I got to Raleigh long before check-in time so I stowed my cart and headed toward the sound of laughter. In the bar area I found some of my classmates. We did the 1000 questions routine, but then decided to head out to the local quilt shops. First we headed to Cary Quilting Company. http://caryquilting.com There, I signed up for the shop hop. They gave me the tent pattern, I won the "stitch local" kit, and bought the orange flowers. Then my carload of me and 2 others went to Wish Upon a Quilt. http://wishuponaquilt.com I bought the strawberry fabric and won the fat quarter. Then I dropped my passengers back at the hotel and got my roommate from the airport. We got back to the hotel and checked-in. Then we got a couple more folks and headed to the Bernina World of Sewing. http://berninaworldofsewing.com They gave me a block kit, I bought the gear panel and the flowers, and won 20% off a kit, which I used on the "La Tuilerie" We ...