Should have been yesterday's blog post...

That's right...this post you are about to read should have been yesterday's blog post, but I didn't have a moment to post yesterday, so you get it today.

As some of you probably know, I have a Never Not Knitting Page-A-Day Calendar by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (a.k.a. The Yarn Harlot).  The Yarn Harlot writes humor books about knitting and for knitters as well as a very clever little calendar that gives you funny quips, quotes about knitting, quotes that should be about knitting, and other little tips.  I LOVE this calendar!  If you are a knitter, you NEED it!  Anyway...

Yesterday's "Wednesday Purls of Wisdom" was the fact that September 15th (yesterday) was Julia Child's birthday, arguably one of the most inspirational chefs in America.  That calendar page had two things I love in it...food and knitting.  I LOVE to cook and try new recipes, and I'm a big fan of Julia Child.  I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't own her cookbook, nor have I tried to make any of her recipes at home.  However, occasionally, on the weekends, I do catch a re-run of her show or a show that she did with Jacques Pepin on PBS.  All I have to say is that the woman makes even the most challenging recipes seem possible for anyone to do.  She didn't even care if she messed up while cooking on her show, and quite frankly, she just plain cracks me up!! :)  I could probably watch her all day and be perfectly entertained and totally inspired.  Have you seen the relatively recent movie, Julie and Julia?  I have, and I loved that as well.  It's kind of what got me on the whole Julia Child kick...more just got me interested in stopping channel surfing and watching when she's playing on PBS.  What a remarkable woman she was!

On top of all of that, Julia Child's mannerisms and personality remind me so much of my grandmother in so many ways.  Yes, the very same grandmother who called me "Doodlebug."  I remember being in my early teens and just laughing at my grandmother because she and her mannerisms were so darn cute!  Julia Child has that same effect on me.  My mother sometimes would tell me I shouldn't laugh at my grandmother, but my grandmother always said, "Laughter is the sign of pure and true love!" :)  She was so wise in so many ways.

So, after gushing about Julia Child being in my knitting calendar (perfect combo if you ask me!), I think I'm going to reiterate to my husband that the following is on my Christmas list this year as it was last year (in no particular order):

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child 
2. Julie and Julia - the recent movie
3. Julia Child - The French Chef 1 and 2

Perhaps by this time next year, I'll have made Beef Bourguignon (said in best Julia Child accent)! :)

Lovin' the Ladies Lunch!

Today, I had the great pleasure of having lunch with one of my friends from my knitting group.  She was kind enough to go out and get lunch for us and have it waiting when I got to her house.  We spent the time gabbing (of course!), and I got to meet her new kitten (she thinks she's going to name her Chloe).  The kitten was beyond cute and would just run, jump, play, and explore.  Then, all of a sudden, she was just tuckered out...sooo cute!  I forget how tiny kittens/cats can be because we pretty much have a mountain lion at home (Moose, who lives up to his name).  Holding Chloe felt like no weight at all! :)

The other fun part of lunch...my friend, who enjoys quilting/sewing in addition to knitting is also going to sew a purse for me.  When I got to her house, she had her entire fabric stash laid out on the dining room table, so I could pick the fabric for my purse.  I was like a kid in a candy store!!  I basically chose two different color schemes and told her to pick one and surprise me.  I seriously cannot wait to see the finished purse!!

Having such a fun lunch with a wonderful friend really brightened my day and just made my afternoon go so much better.  If you have the chance, do yourself a favor and try to do a ladies lunch with a good friend(s) sometime soon!

A LOT Accomplished!

So, I know it's been a few days since I've been in the blogging world, but quite frankly I haven't had much time.  It's because I've been busy!  I even have some pictures to show for it!

I decided to join in on a Worldwide Shawl Exchange on Ravelry, where the goal was to create a shawl for someone else and send it by September 27, 2010.  You also receive a shawl from another person.  I have received my shawl, and it's gorgeous!! :)  And, this weekend, I finally finished the shawl for my partner and just blocked it tonight.  It will be on its way to New Zealand next week.  Here's a pic of the shawl I received, along with the goodies that came with it (yay, eye candy!!):

I decided to participate in the "Making Room SAL - Spin From the Bottom" Stash Down on the Spunky Club board on Ravelry.  The idea is to spin some of the oldest stuff in your stash and get it done before Rhinebeck.  I decided to finish whatever I have on the bobbins and choose a whole new pile of "older" fibers in my stash...one from just about every dyer.  So far, I've finished one skein, a 3-ply fingering/light sportweight spun from Hello Yarn.  It's Targhee wool in "Garland" colorway.  I'm soooo proud of this one!

