Four years ago today....

Tony and I got married in Rarotonga....

Back from California...

Oh well we returned to reality yesterday.  Had a fabulous time, but it's always good to be home in your own bed.  It's a little cooler here...we had temps in the 30s (C) every day, so a bit of a shock to come back to 14 degrees C.  The first couple of days we just cruised and shopped and looked around. We were staying at the Hyatt in Anaheim so there were lots of things within walking distance.  It seems a lot cheaper there in the supermarkets, but meals out aren't once you add in 20% for the tip.  Took a while to get used to tipping, but we eventually got the hang of it. I never knew who to tip and who not to tip, so we just winged it. Didn't get any rotten fruit thrown at us, so we must have done it ok. 

Janet and Clara (2 fabulous women I had met online through a quilting board) picked me up on Sunday and we went to M & L Fabrics in Anaheim. What an amazing store and so cheap. I picked up a few bargains ;) Actually after my shopping spree here, I needed to buy another suitcase to get the fabric home!

Clara ready and raring to go with her trolley

Janet hunting for bargains!

The 3 of us after the shopping trip

The next 3 days were taken up with Disneyland and California Adventure Park.  Fastpass is fantastic...certainly saved queuing for hours.  So many fabulous rides and things to see, but exhausting. 

Just before the fun started!! 

Pluto was gorgeous and really acted his part well 

World of Color Show...amazing!! All done with lights and water 

Just inside the entrance

On Thursday, we headed up to LA. Certainly had a different feeling to Anaheim. Our hotel was right behind the Kodak Theater so perfect for just strolling down to Hollywood Boulevard. Everyone there was just trying to make a buck.  Michale Jackson's star on the Walk of Fame was certainly the most popular by far.  We went to Universal Studios on Friday. I preferred this to Disneyland and will never view movies in the same way again!! 

Hannah's new boyfriend

Just resting up under the famous sign!

Chilling with the Simpsons!

From the set of Desperate Housewives. They were filming while we were there.

On Saturday and Sunday we shopped.  Just happened to stumble into a little shoe shop...

A few purchases...Thought we were quite restrained.

So goodbye LA...

Blissful times

I have had my Bliss quilt all basted and ready to quilt for the past couple of weeks but have just not had the time to do it.  I really want to FMQ it, but am a little worried I will make a complete disaster of it.  This is one of my favourite fabric ranges, so am not willing to settle for second best with it!!

On another note, in 3 days time we are heading to Disneyland, CA for 10 days!!! Well Disneyland for 4 days and LA for 4 days, but with the time difference we are away 10 days. I am taking the kids and they are SO excited.  I have never been and they are old enough to appreciate it now so I can't wait. Already mapped out a couple of quilt shops around Anaheim that I will visit, much to the kids disgust (aaawww mum, can't you go anywhere without looking at quilt shops!!!).  I am not going all that way without adding a few purchases to my suitcase!! Fabric is so expensive here compared to the USA, so I have already warned my hubby we need to take an extra bag!!

I also have a new job which has been keeping me busy...still nursing but am now the charge nurse of the High Dependency Unit.  Still nice regular hours...Mon- Fri but I do have to make the move back to shiftwork within the next couple of years :( And I thought I had done my last ever night shift...

Ok see you when I get back in a couple of weeks....

Spring is in the air!!

Our babies have all been born. We had 4 ewes that were pregnant...3 had twins and one had triplets so it is a real nursery in our field at the moment.

Just a couple of days old 

Sarah with the youngest one.  Mum won't feed it, so we are hand rearing it

Hannah, my oldest daughter, with a set of twins

Sheep kisses for Hannah!

Isn't this so cute!!!

Blogger's Quilt Festival

This is the first time I have participated in the Blogger Quilt Festival. I have had so much fun admiring and looking at all the quilts on display so far.  I just can't pick a favourite though...there is so much creativity and talent in the quilts displayed.

