Found Upon My Doorstep!

Look what arrived when no one was looking!

My elusive missing suitcase made it home from Australia - everything intact just the way I left it.

Stuffed to the brim - everything rolled tightly and packed like sardines.

When checking in at Alice Springs for our return flights home I was a bit on edge that I would be overweight and I was already making plans on what I could quickly extract from within and stash in my backpack for the flights home....

I was one kilo UNDER!!  Whooowhooo!  And then the thought of....you mean :I could have crammed in 4 more fat quarters?" crossed my mind and I immediately regretted what I had left behind at the fabric store. LOL.

I brought home lovely neutrals from Hobart.

It's fun seeing things that are different from what I see at home.

Our visit to the Quarter Inch in Hobart!

Click to Play:

Such a cute shop!

Our suitcases became a bit heavier, and a lot happier this day!

Me and shop owner Helen Stubbings!

Yes, I think we could be sisters.

I met up with another stitching sister in Melbourne who offered to take me around on our free day.  Meet Alex!

We first headed over to the botanical gardens - so beautiful.

There is something about getting out where the sun is warm and the flowers are blooming when it's the dead of winter at home.  It's a reprieve.  It's so good for my soul.

We had lunch, we walked around.  We got lost as to which exit was closest to her car.  We walked some more.  LOL!

Soaking up more vitamin D! (With sunscreen of course!)

As the afternoon got hotter we headed over to the museum to cool off and see what we could see.  This photo is for my grandson - 

This photo is also for Casden.

When I was little we lived in San Jose, California and we would go up to San Francisco on the weekends and wander the museums...I have always loved museums.

And what did Nana get for Casden from the museum?  I package of "dinosaur poop."  Of course it's candy but knowing how nearly -9 year old boys love anything farty poopy and gross - it's going to be a hit, I'm sure.

And this display.  Awesome!

Why the kangaroo and the emu??  Because they can't move backwards.  They can only go forwards.  So they are always heading toward progress and the future.  I love this.

Aussie Birthday Stash!

That Alex was over the top with the gift bag, let me tell you.  But what a way to spend my 63rd birthday!

All of these pieces are Aussie related.  From kangaroos to boomerangs and everything in between.

These are the things in my suitcase I was so mad to be missing. Forget the clothes or toiletries. Who cares about those?

It's the souvenirs, the remembrances, the FABRIC!

All the Aussie cities!

So many more places on my bucket list that I've yet to visit.

(And it's a neutral so I'll be cutting into this soon!)

And it all came in this bag made by Alex!

Of course, I'm happy to see these home too.  I spent 3 weeks making the fill in side sections for my current eternal hexis project.

And the fill-in top/bottom sections.

I would hate to have to take the time to remake all of these!  These are the "boring" bits that just fill in at the sides around the motifs - now I can stack them back and use them as needed as I work on assembling more rows.

With the way I am feeling there is bound to be loads of Rage Quilting over the next several years.

I'm digging in.

Quiltville Quote of the Day -

Fabric acquisition during ones birthday month is exempt from all self-imposed restrictions.

At least that is what I'm going with.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!