Rhinebeck part 2

So, finally here is the long awaited final chapter of the Rhinebeck story. Where did I leave off?

Sunday morning we woke up and went to the Ihop on the way to the fair grounds (as everyone else apparently did) and got pumpkin pancakes, eggs, and hash browns. This prompted me to come home and attempt to make some pumpkin pancakes of my own, and that's when I realized that I should have put some sugar in the batter...because the pancakes just weren't good with all those spices in the batter and no sugar. Anyway, after loading up on protein and carbs, we got back on the road to Rhinebeck, getting a better look at the sights and wondering why I wasn't taking any pictures from the car to show how pretty Upstate NY is in the fall.

We got to the fair and started about 10:30am, looking for vendors that we missed the first day and with hopes for knitting on the Big Sock again (didn't happen). We spent more time with the larger commercial companies this time, and finally found the authors tent where I had my copy of The Big Book of Yarn signed by Clara Parkes (in the pink sweater, right next to Lily Chin in the purple sweater) who has to be the nicest person I've ever met! She graciously agreed to sign my copy, but only if I would take my coat off and show her the FLS I was wearing, lol. So I did, and she complemented me on the color (which those of you in my knitting group will know I was concerned about). She was so cool that I bought her new book, The Big Book of Wool which she also signed, and tossed in a butterfly of yarn for good luck! She was sitting right next to Lily Chin, and on the other side of the hall was Veronik Avery who I stood right in front of (under the auspices of looking through her book) and was too afraid to speak to her. Idiot. So instead, I took stalker photos of the authors from afar.
We made it over to the booths and I picked up a copy of the Fantasy Thigh-High Stockings by Diane Kostecki, and drooled over everything else (see yesterday's comments on the glass "don't-drop spindles"). I also bought two skeins of Socks That Rock: Shadow in medium weight, and Muckity Muck in light weight (which is much more of a shiny deep burnt orange/rust that is looks online). I also bought a signed copy of The Enchanted Sole by Janel Laidman from the same booth. I picked up a glass shawl pin from the Moving Mud booth, a skein of wool/alpaca sock yarn from Oasis Farm Fiber Mill in burgundy, 4 oz of Surino roving in Sage from Flaggy Meadow Fiber Works (70% Suri Alpaca/30% Merino) and 4 oz of 100% Cormo roving from Foxhill Farm (located in Lee, MA) in the natural dark chocolate brown, a skein of Beaches sock yarn from Creatively Dyed in Cardiff (gorgeous black/red), and a skein of Malabrigo Sock in Abril (very bottom left).

At lunch time we went to the Ravelry lunch meet-up again, and this time I met Patti who came up and chatted with me about how I was the only person who was actually knitting, and we got to be friends in no time. Next thing we know, we're standing right next to Jess (Mama Rav), Mary Heather (Do-Gooder), Sara (Hostess with the Mostest), and Ysolda Teague (in the yellow hat over my left shoulder). I found an opening this time and we chatted for a bit, then I worked in the photo op (and was told that they don't let people just take their photos...people have to be in the photo with them, lol...like that was some kind of punishment or something.) So we got a great photo, and a few not so good ones due to back-lighting issues, but that just meant that I got to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with greatness for longer than necessary. It was then and there that I decided that Ravelry is not only the best place on Earth for knitters, but that I had to have a Vivian or I'd die (see earlier post about how they were everywhere, and looked great on everyone).

We went through some more of the barns where I got my basket from a great little farm where they make organic goat milk soaps, and I threw out my receipt so I can't tell you who it was but they were the cutest little things ever.

Finally, after a long weekend of walking all over God's creation, Heather and I were spent. She was tired and fought through being sick, and my back had had enough so we called it and headed back through the sea of vehicles to find her little black Honda and get on the road. We decided to head further North and see what would happen, and were pleased to see that we could get home two hours faster than we got there. We went through the Adirondacks and came down through Massachusetts, into Rhode Island by way of Woonsocket on 146 till we got back into our neck of the woods at about 6:45pm. I was beat, excited about my new stuff, and couldn't wait to show my husband my photos but that all had to wait because I had a baby waiting for me at the door when I got home. Aaron let him stay up and wait for me to come home because he missed Momma, and I haven't been able to peel him off of me since.