More of the 4th, and Happy Birthday, Sis!

Yep, my beautiful sister just missed being a firecracker. :-) This year she's spending "her" day with her boyfriend; happy, happy!
Here are some shots of our own private fireworks show last night. I just love taking pictures of fireworks - and my boy!
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Happy Fourth of July!

Since Rick is on emergency call for the holiday weekend, we didn't make our annual trek to Cowboy Campmeeting, being held this year outside of Republic, WA. Instead, we have found family fun closer to home. Rick and Brian have set off some firecrackers a few evenings this week, and last night we attended the St. Paul Rodeo, which features great fireworks at the end of every performance.
Brian really wanted to ride the mechanical bull and we got there in just enough time to grant his wish. I was rather surprised at how well he did - not that I want to encourage my son to be a rodeo cowboy!
We had seats way up in the bleachers, but I still managed to get some actions shots with my trusty little Fujifilm camera (click to biggify a bit):
Today we headed over to Willamette Mission State Park for the Civil War battle reenactments and living history exhibits they hold there every year. The last time we went Brian was quite small, and the cannon fire frightened him. This year, he was a six-year-old in his element - although he still had to cover his ears for the cannon fire.
A highlight for Brian from our visit to yesteryear was finding this holster for his cap pistol. Ever since Rick got him the cap gun, Brian has informed us that he NEEDS a holster, but we couldn't find "just" a holster anywhere. But a history reenactment camp is just the place for such gear. (Brian also found all sorts of munitions he thought he needed, and I tried on a gorgeous velvet and lace cape, but we only left with the holster.)

Tonight Brian gets to stay up late to set off the "pretty" fireworks in the dark, and we'll be able to see St. Paul's big display from a distance. I hope your Independence Day celebrations were wonderful, too. Ours is a great country, in spite of its many problems!
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There is no good position....

So much for hoping the "it" boys would be feeling better today!

It's been awhile since I've posted any knitting news. Here is what I finished last night:My third Baby Surprise Jacket is a gift knit made out of chenille. I finished knitting it on the way to Mexico, but didn't get to the seaming and buttons until this week.

I started this half-size version of the Himalayan Tote while in Mexico. I'm working on the body of a second one, then will do the i-cord handles for both and line them. They will make cute little handbags for my friend's Fijian/Indian daughters' Christmas gifts.

I still work on the Scarf of Miserable Yarn here and there; it's already a nice length and I don't have that much yarn left. Maybe I should make myself finish that project before casting on a lace scarf of this lovely stuff:The reds and blues and sparklies remind me of the Fourth of July; it has been so much fun to spin! I finished the last of the three bumps yesterday; now I need to wind it into a center-pull ball and ply it. I think it will be just as much fun to knit with as it was to spin. I also need to wash the skeins of my "spinning tutorial" yarn; there's probably enough of that for a shawl, not just a scarf.

Yesterday I ordered two knitting books from Amazon, Viking Patterns for Knitting: Inspiration and Projects for Today's Knitter, by
Elsebeth Lavold, and Knitting Cuff to Cuff (Twelve Sweaters One Way), by Susan Guagliumi. I rarely buy knitting books and magazines; the few I have contain more patterns and inspiration than I can probably get to in my lifetime. But I had put the second book on my wish list after knitting the side-to-side Sonnet and enjoying that technique very much. Then at BSG I saw a beautiful sweater in the fiber arts competition with the most unusual hem. I really wanted to learn how it was done, so I wrote down the creator's phone number off the entry tag and called her this week. The pattern she used was from Viking Patterns. Buying both books qualified me for free shipping; how could I pass that up?

Getting Shetland sheep was definitely a slippery slope . . . a very slippery, fiber-covered slope. Whee!

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Last ram standing

That would be Braveheart standing proud and intact, while his three sons nurse their wounds. Rick made time to "wetherize" them today, so I'm keeping an eye on them. I am hoping that by tomorrow they will have mostly forgotten about their trauma, and can start enjoying the life of a much-loved fiber pet without the hassles of hormones.

Speaking of fiber, I had to take another look at Brava's fleece while in with the sheep. This is what her crimpy, velvety, "chocolate mousse" wool looks like under her coat:If you're a spinner, I'll bet you're salivating now, right? :-)

I think Rechel's most alluring feature is her big, beautiful eyes set in a refined head. I might possibly be trading Rechel for a ewe with polled genetics, and I have to admit, she will be hard to part with. But if she goes, it will be to an excellent home. We'll see what happens....

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