A heel!

Well, the start of a heel, anyway. I decided on a 4 1/2" leg for my Jaywalkers and am now several rows into the heel! The purl rows are giving me a hand cramp, so I'm taking breaks. The yarn striping is doing interesting things, so I can't wait to see the finished sock. Pics to follow soon.

Midnight update: heel is turned and gusset is picked up!!

Technically...

OK, so technically, I'm finished with the Christmas knitting. I have all of the gifts that need to be given over Christmas finished. My sister's orange wrap and my aunt's scarf are still technically Christmas gifts, but they both know they will be mailed sometime after Christmas.

So now the push is on for the post-holiday knitting. (sigh) I need to finish the second blanket that will go to Mexico and then finish Marcia's scarf - then I can send the blankets and scarf together and be done with it. I think Karen's orange wrap will be an ongoing project. I also need to get yarn for a scarf for my mom, but that will have to wait until after Christmas.

In the meantime, I've made some progress on my Jaywalker sock! Cedric is now 3 1/2" tall and is coming along quite nicely for a first sock. I think I'm going to do this pair at 5" instead of the 6 3/4" or whatever it is in the pattern. The stripes are slowly starting to work into the giant mass of taupe pooling, so I'm very curious to see how the rest of the sock unfolds.

A little something

Here is what I've been working on yesterday and today. You'd think it would have only taken a few hours, but no. I had to try 4 or 5 different patterns before I made up my mind. So here it is, a dishcloth for my mother-in-law. It's the Bee Stitch pattern, worked with Peaches & Creme cotton (from WalMart).



Now on to the next dishcloth while I continue my gift knitting...

Jaywalking

In my quest to copy Rosemary, I have started the Jaywalker sock. OK, in reality it isn't so much that I yearn to copy Rose - it just happens to be a really cool sock pattern. I'm using Cascade Fixation SprayDyed. While I really like the colorway, it's hard on my hands. It's kinda rope-like. Not soft. It probably doesn't help that I'm knitting as tight as I possibly can to compensate for the elastic in the yarn AND using bigger needles than the pattern calls for. But all in all, I'm pleased with my sock progress so far. This is my first "real" sock. My only experience sock-wise has been a basic sock pattern using double stranded worsted on size 8 dpns. But...so far, so good. Oh, and I've also joined the Jaywalker Knitalong, which makes me feel a bit more like a real knitter.



In other news, this past week, I made another hat (gift) and finished FIL's scarf! I also decided to switch plans for SIL's scarf and finish one I've already started (that was going to be for someone else). So this week's push is that scarf and the orange wrap. I'll work on my sock when I need a break from gift knitting.

One step forward, two steps back

On the knitting front...

Will finish gift hat tonight. Thought I was going to finish my 2nd sock tonight, but made a very sad discovery. I didn't switch to bigger needles after doing the cuff, so the whole sock is 2 needle-sizes smaller than the first sock. RATS!!! Got into the gusset before I realized it. The really sad part is that I used one whole afternoon/early evening on the sock instead of gift knitting. Rats again. Good news is that the socks aren't a gift, so there's no deadline there.

Back to my knitting...

Getting Closer

Current handknit gift tally: 11 of 15 are now finished.

Sadly, I ripped out everything I'd done on the cabled scarf I was doing. It just wasn't perfect and while the mistakes weren't all that noticeable, they were to me. Plus, it was kind of time consuming (the pattern). So now I'm doing a much simpler and faster pattern. Nice enough, but kind of boring.

I joined this knit-along this week and I'm quite happy that I did.

I'd really like to finish my second sock so I can use my size 8 dpns for the hat I need to make...perhaps I'll work on that today (the socks, I mean).

My new hat

Here is my lovely new hat! Noro Kureyon yarn on size 9 needles.




I just love it.

Too much to do

Well, I'm sad to report that my Thanksgiving was a flop. We had invited someone over, but she graciously declined, which was fine. It's just as well she didn't come. Since it was just the four of us, I decided to roast the chicken I had in the freezer instead of buying a turkey. Seemed like a good idea, right? Put it in the refrigerator to thaw on Monday, but apparently three days was not enough. I planned out my Thanksgiving morning so all the food would be ready at noon. Put the chicken in an oven bag (the way I always do my turkeys) and after two hours (which should have been plenty long enough for a 7 pound chicken in an oven bag), the wings and drumsticks were falling off, but when I cut into the breast, it was barely warm. Ick. I opened up the bag and let it cook until it was really done, but after cutting into it not-done, I couldn't bring myself to eat it. Just too icky. So we had a meatless Thanksgiving. The side dishes were good, though.

Other than that, I've spent most of my free time knitting, of course. I realized that I should type up a list of what I've made so far. I fear it will be a ridiculous amount of stuff in the short time I've been knitting/crocheting, but here goes:

k=knit, c=crochet...duh

-Homespun wrap for Jeanine (c)
-Homespun wrap for myself, twice the length of Jeanine's (c)
-large afghan for my parents (c)
-two spiral scarves (c)
-three double-ruffle boas (c)
-two chenille hats (c)
-three baby afghans (c)
-one small afghan to go to Mexico (c)
-Homespun scarf (c)
-one baby-sized mitten (c)
-Fancy scarf (c)
-ribbon scarf (c)
-two kids' scarves (k)
-Noro hat (k)
-long scarf (k)
-checkerboard scarf (k)

Current works in progress:
-Linus project afghan, 3/4 finished (c)
-diagonal knitted blanket, 3/4 finished (k)
-scarves for SIL, BIL, FIL, started this weekend (k)
-orange wrap, 1/4 finished (k)

Is that it? I've lost track. I think I learned how to crochet in late August? or maybe early September?

