At Last!! Retreat Pics!

At LAST ... I'm FINALLY getting around to sharing the photos with you that I took two weekends ago when I taught at the annual Creative Craft Retreat at Lake Perseverance ... some of us are a bit slow! :0) This was the fifth year the retreat was held and the fifth that I've been involved. As usual, a lot of fun was had ... especially in the "Naughty Corner"!  And you can just guess which class group was in that corner, right?! :0) I don't know how I always end up in "THAT" corner ... really I don't! Tee! Hee! Hee! However ... I was in fine company. I had six of the most GAWJUS (as my blogging buddy Joy would say!) gals in my class ...

... Lindsay, who had driven up from the Gold Coast to play with us for the weekend. (That's Olive Bear supervising Lindsay. She and Finnegan were the two patterns the gals had to choose from to make their very own bear) ...

... Cynthia and Allison ...

... Margaret and Ann (these two ladies were like Laurel and Hardy ... had us in stitches all weekend!!) and Pat finished off our group ... but obviously I didn't manage to snap a pic or her hard at work.

Now, from the pics, you can see that the gals were hard workers ... heads down and bums up without me ever having to borrow Chookyblue's whip! ;0) And while there was a LOT of stitching going on in our "Naughty Corner" there was also an AWFUL LOT of laughing going on too! :0) I actually think I can say this was the BEST class I have ever taught! Not only did they get their bears finished in record time (before lunch on the last day with two sessions remaining), their finished bears were FABULOUS and they worked beautifully in a group (the ladies, that is, not the bears! Though the bears behaved themselves too! Tee! Hee! Hee!), helping and encouraging each other and everyone chatted with everyone ... if you see what I mean! It really did make my job as teacher so much easier and more enjoyable! :0) Now you're probably wanting to see the finished bears??? OK ... roll call ...

Here's Cynthia with her boy bear ...

... Pam with her sweet girly bear ...

... Allison with her cute girly bear ...

... Margaret with her mischievous looking boy bear ... and he's already made a new furry friend there! :0)

And last but definitely not least ... Anne shows off her pink girly girl bear. Lindsay had to leave early, so I didn't get a photo of her finished bearbie. WELL DONE GIRLS!!! You'd never know this was the first time they'd made bears! Must have been the excellent teacher they had!! :0) Modest too! Tee! Hee! Hee! Here's our group ...

What a GAWJUS bunch of gals! :0) And on the other end of the table ...

... our HUG of bears ... that's what you call a group of bears. Rather appropriate, don't you think! :0) And in amongst all that chatting, stitching and laughing, there was just enough time for a group shot of all crafty ladies attending ...

If you look closely, you can see me to the left of the group ... about third or fourth from the left, depending how you look at it and how you count! :0) And even though it's pretty hard to see, if you enlarge the picture and peer up the back of the group from me and slightly to the right, you'll see the lovely ... but obviously shy!! ... Val Laird. Val is Mum to Janelle, who is the instigator of this crafting weekend and it was lovely to catch up again. :0)

There you go ... finally caught up ... and now you know why I was exhausted afterwards and still feel like I'm catching up! :0) Hope you've enjoyed a peek at our bear making fun ... it sure kept us off the streets for the two and a half days! Tee! Hee! Hee!

And speaking of keeping busy and off the streets ... if you're looking for quick, simple but effective craft projects to help you stock up your Santa sacks this Christmas, don't forget to pop across to visit Kerryanne at Shabby Art Boutique blog. She's started her "Simply Christmas" fun and clever-clogs Clare from Clare's Craftroom has shared a great tutorial on making Christmas bunting, so don't miss out. There's also a FABULOUS prize to be won that sure would help make your Christmas merry, so pop across to find out the details.

Right now, though, I'm off to let the dogs out of the laundry ... the flick man has been here chasing off all the creepy crawlies for me and Lily wasn't overly impressed. Poor ol' Wombat probably slept through most of it! He's getting old and misses a lot these days while he take a grandpa nap ... or two or three! Tee! Hee! Hee! Hope your week is going along nicely so far and that you're managing to find some time to sit, stitch and daydream! Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!
KRIS