Isn't She Beautiful!!

Night before last we got to experience the full moon in eclipse.
Our daughter Kate came to visit that evening...what a blessing ;)
*we had an
She & her Dad got up and watched the moon in it's full splendor!!

Michael took pictures that are awesome and I wanted to share them with you!

I am in awe and admiration of the Moon. I have great respect for the beauty of her and the power she commands in our lives!

The Moon represents our emotions and how important it is that we honor ourselves and our feelings.
The eclipse allows us to release certain aspects in our lives that are no longer necessary.....To Let Go of those things that no longer serve us....that....perhaps....we have been holding on to!
It's also a time of personal reflection....it's an opportunity for us to shed and then grow! Not perhaps the easiest thing to do...but necessary!!
I hope that each of us will take a few minutes to check into our lives and do what the Moon just showed us how to do.....go inside, cover up, check for wounds....release...and then come out Shining!!

Consumate Eye Candy!!

Do I have a treat for you!!
My good friend Pat Fly of Angora Valley Fibers asked me if I would like to take a very special treat with me to The Fabulous Fiber Festival.....Ofcourse I said YES Indeedy!! What's up, pray tell?

Pat's lovely Daughter Liz has been dyeing this incredible yarn...but wait, not just dyeing it...knitting it up on their sock machine, then dyeing it, frogging it and skeining it up....and Boy oh Boy is it beeeutiful!! Needless to say, Each one is a "one of a kind" treasure!!
The people at Fab Fiber couldn't keep their hands off of them I am pleased to say!
AND.....
I do have some skeins left and I wanted to offer them to you before I merrily take them off to be sold at Oregon Flock & Fiber coming up here in a few weeks (September 22-23) in Canby Oregon.


NO ONE will ever have another pair of socks just like the ones that can be made from this yarn. There's 4.5 oz in each skein...it's Sock Weight Merino Wool..."Machine wash cold, dry in the dryer"....7-8 stitches per 1".

The price is $24.99 (plus shipping, around $3.00 for 1 skein).....a steal!
You can email me at smernst@juno.com to order!

This young woman has a beautiful color sense, as you can see.....gets that gene from her Mom I suspect!
Unfortunately my photography of the yarn doesn't show how wonderfully rich the colors are....So you will be even happier when you receive your yarn!

Thanks to all who wrote in about my tooth adventure in Santa Monica! Your kindness lifted my Spirits and warmed my Heart ;)

I will have another post in the next day or two to tell you all about our trip home.

Keep good thoughts....I go off to get lovingly tortured by our sweet dentist tomorrow afternoon!

Accounts of a Wayward Traveler

We have returned from our venture to Santa Monica & The Fabulous Fiber Festival of 2007.
The show was lovely...loads of wonderful people who came by the booth sharing with us their time & we were blessed with profits for the hungry bank account. Thankfully!!
Here's our booth lay out...with Michael pontificating to two interested customers.....wonder what he's saying?? Any guesses?

Our booth was positioned right next to Lisa & Rod of Lisa Souza Knitwear & Dyeworks....our good Buds!
That was quite a blessing for many reasons!



The set-up went well and we were happy with our efforts as we left on Thursday night....ate at Poncho's Tacos on Lincoln.....one of our very favorite haunts when in Santa Monica.
Our Hotel was great and we settled in to channel surf on the television.....falling fast, fast asleep.

Friday went well....here's a view from the booth of the beginnings of the show on Friday....lots of people came & I even got to help some of them feel comfortable about knitting "their own way". I knit Combination Knitting which is rather different from the way a lot of people knit & I loved being able to pass some information on.
By the time that closing came we were all whipped! Michael & I went back to the Hotel...Michael got us Sushi at Chez Ralph's Market...yumm!!

