SCRAP RETREAT 2017

lWe had our smallest ever scrap retreat this year... Only 8 of us...
It just so happens that a lot of us are getting older and almost at retiring age, so therefore are starting to travel a bit more.  Four of our regulars are either traveling around this amazing country of ours or are traveling overseas....

It was also a pretty sad time for a few of us, as our good friend Carolyn who has never missed a retreat with us passed away a week before Easter....  we missed here,  it just wasn't the same without her....  A start of the firsts....  Because the numbers were so low this year we didn't actually stay in Joseph's house like we normally do.  For Jannett, Robyn and I, it was a good thing... I think we would have found it harder.  I am sure it was a God thing, that the numbers were down this year.... it helped us cope more....

I didn't take any scrapbooking down to do this year,....  I have been too sick to even think about it and the thought of the weekend away was doing my head in.... I could easily have stayed at home but I am thankful that I went in the end...

There is something about staying at "The Haven" that is good for your soul... It is a place of beauty, calmness, tranquility, and I am so thankful and grateful for the chance to escape to this little bit of paradise...

"The Haven" has changed hands this year and the rooms, although simple are lovely with amazing views over the Capricorn Coast....
I arrived to find that my room had lovely folded towels, toiletries and chocolates waiting on the end of my bed for me

My bedroom.....

Just to make us feel a little special....

the rest of my room...

I awoke to the most amazing views as I watched the sun rise up over the Capricorn Coast...

view from laying in my bed....

 It was such a beautiful sunrise.....

Sunrise on the Capricorn Coast

 Quite a magical start to the day.....
All the bedrooms in the house we were staying in opened out to a lovely verandah with these amazing views..

 We still hired the MacKillop Room as a scrapbooking room.  This is such an inspirational room to work in as the views up and down the coast are absolutely stunning..

Our scrap room...

MacKillop Room -  the views are sensational

inside our work room with the views in the background....

more views from our scraproom..

 It was so lovely to take a break and sit out on the verandah and just soak up the views of the coast...

 Whilst the other girls worked with paper,  I just bought down my laptop and worked on my photo books from our overseas trip last year.  Snapfish had an awesome special on where their books were reduced by 50% but it ended on Monday night and I had quite a bit to get done.  I really wanted to get these finished and sent off to be printed before we took off on our next big adventure in a month's time...

Ann finishing her Tassie album.  She has been ten years in the doing of this album

Jannett shares with us her tapes...

Terri working on her holiday albums

Heather's goal was just to make it to scrap retreat this year.... Loved it that you made it Heather

Just working on my computer this year...

Robyn has a new grandson... she worked on an album all about "Tucker"

Jannett was working on her daughter's wedding album

Lesley was working on her Tassie holiday album also...

Our small group this year...

Robyn had a birthday so we helped her celebrate....
A special morning tea...

Morning tea for Robyn's birthday

birthday cake time...

Robyn with her birthday flowers and cake...

blowing out her candles..

It was a much easier weekend on us this year with only 8 of us... We kept the meals simple but healthy...

Our Saturday lunch

Then it was time for an afternoon nap...
Laying on my bed, listening to the waves rolling onto the beach,
having this view as I lay on my bed was magic....

who couldn't look at this all day long...

 After a nap it was back up to MacKillop House for some more relaxing and scrapping...

Our small 2017 group of scrapbookers this year.....

 No creative layouts to share with you this year.... The weekend away this year was more about rejuvenating and getting well. 
 In the end I was very thankful that I got to have the weekend away.  After spending the last two weeks at home in bed with the flu,  it was actually very rejuvenating to spend a couple of days down at the beach..