My "future projects" list:
-mittens for my sister (c)
-mittens for the kids (c)
-Noro hat for my sister (k)
-scarf for Greg (k)
-socks (k)
-clapotis (k)
-sweater (k)
-HP scarf (k)

Trying again

I really did try to post recently. Really, I did. But the net goblins ate my post.

Not much to report, really. We had lots of sickness for two weeks straight, but I think we're all back to 100% now.

I've been doing lots of knitting and some crocheting. That's about it.

So what do you have?

We had a guest speaker at church last night - Dan Sneed. He offered quite a bit of food for thought. His premise is that when we are faced with a seemingly impossible situation, God almost always asks us, "What do you have?"

For instance, in Matthew 15:29-38...we see the challenge to face the impossible, which in this case, is feeding anywhere from 10,000-12,000 people. The disciples tell Jesus that they don't have enough food and where on earth could they get that much anyway? So what does he do? He asks them, "What do you have?" Um, HELLO JESUS!!! We just said we don't have anything!!! That's the problem!! But they tell him they have a few loaves and fishes. Jesus takes them, prays over them...everyone opens their eyes...and there's still just a few loaves and fishes. No change. No miracle. Still not enough. Can you imagine what was going through the disciples' minds? I think I can because I'm sure I've thought the same things when it didn't look like my prayers were answered the way I hoped they would be answered. But what does Jesus tell them to do? Well, it doesn't say exactly in that passage, but he apparently instructed them to start passing out the food. I'm sure they thought he was totally nuts - or at least some of them did. But they did it. And they passed out food, and passed out food, and passed out food...until "they all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up SEVEN BASKETFULS of broken pieces that were left over." They had to act in faith. The miraculous thing didn't happen until they started doing what Jesus told them to do. And it seems that in at least some part, it happened because they responded when he asked, "What do you have?" He will always ask us to give what we have.

In Exodus 4, God asks Moses "What is that in your hand?" It was his rod. At best, a really nice stick. But when God told Moses to throw it down, he did - and it became a serpent. Then God told him to pick it up (can you imagine??)...but as soon as he did it became a rod again. It was this rod - this thing that Moses had - that God used to part the Red Sea and to draw water from a rock in the middle of the desert.

In 2 Kings 4:1-7, a widow is left with her sons. They have nothing. Creditors were coming to take her sons as slaves. The prophet Elisha asks her, "How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?" Uh...HELLO!! We have nothing!!! Sound familiar? Nothing...except a little oil. So he tells her to ask her neighbors for empty jars...not just a few - he's very specific. Then go in, shut the door, pour oil into all the jars and put them to the side. Her sons get the jars, bring them to her and "she KEPT POURING." When all the jars were full, she tells them to bring her another one...but there were none left. "Then the oil stopped flowing." She tells Elisha what happened - he tells her to go and sell the oil and pay her debts. Then she and her sons can live on what is left.

God can take what we have and turn it into something beyond our comprehension. He will never ask us for what we don't have - but he will ALWAYS ask for all of what we DO have. What "we" have will never meet the need. It isn't until Jesus touches what we have that the miracle happens.

Amazing.

Natalie & her work of art

This is Natalie (not a fabulous picture, but she insisted I take it). She is 3 1/2.

One day last week, I went to get her up from her "nap." I use that term loosely because she is taking fewer and fewer naps these days - BUT, she does have to stay in her bed for some rest time every day. When I came in, she asked if I was ready for my surprise. Curious, I said yes and she threw back her blanket with a flourish, revealing this work of art:


In the center are Natalie (in the crown) and Ethan (with hair). In the lower lefthand corner is a 3-tiered cake. Above that are Greg and me. I look like a Potato Head and he looks like a squashed bug - but note, my legs are longer *smirk*. Above Natalie's head are balloons and to the right of that is jello. I don't know why. In the upper righthand corner are music notes and the shapes around Natalie and Ethan's feet are presents.

I was impressed.

Like I needed another new hobby

Just fyi...I'm knitting now. Pics to follow.

**4:00 PM: scarf is now approx. nine inches long. I started it this morning. I'm not terribly fast, but I'm getting more confident and my stitches are becoming more uniform. Unfortunately, due to the variegated colors in the yarn, it doesn't show the knitting pattern very much (k4, p4 - makes a checkerboard pattern). It would probably be better in a solid color. Oh well.

You're still here???

Wow - never thought I'd go THAT long in between blog posts...sorry about that. Not really intentional - life just got in the way. Well, that, and I wasn't terribly motivated.

So here I am, back again. Still crocheting. Attempting to get back into scrapping. But mostly crocheting.

Burnt Tongue

I hate having a burnt tongue. I just finished making homemade chicken and noodles for Rod and Linda (will take it over soon) and in my zeal to taste it, I royally burned my tongue.

Here's what I've noticed today:
1. The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is fabulous for cleaning tub scum out of your bathtub.
2. Ethan's fingernails need to be trimmed.
3. Seeing a toilet being cleaned is apparently quite fascinating to toddlers/preschoolers.
4. I can really get a lot done in a day if I decide I want to.
5. There is an odd smell in our bedroom.
6. Folding laundry is a good time to pray.

