Yardwork, finished! At least until next weekend.

We've had a bit of a cool down.  Last Monday is was horrid hot, humid and windy.  Terrible combination!  Then we had a cool front come through and the lows were in the 50F's-oh so lovely.  I took the opportunity to get caught up with the yard.  The list of things needing doing seemed to go on forever and I've spent the better part of the past four days getting everything marked off!  I still have a couple of tree limbs that need cut back and one potted plant that wants repotted, and of course now the weeds are beginning to pop up again!  At least now it's just maintaining which is quick, and mowing of course.  I am tired, stiff and sore--really my next house is going to have a hot tub!  This level of activity is more my normal, before knee surgeries, way of life, I'm hoping I can keep going inside now.  Tomorrow is going to be hot, humid and windy again--need to get up early and get the walk and bike ride out of the way!  Well, I'm off the turn the telly on and watch some more "Castle" episodes!

End of the month update on the "Me Project"

It's been a couple of weeks since I last posted, sorry ;(( I mostly don't have a lot to say right now.

I've lost 12 pounds this month (or 5.44 Kgs-I think I like the English system for this it seems like more just because it's a bigger number!)! Yeah me! The Myfitnesspal app and the fitbit have made a HUGE difference-so easy to use!  I'd like to tell you if inches have been lost but that seems to be impossible.  I know I took my measurements, I know I wrote them down, I even remember thinking that it would be an easy place to find that piece of paper.  Alas, I can not find it!  (No doubt it will turn up as soon as I quit looking for it!)

I'm walking Quinn everyday and riding my bike most every day.  I'm up to riding 13.3 miles-that's 21.4 kilometers.  After 5 more rides at that distance I'll add another mile marker-which will add two miles to the round trip.  Here's hoping I've done enough by the time the Buffalo Classic 35 miler comes along in September!

I'm currently getting all the gardens, which seem to have run amok with violets and weeds- cleaned up, spreading lime (due to acorns!) and compost, moving some plants and adding others in the front shade garden.  We've had a good bit of rain, just often enough that watering hasn't been an issue, so everything is in good shape for the moment.  It is very hot today 92F/33C with enough humidity to create the famous "blue" effect we are known for and to give us heat index readings of 99F/33C to 104F/40C.  Plus the wind is blowing 10-15 with gust up to 30 MPH.  Quinn and I tried to walk--just too icky-sticky hot for that, I didn't ride either.  I did run a couple of errands, one of which was to pick up Hill Country Spring from the long arm quilter.  I'll post a photo when I get it bound-that will be a bit as I have to acquire fabric (oh, darn it!)

I've decided to take the pool table down, it's been used exactly 3 times in 18 months making it a large floor weight!  When it's gone and the room repainted etc I'll be moving my studio back downstairs leaving this room as just an office.  I don't really like having the studio down there, there are lighting issues and it's chilly in the winter but both of those can be remedied.

The rest of today will be spent cleaning house, doing laundry etc at a very slow pace as I have no desire to "work up a sweat" over it.  Quinn needs a good grooming, I have some work to do in the garage and somewhere in there I'd like to at least type on the Town of Kansas stuff!  Trying to find a balance in all of this is tough!

Me Project Update

Since I last posed I have lost four pounds!  I love my Fitbit and I love MyFitnessPal both make counting calories ( both ways, on when I eat and off when I exercise) so much easier.  I'm up to 8 miles on the bike-it's really  amazing how quickly you gain strength in your legs.  Quinn and I are still walking, unless it's raining.  So except for not eating enough calories some days, that part of things is going well.  Other parts of the projects are still not off the ground, sigh.  I'm hoping that I can add things to the finished list more as I go.  The first few days of exercise I was so tired I had to have a nap before lunch!    Now I don't always nap, so I just need to find my mojo for the other stuff.  It'll come, change is hard.

I'm going to take off borders on Hill Country Spring so I can send it off to be quilted, it won't fit my long-armers frame if I don't.  I thought about leaving them on and quilting it by hand but I just don't feel this one deserves that ( I have some on the list that will get hand quilted but not his one.)

Our quilt guild had Ami Simms on Monday-she's a hoot! I need to order one of her patterns, for a quilted jacket.

Nothing else to report, boring, boring stuff!

A New Project--Me!

Today I began a new project.  Seems like I do that quite often, if only my finishes equaled my starts!  This one is a bit different-it's all about me.  Today I began tracking my food and exercise in a little app called myfitnesspal hoping to lose some serious weight and get healthy.  (My Fitbit arrives on Tuesday to count my little steps!)  I also want to be in condition for a 35 mile bike ride in September.  Today I have: walked Quinn 1.8 miles in 30 minutes, done my stretches and therapy exercise, took Annie (my bike)  for a six mile ride in 40 minutes, then spent 3 hours gardening.  At this point I can eat over 1,000 calories for dinner and still make my target.  I don't think I'll eat that much though.  Also on the project are all the craft, home repairs, yard work, etc, etc, etc.  that are already begun.  Gretchen Rubin of  The Happiness Project  is studying habits and has discovered that tracking your progress is a really helpful way to accomplish change.  I hope it proves to be so for me, I've spent entirely too much time getting "lost in a book" (especially ones I've read before-some many times) and not on projects.  I've already lost 3 lbs-and that was before I started!

