Maryland Sheep and Wool 2007

Wow!  I can't believe it is over already!  I start looking forward to it around March and then the day finally arrives, and after so much anticipation, here I am blogging about it after it is over!

The day started early here; 6:00 am.  Robyn met me out front at 7:30 and we piled into The Beast (The Brit's Chevy Suburban) and headed to get gas and then out to the Park and Ride to pick up Lisa, Deanna, Kelly and Barb (Kelly's mom).  Though driving The Beast makes me a little nervous, it handles well and I love the fact that all seven of us can ride together!  Then it was off to the Howard County Fairgrounds for the festival!

The fairgrounds are incredibly busy for this event and people were just piling through the entrance.  The two things I love about this festival, other than the wonderful girls I get to attend it with, are the animals and the bargains.  We headed first to the booth where I got the wonderful price on Alpaca wool last year and sure enough, 2.95 a skein again this year!  I only bought one bag this year, though that has nothing to do with the fact that I have never knitted up last years Alpaca yet!  As always, this vendor has the longest line of the day, but well worth it!


From left to right, Barb, Kelly and Lisa, waiting in line to pay for their bargains.

The animals are always such a joy and this year we even got to see lambs!


       Five week old lambs


Even littler lambs, though no one was available to ask how old they were.

After paying for the yarn, Lisa had a great spot for me!  I love angels, and though I don't much collect them anymore for lack of room, I had to have this little gal:


She's knitting purple yarn!  Is that me or what?

And do any of you remember last year when I spoke of the woman who so closely resembled her Llamas??  Well, the photo is not the greatest as I decided against asking her to pose with her pets, so I had to pretend to take a picture of Lisa.  So, the llamas:



And the owner:


You really can't tell how long her neck is in this
picture due to the sweater, but trust me on this one...

We stopped for lunch and Shelley was so in the mood for her lamb gyro:



         She is so going to hate me for this picture.

And Deanna was positively beaming all day, because guess what??  She got engaged!  Sorry for not thinking of taking a picture of her beautiful ring!


                                     Beaming Deanna

We made a point to wander into the building that contained the awards for the show so far and we experienced some incredible work in knitting and photography.  But this little guy was sadly missed when the awards were being handed out:


                                    Best hair-do in show

So by the end of the day, besides a shirt, a mug and a pair of circular needles, I had purchased this:


From left to right: wool/mohair/silk blend (I love the color!) alpaca
and alpaca. Imagine that.

What I wish I could have brought home...well, to my other home that I don't own yet, but would like to one day, which is really more like a farm...in my alternate reality, was this:


                      The adorableness of Alpacas

And this:


               The fluffy silkiness of an Angora Rabbit

So all in all, a great day, with great company and mucho knitting finds!

Approximately 364 days until MDSW 2008!