Saturday was difficult! I awoke with the left side of my mouth swollen and was in a bit of pain....having been a dental assistant..in a long ago life....I knew that I had an abscess and was "in trouble".
Michael held down the fort at the show and I held my cheek...downing ibuprofen until I could no longer take the pain.....I called our dentist at home in Eugene....angels sang and the heavens opened with joy when she said that she would call in a prescription of penicillin and vicodin...can you say AHHHHHHHHH ;)....I went back to the Hotel with pills in hand and flopped down on the bed! Lisa & Rod kindly bringing Michael home to me.

Sunday I held court in the van....Michael again held down the booth once again...no one *believe me* wanted to see my swollen face and droopy eyes!! I had visitors...thanks Ladies.....both of my children called me...out of the blue....and I happily knitted in my vicodin stupor...sleeping along the way. It was really quite pleasant...under the circumstances.
When it was time to break-down I helped as I felt good enough to do it!

So, My Dears, that's my story...and I'm gonna stick by it!
Thanks for sticking by Me!!
*I'm much better now & I have an appointment on Monday to see our Angel Dentist Molly*

Stay tuned for the trip home ;)

The Fabulous Fiber Festival Cometh

Tomorrow Michael and I leave for the Fabulous Fiber Fest in Santa Monica, CA...my old stomping grounds!

This is a lovely show! Last year we enjoyed it Very Much!

I LOVE Santa Monica!! I know where the good places to eat are, it's warm and sunny most of the times & I am getting to be with marvelous friends!


Lisa Souza and her husband Rod....with her beautiful yarns!!


Melissa from Peace of Yarn but only to visit!!

Carolina Homespun and their wonderful crew!!

To Name only a few....if I had more time I'd name them all!


But you will have to come by and see for yourself....if you are in the area...and if not, I will write about it when we get home.


Oh yeah....AND there will be a few tricks up our Ernst sleeves as well!! We have been working hard these past few days to get things together for a great showing!

* Thanks to all of you who have sent good thoughts to us about Tim and his family...our family...we truly appreciate them*

Ernst's Wild Ride

It's quiet now but this past few days have been anything but!!
On Tuesday Michael, Jennyrose & I went up to have a visit with our Oldest daughter, Rebecca & our Grand daughter, Siobhan.
It was a nice trip up to Portland, on a beautiful sunny day.
Michael & I haven't seen Siobhan or Rebecca for a year....for Jennyrose..it's been much longer....five to be exact.


Rebecca went into labor the day of Jennyrose's 16th birthday...and our little Lambie was born the day after.....so....I *knew* that they would get along like two Bulls in a china shop...being Taurus & all....and that they did!! Never more than 3 feet away from each other ;)


We had 2 Award Winning days!!!!!



We went to the park, had a picnic & played for hours on the swing, jungle gyms,
slides and where-with-all.

Siobhan is a person of many faces. She is a total JOY 100% of the time!

We got a Hotel room with a Pool....so after the park fun wore thin we jetted on over to the Hotel...Jennyrose and Siobhan spent an hour in the pool & then there was fun and games (provided by Grandma & Jennyrose) in the Hotel room.
Siobhan organized all of her clothes in the drawers, hung up her clothes...& put all of her toiletries out in the bathroom...reminding me that this was only behavior that was necessary for her in a Hotel room.
We ate pizza for dinner, played with paper dolls and pop beads and had a good time just being there together. Looking forward to more fun the next day.....more pool, more park!!

Behind the scenes was a very difficult situation.....Rebecca's long time mate, Tim....was dying.
He had had major surgery the week before and was to be recovering....BUT....that's not what happened. There were complications with the procedure that were too extensive to detail & during the time that we had Siobhan he left the Earth.
Rebecca was with many close mutual friends during his passing.

We feel honored to have been able to take care of Siobhan...buffering the pain until Rebecca was ready.
Bitter Sweet!

Jennyrose is home for a 10 day visit....& we got the added bonus of having Kate come for brunch this past Thursday. For me this is pure Love at it's finest.
Yeah...yeah....I'm a Softy for these young women...I know....but just look at them...what Beauties!!

These are the flowers that Kate brought home with her....they are pretty spectacular too!