Bead nirvana. And naughty thoughts about gourds.

Wow, what an absolutely fantastic day we've had today!

Woke up to a picture-perfect, sun-shiney day with barely a cloud in the sky. E and I enjoyed a nice snuggle in my warm bed before our our growling tummies eventually chased us out. We decided to head for Grand Central, the 'big' shopping centre in the city. I say 'big' which I guess is maybe fairly large by Toowoomba standards, but after living at Chermside for many years I have come to realise the entire thing could probably fit into one of the Chermside carparks. But it has everything we need and is reasonably easy to duck in and out of (provided you actually take notice of where you park, unlike last time) so it's all good.

After wandering around for a bit checking the place out and knocking over a decent grocery shop we headed home to enjoy the sunshine. With E playing happily on his ripstik down the driveway and me reading and soaking up some vitamin D, it was one of those wonderfully relaxing mornings that seem idyllic even whilst they're happening.

Then this afternoon my work-mate picked me up and we headed over to another colleague's place to enjoy a mid-afternoon glass (or 3) of pink champagne and a splash of early Madonna before heading to Highfields to the long-awaited and highly anticipated bead nirvana! With jokes a-flying about being tanked and the possibility of being arrested for drunk and disorderly in a bead shop (oh, the horror!) and many, many giggles, we arrived at the pearly gates of heaven.

OMG. Where has this place been all my life?

I suggested that we needed tracking devices as there was a very real possibility of losing me in there, never to be found again. If I thought the Mummy Tree Markets was awesome, then the bead shop is somewhere I want to LIVE in and eventually be buried there.  So I guess if I had gotten lost somewhere along the line, it wouldn't be the worst thing that could happen. Wandering around the several barns-worth of pretty things on a champagne high was a total kick.

Wall-to-wall ribbons, beads of every colour and description, Christmas decorations, wall hangings, knick-knacks, handbags, and inexplicably, gourds, all surrounded by beautiful gardens, an abundance of money trees and a coffee shop that served THE singular best flourless chocolate cake that has ever passed my lips...

I've found my religion.

Of course I couldn't resist stocking up on a few bits and pieces and have some wonderful ideas for some mobiles and things to decorate my place so stay tuned for my creations! First on the list is cinnamon sticks on the mantelpiece...just heavenly.

Naughty gourds.

So there was an over-abundance of gourds, some painted, some turned into ducks and other farmyard creatures and some dried for you to take home and do with what you will. Apparently you're limited only by your imagination and I've come to the conclusion my imagination MUST be limited as all I could think was dirty thoughts. One look at them and I was in stitches, mind firmly in the gutter.

Or that could have been the champagne.

Anyway it was easily the best day I've had in Toowoomba so far. I've laughed until I almost cried, exchanged random stories about drunken party shenanigans (I thought setting the Hilton piano on fire whilst doing shots was a highlight until I heard Angela's story about crawling out of elevators), indulged my girly side and even participated in some random theft of a few bits of a money tree for my garden.

I blame the champagne.

It's really coincidental after my work-mate and I were talking about money trees just yesterday. I had told her that I used to have an awesome one that started off so tiny and grew into a fabulous thigh-high plant that we even dug up and transported to the new home that my sister and I shared a few years back. And if you 'accidentally' break a bit off and let it fall on the ground (or in an entirely new garden, as can occasionally happen, randomly) it roots itself and begins to grow again. I was telling her that I really wanted to get some more as firstly they're so pretty and secondly they're apparently brilliantly lucky if you place them at your front door, as they're supposed to invite abundance and prosperity inside. Not sure what the stance is if you stole it in the first place but I guess time will tell.

So the money trees at the bead shop were really asking for it. It was a sign, I tell you. Two bits have 'accidentally' fallen into my front garden and will be located at the front door as soon as I get a pretty pot or two.

It was the champagne. My story and I'm sticking to it.

So now I'm coming down from a champagne high with a sore stomach from laughing so hard and eyeing all of my pretty shiny things to create something from.

And feeling somewhat grateful that none of us had to be bailed out of jail for drunk and disorderly at the bead shop.

Although that would have been a fabulous story to tell the grandkids.

xx