Labor Day

Happy Labor Day to one and all! I spent all day and evening yesterday crocheting and I'm almost ready to start putting the fringe on the shawl I'm making. I don't think I'm going to keep it, though. We'll see. Now that I see how it looks on me, I'm thinking I'd like one that is either longer (so I could literally wrap it, toss one end over my shoulder) or one that is a bit more shaped (perhaps even a poncho?). Who knows?

My exciting plans for today include getting groceries (never did that at the end of the week), going to JoAnn's for some fabric and yarn, and more crocheting.

Here's my list of six things that I noticed today:

1. My eyes are red. (probably from not getting enough sleep)
2. The MDA telethon seems to be pushed aside this Labor Day weekend. (understandable, but still sad for them)
3. There are five pizza boxes stacked in my kitchen, waiting to be taken to the recycling bin.
4. JoAnn's Etc has terrible lighting in the yarn/needlework department.
5. The new WalMart Neighborhood Market has a really pretty stained concrete floor.
6. Gas prices went down since Saturday.

Noticing

I was reading my beloved Guideposts magazine last night (I loves Guideposts) and saw something that I thought would be good to do. It was in a story about Ted Kooser, America's poet laureate. Here's a little excerpt that explains both my new daily blogging prompt and the reasoning behind it:

"'You drive home from work, find yourself in the garage and can't remember a thing that's happened between when you left and when you arrived,' Ted says. 'To really participate in life we have to figure out ways of being aware of what's around us.' Sure, I think. But how do you do that with a busy life, work, family? 'The poet Linda Gregg has her students notice six things a day. Lots of days I don't notice six things. I'm not always successful,' Ted admits. 'But I like paying attention to ordinary things.'"

So there you go. My challenge to myself is to notice six things every day and post them here in my blog. I'll update the list when I can:

1. Natalie's hair is getting darker.
2. Carnation dry milk smells really nasty.
3. There are a lot of cobwebs in my house that I never noticed and should probably get rid of. (no offense spiders)
4. Noticing six things is harder than anticipated when you spend all day in your house.
5. The bathroom ceiling needs to be wiped down with bleach again.
6. Water has collected under the crisper drawers in the fridge again and has started to overflow.

Sunday morning pancakes

That's what I'm making right now. Not from scratch...don't get too excited. Just good ol' Jiffy baking mix, with chocolate chips thrown in for good measure. I don't make them very often, but we're out of waffles for the kids, so I didn't have anything else to offer them for breakfast. Made a few plain ones for Ethan - what he doesn't know won't hurt him.

Church was really good last night. Steve made a very good point in talking about what has happened in the Gulf states. He talked about how some Christians will jump up and say what happened was all God's judgment, while others will say that God allowed it to happen. At the end of the day, it's not up to us to discern. Either stand really makes an assumption about God that we can't possibly know. The Bible clearly shows that sometimes God is a God of judgment, sometimes a God of mercy, a jealous God, a loving God, a compassionate God...He is ALL of those things. Steve reminded us that we must let Him be ALL of those things, ALL of the time, without making any assumptions about His motives.

Steve also talked about what Belmont (our church) is doing to help and what we can do. We are partnering with Operation Blessing and Hope Force Intl. Our church has a longstanding partnership with Operation Blessing and the couple who founded Hope Force are members of Belmont. I guess it has been officially "sanctioned" or partnered with the Salvation Army and is doing all kinds of things to help. They asked Steve if he could round up at least 5 ordained ministers that could go be chaplains at the Astrodome. One of those will be Doug Mann. We're so excited that he can go be part of this effort and we're praying that God will use him in amazing ways. Knowing Doug, these people at the Astrodome have NO idea what they're in for, LOL!

No plans for the holiday weekend. Lazy day today and tomorrow will be just another Monday, minus tumbling and Bible study (both off for the holiday). I'm thinking of going to JoAnn's to get fabric, since they have a sale and I actually saved my coupons. Cori asked me to make her a baby carrier and I need to get on it.

Last weekend I taught myself how to crochet and yesterday I finished my first project! I made a baby afghan for Rod and Linda's new baby. I plan to take a picture of it today and will post when I can. Oh, that was the other thing I did this week - go to the hospital to see the new baby! Katherine Michelle (Katie). I gave them the baby album I made and told them the other part of their gift would come soon. Now I'll be able to take it whenever I take them a meal this week. I'm praying Linda has a quick and easy recovery (c-section) and that Katie has gotten more interested in nursing. I hope that works out better for them this time, too.

I do have a new idea for something to blog about every day and will start it tonight...

Another weekend

No plans for the weekend, other than church tonight and probably some scrapping. I'd like the library to call and tell me my Complete Idiot's Guide to Knitting and Crocheting is ready for me to pick up, but I don't know if they do those calls on weekends. Probably not.

I did my August Goals Contest page yesterday. Don't love it, don't hate it. I think it was having to use game pieces that threw me off a bit. Couldn't get it to line up properly when I scanned it and the digital pic I took is very washed out. I'll have to try again. Sorry, tried to put the actual image in here, but it shut down my browser twice when I tried.

I need to finish off my current roll of film. Hopefully there will be some good shots of the kids playing in the pool from when we were in St. Louis for Aaron's birthday. Then again, I was experimenting with manual settings (since I don't know how to use them), so it's anyone's guess as to whether or not they will be decent pictures.

