not believed it. You have taught me, trusted me, held and helped me. You are the sister that I never had. I mean that from the bottom of my extremely full heart. I am forever grateful. Thank you......

...stitches road trip: day three and four

Sorry that I didn't write yesterday....what a whirl wind.....

We are having the time of our lives! Soooooo glad to have irishgirlie and tapmouse with us to help sort out the insanity! These two lovelies have been a godsend! And speaking of irishgirlie and tapmouse.....they came bearing gifts! Check these beauties out.......



such wonderfulness......

and these (of which i have eaten my body weight in and if you have ever seen me you know that a *?>&^ load )



okay, other than the fantastic food and gifts, these two have cemented their place as "bff" in our book!

Other highlights from the past two day have been.....

Lucy and her fab tattoo!

...our first customer of the event, Jan!

...snail on a rail...

..detox before.....



...and after.....(don't ask)


nathania and ellie

...wondermike and adrienne....

...there is much more to tell but my little brain is full and i need to go night-night.....until tomorrow.....such a good day.....in so many ways.......

...stitches road trip: day two

...luggage: check, car keys: check, Starbucks: check, gps directions: check. We got on the road this morning and traveled a whopping 46 miles before we HAD TO STOP! This was truly a necessity after last year........

...really, if you ever have the chance to stop here, DO IT! If you can dream it, they can stuff it in an olive..........(that didn't sound right.....)

Anyway, so meet our new bff.........this is Mallory.....

...she let us taste like a gagillion different olives, well maybe three or four.....but anyway, a couple hundred dollars later (did I mention the case of olive pickers?...ask Tina about this) we were back in the van and on our way to Santa Clara.

We arrived at the hotel, dumped our stuff, including the olives, and tennis-shoe-ed it over to the convention center. We spent the next 6 hours opening boxes, putting up fixtures, opening boxes, sorting out sock yarn, opening boxes.....you get the idea. As our beloved depraved dyer said, "MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF YARN".

We ended the day with a bottle of our favorite wine, and American Idol! What a day! Tomorrow evening, the market opens........god help us......

...wounded sockateer...

Thought I would give everyone the heads up regarding hotflash.......

(this is us at the cabin last summer.....in our pjs.)

A week ago yesterday she had surgery for a torn rotator cuff. OUCH! I saw her yesterday (she had those same jammies on) and she is coming along great. She said she might even try some knitting!?!? I know that she would love to hear from you so drop her a line here . I'm not sure how she injured herself but I have a sneaking suspicion that processing all of those VISA slips at Stitches last might have something to do with it! Get well, Hotflash, we love you!