The rural womens gathering Penola

 

Last weekend myself and eight girlfriends made the seven hour drive down to Penola in the Coonawarra, for the annual  rural women's gathering. Now if Scones quilting and cups of tea come to mind then think again. This is now the third one I have been part of and they are amazing. I have come away still on a high, and inspired by many of the amazing women that I met. This is female bonding at its finest!!!!The event was sponsored by Rymill, Koonara and St Mary's wines so the wine flowed freely. The food was great and the guest speakers were entertaining and inspirational. The  workshops were a chance to learn a new skill or just relax and included a diverse range of about thirty things from cheese making to welding,  sculpting to making a brick pizza oven. I would recommend these gathering to any women out there that just need a break, and to revive themselves. We laughed non stop, and learnt so many things. We went home with lovely gift packages filled with lots of goodies, including clinique toiletries, sparkling wine and a merino wool long sleeved T- shirt. The whole town was involved and most shops and wineries in Penola were giving discounts to all the ladies that attended, as if we needed any encouragement to hit the shops.




Lunch stop at the Henry & Rose Cafe in Keith.

One of my neighbours Tracy Browning in the Limestone carving workshop.This was so messy, big chunks kept falling off my sculpture, making it smaller and smaller all the time.

 Welding a rake workshop, where I was very partial to my suede welding jacket

My good mate Nicole Harris

 

 

Trying to tidy up my welds

 

 

Friday night with the girls

 

 

 

 Ita Buttrose on stage sharing with us her amazing story
We were so excited, we actually had our photo taken with Ita, but to my dismay the  camera they were taken on was a film camera, so chances are they will be lost forever, I cant believe anyone still uses one.

 

 

 

 Jo Fincham & Ita Buttrose two of Saturdays guest speakers
Jo you might recognise from the farmer wants a wife series, she was talking about her battle with depression and bulimia and how she has overcome both these issues.

 

 

 Our group in the wacky wire sculpting workshop

 

 

 There were not meant to be any guys allowed but a few sneaked in, who were we to turn them away

 

 

Two farming women showing that yes, we can manage some tools

 

 

 Shannon and Lisa with Bronwyn Roberts, who was a guest speaker sharing the
clinically proven benefits of laughter

Saturday nights entertainment was singer Elijah Madden who was certainly entertaining enough that a few of my girlfriends thought they would show their appreciation by dancing on the tables. At one point I reckon there would of been at least 200 women dancing with no dance floor, just up and down the isles. It looked like an episode of high school musical, just the average age a tad older.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We always go home from gatherings with lots of new friends. 

 My new buddy, I reckon she was warning me to stay off the scones

 before I developed any more chins.

 

The next gathering is in October 2013 and is being held in Port Pirie, we have actually booked accommodation already as they usually book out pretty fast.  So if you know anyone whether it be yourself or partners let them know as it is an amazing weekend.