Yesterday was a throw-away day for making good choices. I ate junk, drank Coke and didn't exercise. The good news is that I only bought a 20 oz Coke, so I don't have any more in the house...so today, it's back to water for me. I looked at onlineconversion.com and discovered that 128 oz=1 gallon. That's a lot.

Off to the scrap room I go.

Exercise Report, Week of 8/22

Monday: none
Tuesday: yoga video
Wednesday: 25 minutes on treadmill, 2.5-3.0 mph pace
Thursday: 25 minutes on treadmill, 2.7-3.2 mph pace, jogged for 2 minutes

Thursday???

Wait a minute!! When did it get to be Thursday??? Wednesday, yes, I was prepared for that, but Thursday?? Come on, people! Then again, seeing's how I haven't left the house since Monday...that could explain why it's all just one big blur.

Before I forget, HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAREN!! It's my sister's birthday today! :)

I don't like it only having one car that works. I also don't like high gas prices that make me feel like I should only leave the house if it's absolutely necessary. I especially don't like having to cram all 4 of us into Greg's truck, since I have to be in the middle, squeezed between Greg and Ethan's carseat. I'm hoping and praying that all the Explorer needs is a new battery...please God!

I have a potential violin student if I want one. Karen P. (from Bible study) called me again yesterday to see if I'd given it any more thought. As it turns out, she found out that we could use one of the rooms at the Harding's gym/studio (where Natalie takes tumbling) to do a lesson while her other girls do ballet - or even possibly on Monday nights before Bible study, which would be even better. I asked Greg if he'd be ok with keeping the kids either an extra 30 minutes on Mondays or for an hour on Tuesdays - he's thinking about it. I need to call Mary Bea and ask how they handle payment for lessons. If I do it, I think we'll start Ethan in the Tiny Tumbleroo class. He'd love it and even though I would have to participate with him, it would sure beat having to wrestle him for an hour during Natalie's class, since they meet at the same time.

Greg is absolutely swamped with work. Armando told him we need to figure out what I can do to help him, but I'm not sure there's much I can do. I can do admin/secretarial stuff, but he doesn't have a whole lot of that. I heard him tell someone on the phone yesterday that he's juggling 16 different projects at the moment. It's great for the business - it means things are going well and we're making money - but they are at an awkward point where they really need a draftsman. Greg just can't do it all anymore.

I should go walk on the treadmill while Ethan is napping. Decided to start doing a food log again at FitDay.com. I looked at CalorieKing.com, but didn't realize you have to pay. It's only $29.95 for a year, but that's $29.95 I don't have today. Even though I'm the only one who sees my FitDay food log, it still motivates me not to eat a bunch of junk. Something about knowing I'll have to write it down. I'm also trying to only eat when I truly FEEL hungry, since I'm notorious for boredom eating. Seeing how well Karen is doing was good motivation...that and realizing that I'm back up to the weight I was when I got pregnant with Natalie. One of my friends who is uber-thin and runs races suggested setting 5 lb goals instead of looking at the total amount I want to lose.

OK, better get moving.

Finally back

Boy it feels like it's been forever since I've posted here. I guess it has been a while, eh?

The kids and I spent last week in IL with Mom and Dad, which was good, but could hardly be considered "vacation." My kids did great, all things considered - they are such good travelers in the car. And it all worked out well since Natalie is naturally attracted to Maddie (they share the fascination with all things girly) and Emma would rather chase Ethan around and keep him entertained than do girly things. We never did make it to the pool. Either it was raining, or the water was cold post-rain, or we just plain didn't feel like it (Mom and me, that is). We did go to the children's museum in Bloomington, which was really nice - and we did make it to the state fair! Again, all things considered, I didn't do too badly at the fair...I had a corndog and a fire-roasted ear of corn (YUM!!), then I shared an elephant ear with Natalie, Ethan and Emma, had one bite of cotton candy, two bites of Dad's funnel cake and two bites of a very stale not-so-soft pretzel. The damage could have been much worse, I think.

On Wednesday, I went to Champaign. Met Karen for lunch and got to see her office. Then went over to Jean's new salon to get a haircut - it was really good to catch up with her. I can't believe it's been so long since I've seen her! Then Michelle met me for a run to both the scrapbook stores and then dinner. The scrapbook stores were sort of a bust. One just recently changed ownership and they are waiting for a bunch of new stuff to come in. The other one has lots of neat stuff, but they sort of act like they could care less that you're there - or at least they did when we were there. Both stores had 8x8 Bazzill packs, but not in colors I could use for my Just 3 Words mini-album. I ended up going to the office supply/scrapbook store in Decatur one day and buying 25 sheets of neutral 8.5x11 cardstock. I did get a few things at the lss in Champaign, too. I brought a very limited supply of scrappy stuff with me to Mom and Dad's but never got motivated to do anything with it.

Mom and Dad brought us back on Saturday, so we've been recovering ever since! I'm so proud of myself for actually unpacking our suitcase less than 24 hours after arriving home and putting everything away!! (I usually let it sit forever) Yesterday Natalie had tumbling, then we ran errands until mid-afternoon. Linda invited me to meet her at Opry Mills today, but the Explorer has a dead battery and Greg needs has meetings today, so we have no transportation.

I need to clean up the kitchen today and take out the trash. Then maybe I'll attempt something scrappy. I did get up, eat a very small breakfast, exercise (yoga) and take a shower - so here I am dressed and ready for the day by 10:00 AM! Go me! Oh, I picked up Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince from the library on Sunday afternoon and finished it last night. Yikes! Can't wait for the final installment!!

