Good Bye Thanksgiving Hello Christmas

The last of the left overs were eaten today. Anything not eaten was thrown away, which wasn't much. We had a busy four days and I am looking forward to a normal week again, if I ever have normal weeks.

Most of my shopping is done, all I have to do is wrap. This gives me time to bake and enjoy the holidays. Our knitting luncheon is in a week and I am really looking forward to it.

I went to the movies with my daughter and two nieces, we saw Burlesque, a very good movie I must say. It kept your interest the whole time and seeing Cher sing is worth the admission. Boy I wish I looked half that good. I know it may be plastic surgery, but more power to her.

I want to see the Yogi Bear movie, it looks really good and entertaining. I also want to see Harry Potter.

I love this cold weather and hope it stays. I will be getting the inside of the house decorated for Christmas, my husband has already done the outside.

I recommend you listen to The Knitwits podcast it is very funny, with a husband and wife team. Their opening theme is the I Love Lucy theme, so that should tell you how good it is. Brenda Dane is back podcasting at CastOn, give her a listen.

Well it is off to finish some Christmas knitting, see you soon.

SAFONA, New Holland, PA

SAFONA, New Holland, PA

What a wonderful day Louise and I had. We went to the SAFONA Fiber Festival in New Holland, PA. It was mostly Alpaca and just wonderful.

I bought my first drop spindle and got a quick lesson. I was doing great there, but when I got home it didn't work as well. I will have to go to the KnitPicks website, they have a great tutorial.

Of course I had to buy yarn, the funny thing is it wasn't Alpaca, it was cotton from Wolle's (a German pronunciation, V oo lees). The pictures show the three skeins I bought, one is for a Christmas present swap. I also have pictured my drop spindle and roving, I picked up a small pack of Alpaca to spin.

My feet should be warm, I picked up two pairs of Alpaca socks for $19.00, what a great bargain. The last picture are some of the vendors business cards. We also discovered an Alpaca Farm which is right in our neck of the woods in Thurmont. It is KenDen Alpacas, run by Kenny and Denise Favorite, their phone number is 301-271-3399. They said you can see their farm going up Rt 15 towards Emmitsburg, it across the road from Catoctin Mountain Orchards off Roddy Road.

It is so beautiful in Lancaster. We saw many horse and buggies, but I didn't get any pictures, maybe next time.

Of course we had to visit some local yarns stores. If you have ever heard of Old Susanna's, it is exactly as everyone has said. Yarns piled to the ceiling, small pathways through the yarn and tables of patterns. No rhyme or reason, but I am told she knows where everything is and can find it in an instant. I would only go back if there was a yarn I couldn't find anywhere else or that was discontinued, if they made it she has it. All I can say is Interesting.

Louise and I then went to "Kitnit Fine Yarns" on Old Hickory Road in Lancaster, PA. What a wonderful store. It is small but has the most beautiful samples and yarns. We both of course had to buy several patterns each, I also picked up buttons for my Moms sweater.

Our last stop was Christmas Tree Hill at the Mansion. There are several of these stores in MD, Hagerstown is the closest, but none like this one. It is housed in a sprawling old Mansion, decorated for Christmas all year long. We found some great ornaments, but they also carry Department 56 and beautiful furniture. I got some Christmas shopping done and could have spent a lot more.

Wow two posts in less then 2 days, how am I going to keep up this pace.

Happy Thanksgiving

Gee, I didn't realize how long it had been since I last posted. Things as always are busy, and my back has kept me down for awhile. My knitting is coming along. I finished the sweater for my Mom all it needs is the button. I am knitting a scarf for my sister it is suppose to be a simple two row pattern, the pattern on one row and purling on the other. For some reason I have had to rip it out 3 times and have had to tink several times because I was doing the pattern row on a purl side. I have now put a stitch marker on the purl side so I hope this helps.

Life is life. Prayer is the answer, especially when you can't do anything. Mom is a lot better then she has been, she is not shaking as much and her confusion seems to have cleared up. The Dr. today said the PET scan and MRI showed everything is fine. I wish the same could be said for my sister. She is getting a divorce and her husband is being,let say not very nice or very nasty, I have other words for him, but I won't put them here. He is in Minnesota with their two daughters and she is back here trying to find a job. He had agreed to let her bring the girls back here with her, but of course didn't keep that promise. As I said he is very nasty.

It is coming into cold weather which makes me very happy, but it is not getting cold enough or soon enough.

I will try and post more often. TTFN