I'm back!

I took a very long holiday weekend and travelled to South Dakota to visit the family. It was a very nice time. My mom actually cooked me a meal for my birthday (she hardly ever cooks - her husband is the main cook in the family) and we ate out a few times at places I hadn't been to before and quite enjoyed. My sister, my niece and I went to the Science Museum that is in the building that used to be my high school. The hallways and stairways, etc. still look the same, so it was quite the sense of deja vu. Here's my niece in an astronaut's suit:



As you can see, she recently lost her two front teeth and looks adorable! I also got a chance to see my other sister and her mom (my dad's second wife, who I call my step-mom as we lived with her and dad for 10 years growing up). I also got to play with my sister's extremely cute and affectionate dalmation. He was so cuddly and loved playing catch with me. It really made me miss Finbar. Fiona isn't too cuddly and she doesn't play any doggie games, so I miss that kind of stuff. Actually, Fiona was instantly attached to my uncle, Pat. She would sit right next to him and never barked at him and took food very gently from his hand or let him pet her all he wanted. Pat used to have two Yorkies, so I guess she sensed he's a guy that loves little dogs, but it seems odd that she liked him better than me, who she lives with! The mysteries of the dog mind.

I was very excited to see this display in my step-mom's recently re-decorated bathroom:



You probably don't recognize them, but the middle one is the card I made her last year for Mother's Day and the one on the right is the card I made her this year for Mother's Day. The one on the left is the birthday card I sent her. Yes, I sent her the same card for both Mother's Day and her birthday this year. I'm such a dope! However, I guess it turned out well since it makes a nice little wall art. She and I also went to the Butterfly House together, but I was a complete idiot and didn't have my camera with me - we hadn't planned on stopping there. This blue butterfly from a photo on their website was my favorite of the many different butterflies - I'd highly recommend checking it out if you're in Sioux Falls.



In the evening we watched the fireworks at the local fairgrounds. It was a really nice display - I love fireworks! My niece and sister lit off a few of the smaller ones while we were waiting:



Before I left town, I made a few stops at some local shops. I know I'm on a yarn-buying moratorium, but I made a few exceptions. When I'm in Sioux Falls, I like to stop in their yarn shop, Yarn Knit, and buy something to support them. For years there was no good yarn to be had in the home of "Knitters" magazine. I'd like to keep that from re-occuring, so I try to do my part. I picked up this sock yarn because I love the pretty pink and I haven't used Wildfoote in a while:



I also picked up a couple of skeins of some Blue Sky Alpaca Silk. I've been eyeing this yarn for a long time and finally decided to just go ahead and get some. It's wonderful:



I'll share the rest of my purchases with y'all next time.