Perhaps I'll manage a Sunday Status Report, or not, who knows?

Holy cow, I haven't posted in a really long time!

I keep thinking I'll do a post but I never seem to get around to it!

We've been quite busy getting ready for the epic wedding!  Which came off last Saturday without a hitch!  Bride was beautiful, groom handsome, all the attendants lovely, and the ring bearers/sign carriers and flower girl were amazing!  Brayden, 8, and Kolby, 5, carried in a sign which said "Your last chance to run" wearing tuxs and fedoras (just like the groom and best man--that would be my boys, Rob and Scott)-Brayden carried the rings in his pocket for hand-off to Uncle Rob and Kolby took charge of the hats.  Nora, 4, was a perfect flower girl dropping her petals with deliberation and looking adorable in a tea-length white dress.  Much fun was had at the reception, dancing, dancing and more dancing!  Pictures will follow as soon as they are available but Rob and Tanya are in the Dominican Republic on their honeymoon for 10 days-so it'll be a little while.

Other than that-this has been a horrid allergy/asthma season.  A trip to the doctor got me the following:  "Stay inside in the air conditioning, follow the allergy forecast and only go out on green days."  I asked about walking the dog, riding my bike, and gardening--"Well, you might be able to go out very early in the morning," he says.  What about cabin fever (I can get this really bad in summer) advice the same. So in December I might be able to go outside.  That just doesn't fly, here's hoping the triggers wind down! Otherwise I'll really be looking at moving to Montana.

My left foot is till recreating nerve cells.  I really would like for it to get done soon!  With each new set of "Zingers" there is pain in other areas of my foot.  Walking is somewhat interesting--oh wait, I'm not supposed to do that! Or at least not outside.

I've finished "Twisted" and have it on the bed, if you scroll down a couple of posts you can see it as a top.  It looks much the same. Still making hexies.  Next quilting project for the sewing machine is making wonky log cabin blocks from last year's rainbow challenge blocks and quilting them in strips.  Also up is beginning the hand quilting on Hill Country Spring and beginning Steve's Gasket.  Other crafty type things going on are cross-stitch (if I ever make progress on it I'll post about it), doll clothes for Miss Nora, and misc home decor stuff will post on that later as well.

I'm gearing up for interior home repairs, which require moving and or packing up a great deal of stuff.  I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to--but I do want to put my house on the market so it must be done.  Quite a bit of those things I move out or pack up won't come back out in this house.

The only other thing I'm really doing is working on the "Town of Kansas" book, though not very diligently lately due to the "Epic wedding."

Must go, need to water plants--wait for it--OUTSIDE!  I'm a terrible patient.

It's getting green!

I noticed today that the tulip trees are blooming, along with the daffodils. The grass has really greened up this past week, in fact I told Quinn I might have to MOW this weekend!  I'm nearly finished with the spring leaves, after filling 20 paper landscape bags!  There's always leaves in the spring as I have oak trees and they don't lose all their leaved in the fall, there are still a few hanging out on the tree, but usually not as many as this year.  That's thanks to the knee thing and not being able to get a proper cleanup done last fall.  Soon I'll be hauling out the tiller to dig up my garden spaces.  Only putting out some lettuce, tomatoes and green beans this year-along with the pots of flowers etc.  As tired as I am of winter, I'm not looking forward to summer--hum, just can't please me I guess.

The same old stuff is going on here, working on the books, volunteering, playing with Quinn, etc.  I've finished the backs for two quilts and one if off to the long-armers, I don't think I'll work on any others until after the wedding.  We have started our walks again and I'm getting Annie out this weekend.  I did notice that the trail was closed here on my end so I may have to go to another entry place.  It's time to start training for the Buffalo Classic in September!

I hope spring has come to your neck of the woods as well, enjoy your day.

Thunderstorms=Spring

Spring has finally arrived, I think.  Along with it came the usual thunder, lightening, rain, flood watches and tornado watches--ah, the weather on the great plains!  We really needed the rain, but perhaps not all at once?  Everything is greening up really fast now and I am really wishing I had all the leaves off the flower beds etc.  I did the front last Saturday and the weather hasn't cooperated since for me to do the back and sides, sigh.  I'm hoping for this weekend now.  Soon it will be time to get the gardens in shape and planted--hum where am I going to put the tomatoes this year?

Have finally finished the back for Twisted!  Need to trim the batt down and it will go off to Robin on the 11th.  The back for Hill Country Spring is in the works, will probably finish it tonight and trim the batt for it as well.  It will go to Robin after Twisted comes back as I can't afford to send them both at once.  They are BIG!

I have dresses to alter for the wedding and that is next up after backs, then I'm making doll clothes for Nora's Cabbage Patch Kids!

Still typing like a mad woman on the Town of Kansas.  Still hitting the library every week for newspapers on microfilm.   Really enjoying it, well except for reading court cases those are boring (can't imagine how lawyers do it all the time!)

Now I'm off to clean another room of my house--it's deep cleaning time!  Room by room is the only way I can stand it!  At the end I will still need to wash windows and curtains but that requires some warm sunny days!