This quilt came about as I wanted a Kiwiana (things unique to New Zealand) wall hanging.  I had had a long break from quilting due to bringing up a family and work committments, but a visit to a craft show last year got the quilting juices flowing again! This was the first quilt I made on my return to quilting.

Initially it was supposed to be just a small wall hanging but I just couldn't decide which charm squares to use. I wanted to incorporate designs that held special memories for me, so it is now a very large wall hanging!! I have used all NZ fabrics in this and came up with the design myself. I straight line quilted it mainly because I have never done FMQ, but I think the straight line quilting is perfect for this quilt.

It is now hanging in our family room. Lucky, we have a very big wall!!

Thanks Amy for hosting this fabulous festival.

Back from our Vietnam adventure

Woman off to set up her food stall

Wow, what an interesting country. It was hot, humid and smelly, but the culture and history is incredible.  We hit Ho Chi Minh City at the beginning of April and what an assault to the senses.  The noise was all around us. HCMC has a population of 10 million and 5 million people have scooters to get around. They toot as they go past other vehicles or pedestrians so there is constant honking.  So once you adjust to the noise levels, you try to adjust to the heat...it was mid 30s (100 fahrenheit) and humid. I spent a lot of time having cold showers! And then there is the smell of sewerage, cooking, fumes and goodness knows what else!

Barge on the Me Kong Delta carrying rice husks

We travelled out to the Me Kong Delta, the Cu chi tunnels and then went up to Dalat in the highlands. It was lovely up there...much cooler and very green. Spent a night there and then headed over to Nha Trang, a beachside city via the central highlands.  Didn't enjoy Nha Trang at all....very touristy, agressive hawkers and the beach wasn't very clean. Plus it was incredibl;y hot and humid here.

Hoi An fruit seller and local in the traditional ao dai

Headed up to Hoi An after this which I loved! It has a French feel to the town and is very old.  Could have stayed here for the rest of my holiday! Hoi An has over 400 tailors here and you can get clothes made very cheaply. I bought some silk here which has the most beautiful fondle factor.   We drove from Hoi An to Hue via the Hai Van pass. The scenery along this route was some of the most beautiful and spectacular that we saw during our entire holiday.

Our Hanoi Kids guides outside the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

We then flew to Hanoi.  I loved this very old city with the Old Quarter. One of the highlights was taking a trip with Hanoi Kids, a volunteer organisation made of of university students that wish to show off their city. They also use it as an opportunity to improve their English.  We had 2 amazing guides who spent the entire day with us showing us around Hanoi. We certainly had an insight into their lives and culture doing this. The service is entirely free and they will not take any financial recompense at all.

Halong Bay

The highlight, though, for both Tony and I was Halong Bay. We spent 3 days and 2 nights doing a cruise on Halong Bay, a World Heritage site that has over 3000 limestone karsts. It was a great way to finish the holiday.  We took over 2000 photos, and I have put a few of my fav ones on Flickr.

The food was amazing. I did a cooking class there at the Morning Glory cooking school. It wasn't just about cooking...it was also about their culture and customs and why they eat what they do. Fascinating. My fav food had to be the fresh spring rolls and the Cao Lau noodles, a local specialty in Hoi An.

The other highlight of my trip is that I bought an Ipad 2!!! Yay!! I just LOVE my new toy.  They had sold out in NZ as I had tried to buy one before I left so I could keep in touch with the kids etc while I was away. (All the hotels have free wifi which is fabulous). Anyway, found one in duty free on my way out of NZ.  How lucky was that!!

A finish of a different kind...

My baby turns 10 in a couple of weeks, but since we head to Vietnam for 3 weeks next Friday, we are having her party today. I can't believe she is 10! Yikes, where have the years gone.  Anyway, the house is full of squealing girls and the cats have gone into hiding!

She asked for a make up bag as her cake, so I have been spending the morning modelling fondant.  All of it is edible so I better warn all the parents that they will be on a sugar high soon!!