Not a great start

Not a great start to the week, to start it with a cold in 100-degree weather. Thought I was being all smart and thoughtful keeping Ethan home from church Saturday night because I thought he was getting a cold...had the sneezing, runny nose and red eyes and I do try to be sensitive about not sharing germs in the nursery...turns out *I* got the cold instead. It's certainly not the worst cold I've ever had - it's just that it sucks the life out of you. The sinus head, the pounding headache, the swollen glands and sore neck that goes with them, only being able to breathe out of one nostril...ugh.

Also frustrating, I haven't exersized since last Thursday. Now it's a major step that I can honestly say that this bugs me - so I guess that's good news. I feel like my original routine got interrupted by our trip to St. Louis and now my second attempt at a starting an exercise routine has been foiled by this cold. I just wanna WALK!! I think I'll try tomorrow. I know I didn't have the energy for it today.

The exciting thing is that my new 3-mile Walk Away the Pounds video came today! They do use the resistance belt - I wasn't sure if they did or not. I'm not going to buy one. I did watch the video to see what all they do and you could easily use handweights in lieu of the resistance belt. I just can't justify spending $20 on it right now. Besides, I think the 3-mile workout is gonna kick my butt! The good news about having a cold is that it has certainly supressed my appetite.

I did decide last week that I'm going to have to stop buying certain foods. I can't buy cookies that I like for the kids anymore. I sabotage myself and grab a couple here and there all day long. And no more chocolate in the house regularly, either. If I want a special treat, I'll do much better buying a single serving of it instead - for instance, buying a regular pack of Reece's Peanut Butter Cups instead of the giant bag of mini ones. Who was I kidding? (shakes head) Myself apparently...

I'm eagerly awaiting a call from the library to let me know when I can pick up Harry Potter book 4 and the first two movies! Seems funny not to have anything to read at the moment.

Definitely need to get back to scrappy work soon. I need to finish the Getaway paper bag album and have a new for-hire one to start soon, too.

Got a very nifty ATC from Rosemary this week! I definitely want to make some more soon.

Better figure out what I can fix the kids for dinner.

A proud moment

Had to go run errands today - WalMart first, which was uneventful, then Target. I told Natalie twice that we were not getting a "special buggy" (the 2-seater carts) because the last few times we have, she and Ethan have clobbered each other and we all ended up screaming. Not good. So of course, the first thing she asks for when we get out of the car is a special buggy (rolls eyes). She starts the pre-fit when I remind her why we aren't getting one, and I give her the choice to either get in the back of a regular one or walk with me. She opts to stand in the parking lot, wailing. I gave her the choice again and let her know that if she didn't choose one, I would. She didn't, so I put her in the back of the buggy. She wailed all the way to the door and continued and even got worse inside. We stopped at the $1 section, right inside the door and she was screaming bloody murder by this point. I calmly reminded her of her choices, let her know that her fit was not acceptable and that if she couldn't calm down, we were going outside. She wailed that she wanted to walk, so I let her get down, but the screaming didn't stop. After one last try, I finally picked her up and carried her outside (while pushing Ethan in the buggy).

There was a bench near the entrance that was sort of shady, so I put her on it. I let her know that her fit was not acceptable and it made me very sad and it was rude to the people in Target. I told her I knew she was upset that we didn't get a special buggy, but reminded her that she had lost that priviledge. Then I sat on the bench and held her and she calmed down. I let her know that I love her very much. After some big hugs and some tickles, we were able to go in and do our shopping without incident.

The biggest moment, though, was the fact that her massive tantrum didn't even phase me! I didn't get stressed (even though everyone was obviously staring), I didn't threaten to spank...nothing. I just kept my voice calm and quiet and it was fine. Now if only my response could be like that all the time. (sigh)

Picked up a swimsuit at WalMart - have been wanting something colorful for a change. Finally found a mix & match tankini (separates) in the right size. Came home and tried it on...oh dear. EEK. Not good AT ALL. Top was just wrong all the way around...too small...horrible. The bottoms fit fine...they were just...well...awful. Showed every bulge and...(shudder)...can't talk about it anymore. Must take it back.

I also got a pair of cheap tennis shoes at Target. $25. Danskin Freestyle...very lightweight. The ones I had were fine...just wanted something new, but didn't want to spend $100. Maybe that could be a reward for reaching a big goal...new, good tennis shoes.

It's awfully quiet in the living room...I wonder if Natalie fell asleep in the chair...

Exercise Report, week of 7/18/05

Monday: none
Tuesday: 2 mile workout
Wednesday: 2 mile workout
Thursday: 2 mile workout with weights
Friday: weight training, upper body, modified regular/intensity program for time

Recovering from the weekend

Well, our trip to St. Louis was successful. We ended up leaving on Friday instead of Thursday, which was fine. Didn't matter to me either way. It was nice to catch up with Gordon & Ginny (Greg's parents) and Cori & Dave (his sister and BIL). The kids had fun with Aaron. On Saturday, I got to go visit Roberta for the afternoon!! She lives 25 minutes from Cori & Dave. I went while the kids were napping and while I know she would have liked to have seen them, it was a nice little break for me! Her kids are so cute and were so well-behaved. Gillian practically leapt into my arms before I was even through the front door, LOL! Roberta looks like she's about 18, which made me feel old. Tony had to go to work, so we loaded up her kids and she took me to Archivers. I've never been, so it was nice to see one in person. Wish we could have had more time, but I needed to get back to go to church. I'll definitely call again on future visits, though, if time allows!

