A little help from my friends

While I've been embroiled in the great Bee Fields dyeing project of 2007, my birthday sort of came and went with a whimper.  Thank you all for the lovely email birthday well wishes.  They were very appreciated and gave me a smile even while I was feeling....ahem... a little stressed with the several hundred orders for the Bee Fields shawl.  We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel (I hope) finally!

Saturday, Miriam volunteered to come down and help skein, which she did and what a HUGE difference that made.  D and I shipped about 65 kits out this weekend.  Woot!  After we dropped Mim at the train station, we headed north for a better-late-than-never birthday celebration with Margene at her place.  She and Smith fete'ed me in grand style with wine, a fantastic sweet potato dish, and chocolate birthday cake.  (Had I mentioned that Margene took her own 2-night turn at the skeinwinder at the beginning of this whole dyeing extravaganza?  I'm sure I did, but it is worth mentioning again, because that also was a HUGE help.)  And what would be a birthday without a few presents?

Thanks to Ravelry and her stash queue, Margene knew just what yarn I coveted from her stash, so she thoughtfully picked up a couple of skeins to add to mine.

Clockwise, from the top: Chocolate-covered sunflower seeds, a wonderful hand-made card (complete with cowgirl boot!!), hand-made soap - the lip balm from the Pioneer Soap Company is already on my nightstand, and finally, 2 skeins of Claudia Handpaint.  The colorway is Purple earth and worth a closeup shot, me thinks........

We had a lovely evening that went by far too fast.  Thanks Margene!!! 

AND, if that wasn't enough belated birthday fun, at the end of the week, I got a package in the mail from Virtual Yarns, which wasn't exactly a surprise, as I ordered it for myself, but I used birthday gift monies from my mum and Da. I picked up a kit for Alice Starmore's Birdsfoot Wrap in the Capercaille colorway, which is a sort of rich, tweedy brownish-burgundy color in their Hebridian 2-ply. 

(For those of you who wonder at the whole gift/purchase of yarns for someone whose entire front living room is packed with boxes of yarn, both coming and going, I say pffftttthhhh.  You obviously haven't been working your obsession hard enough.  So there.)

All for now......

Comments

[margene]

I knit Birdsfoot several years ago and LOVED IT! I need a new one (mine was lost):-(

It was so much fun to have you over for dinner. We've got to do it more often!!

[Marcia Cooke]

Mea culpa! Margene TOLD me it was your birthday, and on the way over to wish you Happies, I, um, got distracted and totally forgot! So, Happy Birthday, and hopes that you will soon be coming up for air!

[Carole]

Happy belated birthday!

[Mary Lou]

Happy Birthday - I just had mine on Thursday! If it interests you, here's a link to some pictures of spreading the equine love:
http://incaknits.blogspot.com/2007/07/girl-two-boys-and-holley.html

[Sheepish Annie]

I'm so glad you were able to celebrate your birthday in style. I can't imagine having to dye and skein all that yarn! Thank goodness for willing helpers. I think you've more than earned the celebration. In fact, in your shoes, I'd probably extend it for oh, say, a couple of weeks... ;)

[vanessa]

capercaille, yummmmmmm!

[Nicole]

You had me cracking up with the whole pffftttthhhh/so there comment! There's totally a difference between all the yarn in your front room, which is business oriented and probably has many associations with a somewhat stressful time and yarn that you order because you love it and want to make something beautiful with it. So there. It's not hard to understand.

I'm jealous about the purple earth yarn. It's one of the Claudia handpaint yarns I've had my eye on ever since Margene first showed it off on her blog. I love it!

[Laurie]

Birdsfoot is in my stash and edging up closer and closer. I, for one, did not question for even a microsecond, this round robin of stash in, yarn out, yarn in. Looks okay to me.

[Kim]

haha! I completely understand that obsession....LOL! I have always wanted to try one of Alice's kits. I can't wait to see yours worked up.

[Karen]

It sounds like a wonderful birthday! Glad things are starting to lighten up for you!

[Chris]

Ha! Love that "pffftttthhhh" - as one who buys yarn and fleeces and even sometimes other folks angora even as all that fiber grows out in the back yard, I agree. Birthday yarn when the house is full of yarns is appropriate. Glad you had such a happy! Now if I could just figure out how to mail a bunny....

[Cathy]

Glad you had a great belated birthday! Hopefully you and the Diggster can hit the trails soon.

[knitnana]

gorgeous yarn! Happy birthday again (and late)!
What would we do without our gal pals?
(((hugs)))

[Judy]

Who'd be so silly as to question that? Happy Birthday.
BTW, the skeinwinder was mailed Saturday.

[Beth S.]

But of course... your house may be full of yarn, but it's *different* yarn. ;-)

Happy belated! Hope it was a good day. :-)

[Liz]

Happy Belated and look what fun you are having!

[June]

I really don't think there should be any other type of gift for the fiber fanatic (ahem, meaning me, not necessarily you!) I can't wait to see future pictures of the stole in progress! Thanks for the note on my blog with regard to the stretching factor - it has eased my mind! Happy belated birthday, and Many More!

[Carol]

Happy Birthday Anne! Many many more!!!

[Margaret]

Is the expression Coals to Newcastle appropriate here?
Glad you had a wonderful birthday!

[Teri S.]

The Capercaille is gorgeous. And so is the yarn for the Bee Fields shawl; the photos don't do it justice. I'm glad you had a good birthday, despite it being belated. I'd come help skein if I lived in Utah.

[anne]

aww i'm so glad you got to celebrate! i'm finally catching up on blogs a little.