Cross-stitch Wednesday

I've looked and looked through my photos and I can't find a "before" post for Kolby's stocking.  It's really not much of a difference as I haven't made tons of progress since (or still) but I did promise to try and post progress. (There's and ulterior motive there-in order to post I have to actually work on it!)  So here it is now:

Not a great photo, sigh.  I'll try and do better next week.

Also on the stitching front I've finished the binding on Hill Country Spring!  I'll take a photo as soon as I have my bed made up properly for it- I hope that will be tomorrow. 

I have a new quilt up on the design wall/board-whatever.  A baby quilt using some of the Rainbow scrap blocks that I made last year.

Currently the blocks are just pinned up there on the sashing fabric but tomorrow I hope to cut the sashing, borders and binding. To begin stitching the top together Friday (after I set up a table to sew on in the basement/studio-more on that later.)

I'm nearly finished with the redo to the office (formerly the office/studio and very full).  I'll do a reveal as soon as I'm all organized in there.  You would not believe how much stuff I hauled to the basement for the studio!

The Weekly Deal

Hi all!  I'm trying for once a week, ugh, probably won't make it.  The big news is all about the knee.  Chiropractor on Wednesday and Friday--hips out of alignment and band on left leg very tight.  He can feel a cyst in the back of the knee--again, sigh.  He will do treatments for the hips and band hoping that relieving the inflammation will help the cyst dissolve. Monday, Wednesday, Friday for 4 weeks. (I don't think he's very hopeful.)  MD on Thursday, the back of my knee is swollen and she acknowledges the fact that I know what I'm talking about! She has ordered an MRI (scheduled for this coming Wednesday.) Probably will end up at orthopedics if confirmed.  Hi! Dr Salin!  I believe that all the riding I've been doing probably caused it and may have been a factor in last years cyst issues, so I'm off the bike until further notice.  I'm willing to try most anything to keep from having that surgery again, it was without doubt the most painful thing I've ever had!

On other fronts, I'm still working on Kolby's stocking, still have Hill Country Spring to  bind (geesh someone should crack a whip over me!)  I had Brayden and Kolby every afternoon last week, it was lovely and cool so we did some outside history places, had Yogurtini and went to the movies.  Between that and the doctors I really didn't have much time at home!

I drove to Columbia to visit Scott and Bri yesterday returned with a sofa for Beth.  Good thing I have a truck!  I ate entirely too much-I'll be afraid to step on the scale in the morning!  But we went out fro Indian food and I never get to have that, SO good!

I'm tired, going to put my legs up and stitch a little while watching the telly!  Something I'll be doing quite a bit this week as it's to get very HOT  and HUMID again.  I hate it.  Somedays I'd just like to sleep until blessed fall!

What have I been up to?

Good question.  Last week I had Brayden here every morning, then drove him to computer camp.  Somewhere in there he learned to watch UTube and hacked his X-Box!  Eekk!  Another geek!
This week I'm picking Brayden and Kolby up at noon from Vacation Bible School and then we're hanging out and making some field trips.

I've been riding my bike still, BUT (and it's a big one) I'm having pain in the back of my knee and up to my hip.  Just like last summer, sigh.  I'm hoping and hoping it isn't a returned cyst!  I have doctor's appointments both tomorrow morning and Thursday morning, hoping I can get an MRI scheduled.  Because of that, I've cut riding back to every other day.:((  I am doing 15 miles now though but it's beginning to look shaky for that 35 miler, for the second year in a row.  The pain is not yet severe so I'm hoping to catch it early, I'll let you know.  On the days I don't ride Quinn and I are walking at least three miles as I still need to get in my 10,000 steps.

I have lost a total of 17 lbs!  Some of my pants no longer need to be unbuttoned to take them off (Some of them barely stay up!)  It's a nice problem to have but summer clothes are nearly gone from the stores, so I'm hoping to make due until fall.  Although if it stays cool like it is now (70F today's high, last nights low was 54F) I won't need to worry about it as jeans will be the clothing of choice and while they are looser they're not to the falling off stage yet! (And are much easier to replace, year round.)

I've been working on Kolby's Christmas stocking every day, making some progress.  I have to show you tomorrow.  Tonight I'll work on that again and trim Hill Country Spring for binding.  Would like to have that sewn on to take to Scott's this weekend and stitch down while we visit.  (I always take something and rarely work on it!)

Wish I was doing something more exciting!  I am enjoying the cool weather while it hangs around!

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?