Aaron's birthday party was Sunday afternoon, which was fine. Cori and Dave invite ALL their friends. I guess the upside for us is that it's the same circle of friend's they've had since they got married, so we've sort of gotten to know them a tiny bit over the years. At least enough to make small talk for a few minutes here and there. Ginny pretty much made all the food. We're not really sure why Cori and Dave feel compelled that these kiddie bday parties have to serve a complete buffet. There was BBQ brisket, chicken strips, pasta salad, regular salad, cheesy potato casserole, broccoli/rice/cheese casserole, fruit salad and then cake/ice cream. For 14 adults and 11 kids. Eek.

We ended up leaving after the party, which was fine. Probably better to drive at night anyway. The kids watched Milo & Otis a few times and then slept the rest of the way. Now we're just trying to get back in the swing of things. Natalie had tumbling yesterday morning and then we had to get groceries after. Today is just at home, I think. May run to the library later - we'll see. Otherwise, I really need to be scrappy since I'm behind in my art journal AND my Done & Dusted class...it's just a matter of finding motivation.

Anyone have any extra just lying around?

Sore, but still going

As predicted, I'm a little sore from yesterday's work-out. Not bad - actually, it's that "pleasant" kind of sore - that reminds you that you did something good for yourself. Decided to do the 2-mile workout this morning, so I just finished that. Weights of choice today were two cans of green beans.

Now I need a shower.

Ethan is wailing pitifully in his crib. I think he needs to drop his morning nap, but most days he still sleeps for about an hour and then still takes an afternoon nap. Problem is, now he's not wanting to go down for his afternoon nap until 3 or 4. Looks like he won't be sleeping this morning, which throws off my showering plan. I don't like to leave them unattended if I can help it, especially now that Ethan can climb and can get into Greg's office. Ugh.

Better go see if I can convince Ethan to lie down long enough for me to take a very quick shower.

Exercise Report 7/11/05

Was going to walk, but it seems pointless since I'm expecting PetMed to call any time to tell me I can go pick up Maggie. Instead, I did the following (pardon any unknown terms, I don't know what to call some of these things):

Crunches w/Legs Up: 50
Leg Throws: 10
Cross-Crunches, right side: 25
Cross-Crunches, left side: 25
Push-Ups: 20

It's not much, I know. But this is the first time in nearly 8 years that I've done those types of exercises. So, all things considered...not terrible.

**Edited to add...I ROCK. Turns out that Greg decided to go get Maggie, which left me with a block of time. Or so I thought. I decided to do my Walk Away the Pounds tape before the kids woke up. Of course, they woke up the instant I walked back to the bathroom before exercising. (rolls eyes) For a moment I told myself, "What's the point in trying now? You should go eat a cookie!" But then I figured nothing ventured, nothing gained. Might as well try. If the kids won't leave me alone enough to do the workout, no biggie - but I won't know if I don't try. MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH there! Decided to go for the gusto and do the 2-mile walk, which is a good workout for me. Enough to work up a sweat and have a few moments where I have to make the conscious decision to keep going. (these workouts do involve some arm movement with weights, fyi) Of course, I don't have weights less than 5 lbs, so in an effort to do something...anything...I grabbed two jar candles off the entertainment center and used those in place of weights. HA! Sort of added an aromatherapy aspect to the workout since I got a big whiff of vanilla every time my hands came near my face.

All that to say, I walked the equivalent of 2 miles (with added intensity from the weights) AND did some firming/toning work too. Huzzah!!

Another Monday

It's a dreary day here in middle Tennessee...remnants of Dennis, I suppose. The perfect kind of day for staying in bed with a book. If only my children could understand that. (sigh)

Speaking of books, 140 more pages to go until I finish LOTR: Return of the King. Guess my movie viewing still has to wait.

Was very excited this morning when I found out the groomer was willing to squeeze Maggie in! She's in such bad shape - she's molting really bad and has HUGE mats behind her ears. Of course, she needs all her shots, too, so it will cost us a pretty penny when we pick her up. I love dogs, I really do...I just wish they didn't incur any costs. I've got enough of my own.

Waiting (impatiently) for today's Done & Dusted assignment...really should go work on the Getaways paper bag book.

I could really go for a nap.

Another art journal page

Theme: Wait & See. "I've always hated being told 'wait & see.' But so much of life falls into that category. Sometimes I spend so much time resenting the fact that I have to wait and I fail to 'see' that my life is happening right in those moments. Carpe diem, folks."

New art journal page

Art journal topic from two weeks ago.

Scrappy Day

Today is my day to do some scrappy things. I cleaned up my scrap desk this morning - too much clutter! Still have stuff that doesn't belong there, but with a few projects in process, it's easier to leave some things out. Got the Getaways paper bag album stuff together in one pile, art journal stuff in another pile, Done & Dusted stuff in another pile. Also put completed LO's in the appropriate albums. Really need to find an 8.5x11 album. For now, those pages are sitting in the one I have reserved for another project, but at least they are off my work surface.

Did one art journal page and have another to do, plus the weekend spark, if I choose to do that. Most importantly, though, I need to do my Done & Dusted assignment. Don't want to fall behind since I'll be gone at the end of the week. I really like how my first page turned out. Different than I expected, in a way, but I like it. Better yet, I was able to use stuff I already had on hand!

Stayed up too late reading. It seemed innocent enough...I just wanted to finish the chapter.

