Yesterday my work took me to Lone Pine Sanctuary in Fig Tree Pocket.  I live not very far away from Lone Pine but am ashamed to say that in all the nearly 30 years I have lived in Brisbane, I have not visited it once. 

It is VERY popular with overseas tourists and for good reason.  Australia is blessed with the most extraordinary animals.  We are so used to to them we forget that to people from other countries they seem quite exotic.  And indeed they are.  Look at these gorgeous koalas !  They can sleep up to 16 hours a day bless them.  I was very impressed with the athleticism of the ones I saw - leaping from branch to branch rather like possums.

Lone Pine has been going since 1927 and is rated one of the top 20 zoos in the world. There are daily shows featuring birds of prey, wombats, snakes etc.  There is even a barn for handling guinea pigs and chicks for the younger members of the family.  Guests can walk freely in the kangaroo enclosure and get up close to the roos.The newest exhibition is the Platypus - Barak the platypus is the first to be bred in captivity in 55 years and arrived in Lone Pine from another sanctuary in Victoria, Healesville.

I was particularly taken with the Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat who I think looks quite prehistoric and like that model in the Queensland Museum. 

Does anyone else remember reading The Muddle Headed Wombat by Ruth Park as a child?  It was a radio show too wasn't it?  ....google ....google...google...and there you are....I found out via Wikipaedia that in fact it was a radio show first ....through the Children's Hour and the Argonauts Club (of which I was a very proud member) and then it became a book.  The Children's Hour was cancelled in 1970- there- showing my age now!!  The Muddle Headed Wombat generated such phrases as treely ruly (for really truly) and Cindergorilla for Cinderella!  Oh my goodness....one could Wikipaedia for ever really.....John Ewart played the part of the Muddle Headed Wombat....his first film role at the age of 18 was in Sons of Matthew by Charles Chauvel.  In fact, if you look at his bio - he was in just about everything - Caddie, Newsfront, Bellbird, A Country Practice, Sunday Too Far Away, Homicide, Matlock Police....the list goes on!!

I tried to find my Argonauts badge but couldn't - it must be pinned to a garment somewhere.  Have you got an Argonauts badge?  Were you a member of the Argonauts?

40 Squares

Isn't this luscious fabric?

I had my second "Yellow Brick Road" lesson at Patches on Saturday.  Poor Christine was ill with the flu so Bev stepped into the breach.....

This was an exciting day because we are starting to see what we are creating and we had to choose our fabrics for our border...I could not resist this....and then Bev and Sharon helped me choose trim and relief border colours.....

so yesterday I spent sewing squares and then strips together making sure that where necessary seams were opposing...lots of ironing....this is what 40 squares looks like sewn together....this will be the size of a lap quilt...

 

Sneak Peak

Of course it's nowhere near done but I thought you might like a sneak peak.....I don't think it looks too bad....

Spoiled Rotten

One forgot to mention how spoiled one was on one's birthday.  My birthday started before my birthday, if you know what I mean...Dad and Jen took me out to a concert at St Mary's Kangaroo Point with a picnic dinner to follow in the new park.  We watched the bats glide across the river and the lights come on as we sipped champagne

and I cried over the beautiful design of various kitchen accoutrements given to me - how is it possible to get excited about a juicer....?  or measuring jugs?  If you've lost a measuring jug to a husband intent on mixing bog to fix the rust in his car..well, you'll know why I was excited to receive not one - but three beautiful measuring jugs with both imperial and metric measurements.  And the juicer...well...check it out...space age n'est-ce-pas?

On my actual birthday family gave me a Blue Ant Hands free kit for my mobile phone which was lots of fun to install.  Cas hunted down Wolf Hall for me in a bookshop which was a major feat for him as he is not a reader or a bookshop afficionado. My sister-in-law swung by with a bottle of wine on her way home from work which was much appreciated.

Later in the week a bunch of us gathered at Cloudland for lunch which really is a great place to go to with a big group.  We shared tapas and I was thoroughly spoiled with flowers and books.  Grand Purl Baa excelled herself by generously giving me some of her stash and a beautiful book on Patchwork and the Reader's Digest Guide to Needlecraft which is magnificent.  Another friend gave me my very own cup and saucer together with some beautiful Di Bella coffee.

This week I made the momentous decision to buy a new sewing machine to pursue my new found interest in sewing....I christened the new Bernette H70 by finishing my first applique project - a cushion....

I took Grand Purl Baa's advice and changed my nook from a family history nook to a sewing nook as per the photo below so I was all ready for my first class in Patchwork yesterday at Patches.

Today is Sunday which is always a wonderful day being free of work.  However one is always perplexed as to how to spend it as one is torn between various hobbies - to knit? to patchwork? to read? to go to the movies?.   Inevitably one ends up experimenting with food !  I took the plunge and made some Fat Rascals, as inspired by the Needled blog (the recipe is on this blog).  But I confess I wouldn't know a nutmeg if I tripped over it and used powdered nutmeg.  Here is the result....

The scary faces with almonds for teeth seem to have met with some small acclaim.  Dan likes 'em but they are too sweet for Caspar. 

I think I can die happy now - books, wool, flowers, wine, coffee, fat quarters, fat rascals, friends, family.  Thank you one and all.  You're the best!!