Suppose I should straighten up the house today, too. Really need to vaccuum. Ick.

A new project

Here is the title page for a new project - I'm doing Shimelle's "Done & Dusted" class (online).

Meeting New Friends

Met up with some new friends at the zoo this morning - friends from my Jan. 04 birth board. The board members are from all over the country (and a few international), but it just so happens that 4 of us are from Nashville! Sad thing is, this is the first time we've ever gotten together. All in all it was a good time - just hotter than heck. I knew we couldn't stay a long time - turns out Patrice and her crew left at the same time I did. I didn't want to pay the elevated prices for burgers and fries, plus I needed to get home since Greg was flying out this afternoon. Unfortunately, Ethan fell asleep on the way home and has fought a nap all afternoon. It's 5:00 now and he just fell asleep a few minutes ago. Natalie was obviously not going to sleep either, so she's sitting in the office with me until I tell her she can go. She was wailing and I didn't want her to wake Ethan up. Hopefully, they will go to bed a little early.

Had a good IM chat with Lisa about what she could do to help motivate me with the new healthy lifestyle. We came to the conclusion that I should start making note of how I'm feeling/what's going on when I feel the trigger to eat when I'm not really physically hungry. Well...I realized one a little while ago! (though I was actually hungry) With the kids both fussing/throwing fits about not taking naps and Natalie saying she needed to potty every 5 minutes, I was getting more and more frustrated because I was in the office trying to get something uploaded. I think the trigger was that my precious, beautiful children were not doing what *I* wanted them to do!! It was disrupting my plans and I was getting more and more annoyed. Good thing to note regardless of trying to change eating habits.

I did it!

I did it! I made it through Kroger without buying excessive amounts of junk! I know it's quite common for toddlers/small children to graze all throughout the day, but holy cow! My kids (especially Ethan) go through food at an astonishing rate! The trick is for me to not graze right along with them. So far it hasn't been bad, but we've been out of their usual snack foods.

I did get some blueberries today. Still surprises me that I like them.

Weekend already??

How? How does it go so fast?? Can someone tell me? I swear, as soon as I graduated from college, the years started whipping past. I fear it will only get worse from here on out.

Watched the trailer for The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe this morning - check it out at http://www.narnia.com. I think I'll have to re-read the Chronicles soon. Good, good stuff.

Speaking of reading, I started LOTR: Return of the King last night. This one is off to a slower start than the other two...or it could just be that I was tired. I'm sure it will pick up soon. Must admit that I'm sorry now that I waited so long to read LOTR - I've been missing out. Think I'll rent The Two Towers (DVD) this weekend since Greg will be gone. There's no love lost between him and Tolkien. Fair enough - if it's not your thing, it's not your thing. I just wish he'd be quiet about it already! Geesh, go build a business or something...

I started a new for-hire paper bag album yesterday. I haven't really scrapped since I started reading LOTR, but it feels good to get back to it.

So far, so good with the resolve on better health. I'm not doing anything drastic. For now, I'm simply trying to eat smaller portions than I would have last week. And I'm walking on the treadmill. I'd say I'm drinking lots of water, but I always do, so that's not a change. I did blow it a bit last night with fast food (ate every last bit of it), but I need to go to the grocery store so I have some good snacks on hand so that doesn't happen again.

No big plans for today - shower soon, go to Kroger (ugh), walk or do yoga video (hmmm...which to do...) and work on the paper bag album. Should be a quiet day!

Resolutions

I've resolved (yet again...sigh) that I really must get back to exercising every day. I've never been consistent with it, but did get on a roll back in February or so and was walking for 20-30 minutes at least 5 days a week. Once I got started, I really enjoyed it and I'm not sure why I stopped. But since then, I've been slowly gaining weight again and lately I've just felt really funky. Hormonal, crabby, super tired and very displeased with myself in general. I tend to forget how much exercising can improve my mood. So this weekend, as I felt incredibly lethargic and icky, I decided that it's time to make some changes again.

Here we go again.

I've gotta stop buying junk food, start eating breakfast - specifically something with protein, and do some exercise every day. I'd really love to get to a point where I did my yoga video AND walk on the treadmill every day, but I'm willing to start with one or the other. I'm tired of being tired. I'm tired of my cycles being screwed up. I'm tired of being unhappy with my weight.

I guess I feel like everything is out of control right now. My weight/lack of exercise/tiredness/crabiness...my house is a wreck and I feel so unmotivated to do anything about it...Gotta make some changes. Why is the simple act of starting so hard?

So today, I ate a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Not protein, but at least it was something. Then I walked 1.35 miles on the treadmill once I put the kids down for naps. It's not earth-shattering, but I guess it's a start.

Yet another weekend

Well, here we are on the cusp of another weekend. I don't think I've ever used that word before - cusp - but I quite like it. Makes me feel a bit like Jean-Luc Picard to say it outloud. And who doesn't love Jean-Luc, really?

No big plans for today or the rest of the weekend. I need to do laundry and clean up the house and would like to scrap. We'll go to church if Ethan is well enough (read: less fussy/clingy) to go to the nursery. If he's not, I'll probably send Greg and Natalie anyway. Ethan's fever finally broke yesterday, but he was a big grump all day. Very sensitive and fussy. Then he woke up in the night. Greg got him and he ended up screaming bloody murder (Ethan, not Greg) for quite a while. I finally got up since I could hear that Greg wasn't able to find anything that would calm Ethan down at all. Surprisingly, as soon as I picked Ethan up, he stopped screaming. He put his head on my shoulder and tried to sleep, I think. We rocked for a little while and then I put him back in bed - but it didn't last long. I was up and down with him for about another hour, so I'm dragging this morning.

Other than that, no news. My sink is full of dirty dishes again...will it ever end?? Oh, I did start reading a proper book last night, for the first time in quite a long time, it seems. I've started LOTR. Nothing like a challenge, eh?

A Quiz

You are a stone key, and you unlock old and magical
secrets. What you have to offer is powerful and
difficult for many to understand, but
invaluable to the few who can truly grasp it.
Give the things you have carefully and
wisely, because not everyone will use them for
good.


What sort of key are you and what do you unlock?
brought to you by Quizilla

Mission Accomplished

I did it! I walked on the treadmill! And read my Bible! And put away the post-dinner mess! And washed the dishes! Woohooo!

It's the little things, I guess. Just wish I knew why they were such a challenge sometimes.

Got my latest SWS order - another woohoo! Got some more Bazzill (Places We Love - Martha's Vineyard), LM Most Popular stamps, Distress Ink (tattered rose) and another sheet of EZMount. Goodie bag was just OK this time. One thing that was downright awful - good set of alpha stickers, some twill...something else...can't remember.

Poor Ethan. Went down for a nap at 1 PM and didn't wake up til 6 PM. Woke up crying, red and burning up. Temp was 102.7 and he was throwing up. Poor bubby. Cleaned him up, left him in just his diaper, gave him some Motrin and handed him off to Greg so I could clean up the floor and finish fixing dinner. He was restless, but did hang with Greg until I was done. After that, he did perk up quite a bit and ate half a banana and some Cheerios and then went to bed. Hope he's better in the morning.

Determined

Here's the status of things:

Pupils: huge
Vision: blurry
Children: not napping
Head: borderline achey

Still scrapping anyway.

Back in the swing of things

Greg finally returned home this morning, after two weeks away for work. Picked him up at the airport, dropped him off at home, then took Natalie to tumbling. He and the kids took long naps late this afternoon - early evening, more like. I went off to Scrap It to get paper for gift albums. It was VERY nice to get to go somewhere alone!

The Big Day!!

It's finally here!! My sister is coming! And so is my new desk!! Actually, my desk should arrive first - Greg is supposed to go over to Rod and Linda's to get it at 10:00. It's spot in the Riff Raff Room is all ready and waiting! I know I've seen the desk many times, but can't remember the exact configuration. I'm not sure how many drawers it has and don't know if the main drawer has any dividers or not. If not, I'd like to get one of those inserts so everything isn't rolling around together.

Karen should be here around noon! I hope she has an easy drive. While I wish she could have gotten here last night, I certainly understand why she didn't want to make the whole drive at night. Besides, I can't get to my scrap stuff until the new desk is here and I can put everything away...AND...my house is STILL a mess.

Speaking of which, here's what I need to do this morning:

-unload dishwasher and reload with dirty dishes
-hand-wash anything that can't go in the dishwasher
-wipe down counter
-wipe down bathroom
-put away toys in living room
-vaccuum living room rug
-put away all the stuff on the dining room table (that came out of Riff Raff Room)
-laundry

Better get to it. But just for good measure...

A Brand New Day

A new day, a new blog. Isn't it nice to have options?

Mid-post on my former blog, I realized that I've never really been happy with its format. So I thought to myself, "Why not change?" No one was making me stay there...if I'm gonna do it, I might as well be happy with it, right?

So here we are. Picking up where I left off, here's what I had already typed on the aforementioned blog:

Well, it's nice to know that my old friend, Mr. Blog, hasn't gone anywhere. I love the idea of writing something every day - I really do. And I have the best of intentions. Truly! I just don't usually have much to say. There. That's the sad, honest truth. I don't know if anyone reads this besides me. Well, I know I've given a few people the link, but I doubt they are obsessively clicking Refresh multiple times a day, just waiting for me to post!

Anyhoo...the kids are eating dinner and I have no idea what Greg and I will eat. As I told Rosemary earlier, I wish someone would figure out what to feed ME for a change. Sure would make one tiny part of life easier.

The house still needs to be cleaned, in preparation for Karen's arrival. Manage to fritter the day away yet again. Made a WalMart run for a new shower curtain liner and bath mat for the tub. Can't have my sister seeing my icky tub/shower accessories. They really are clean, but that horrid black mildew stain just doesn't go away after a while, kwim? Had other things I needed at WalMart so it all worked out in the end.

My new-to-me scrapping desk will be coming tomorrow, hopefully! I told Greg I'd do nearly anything if he'll go get it tomorrow morning. I did clear a space for it in my Riff Raff Room, but unfortunately, that means that the other half of the room is piled high until the desk is in place and I can put things away. I still need to take the ironing board down to the basement and put away all the scrapping stuff that is sitting on it at the moment. I'm also toying with the idea of taking the door off the Riff Raff Room. It was never meant to have a door. As best we can tell, it may have been some sort of sun porch or something - but the "doorway" is the same width as the passage between the dining room and living room. They must have just had a custom door made. Pity they didn't get a nice one. It's hollow and has been hit with something (at some point before we moved in) - so there's a lovely break in it. Yes, it's great to have a door to close on that room - but the room does have a lot of natural light, which is something this house sorely lacks. Food for thought.

Thus endeth my first entry in a new place.