And, here is the pile of the rest of the stuff I plan on spinning:

And probably the biggest accomplishment to date is that I started working with my personal trainer again.  She got me into these shakes called "Shakeology," where you replace 1 meal per day with shakes.  Along with that, you can do a 3-day cleanse, where basically you have 3 shakes per day and then a big salad for dinner with 4 oz. of lean meat.  I did that for the past 3 days, and I'm proud to say that in just 1 week, I have lost a total of 5.5 inches!!!!!! :-D  Hooray for jump-starting weight loss AND getting stronger all at the same time!  I'm excited to see the results continue and get back to the old me again! :)

Not quite daily

Well, 2 days into my self-imposed blog every day challenge, I miss one! Sheesh! Last night was too busy with the in-laws in town, and I couldn't post. Cest la vie! I'm posting today.

The good news is the in-laws are good, and we had fun visiting with them last night. Tonight the are making me a belated birthday dinner-crab legs, corn, some sort of salad, and German chocolate cake (my fave!!). Pretty excited! It won't be good for the diet, but one dinner won't be too bad.

More tomorrow...hopefully...

Something new

You are probably reading this going....2 blog posts in 2 days?  Is that even possible?  Melinda only updates her blog once every 6 months.  But, you are reading correctly, people!  It's another blog post.  I read on someone else's blog that they are challenging themselves to write a new blog post every day.  It happens to be a blog whose RSS feed I subscribe to.  So, I get an e-mail every day with the new blog post.  I really love reading a little snippet into her life, thoughts, whatever.  And, I have been totally inspired now to do it myself.  I can't promise I'll be able to blog every single day, but I'm going to try to most days of the week.  If you're curious who's blog I've been reading, it's The Harveyville Project by Nikol Lohr.  She is the creator of Yarn School, which I have had the great fortune of attending this past spring and will be attending again this fall!

A bit about said Yarn School...if you love to spin, knit, play with fiber, it is definitely your mecca!  Of course, you can read all the details on the Harveyville website, but here's a brief overview:  It's 4 days of nothing but fibery goodness...learning about different breeds of sheep and other animals that provide spinning fiber, how to wash/prepare a fleece for spinning, hand carding, drum carding, spinning (if you don't know how), dyeing wool, new spinning techniques you may not have considered (art yarns), etc., etc., etc.  It is set in an old rural school building, and you live right there at the school.  The classrooms have been converted into bedrooms.  Meals are served family style, and all the food is homemade with locally grown veggies, etc.  In a word, Yarn School is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  I'm super excited to get to go twice in one year, learn new techniques, meet new friends, and just have a grand time! :)

Other than that, I've been doing well with my food/exercise this week.  I'm proud to say that I'm keeping up!  My in-laws are coming in tomorrow, and on Friday, they plan on making me a belated "birthday dinner."  That will probably blow the calories for that day, but no matter...a girl is allowed a bit of freedom.  My husband also has plans of taking all of us to a fancy restaurant on Saturday that serves at least small portions but very rich food.  So, for a couple of dinners I probably won't be as on the ball as I have been, but believe you me, I will be jumping right back on that wagon.  Hopefully, I'll start seeing results sooner rather than later...I'm committed now! ;)

At any rate, I should get going for now...  Hubby just walked in the door with the healthy dinner for tonight...sushi!  More tomorrow (hopefully...if I can steal a moment away from the in-laws)...

And so it begins...

So, back in March, I started seeing an endocrinologist due to borderline thyroid issues.  After going through a lengthy process of being taken off of all medications, waiting, having more blood work done, etc., there is finally a diagnosis...5 months later.  A reason for being soooo tired for the last 2 years.  A reason for unexplained weight gain of over 50 lbs. in 2 1/2 years (yes, you read that correctly...5-0.  A reason why I didn't feel like me!  That reason is called Hashimoto's thyroiditis.  It is an autoimmune disease, where basically my immune system attacks my thyroid and causes hypothyroidism.  Hypothyroidism is when your thyroid doesn't produce enough thyroid hormone.  It causes (among other things):  fatigue, depression, weight gain, constipation, constantly being cold, and a whole host of other unpleasantness.

It came on very slowly for me.  I suspect that this has been going on for years now because it's always been difficult for me to lose weight, and I've always gained it back in lightening speed.  I got to the point where I felt like if I looked at a piece of cake, I'd gain 5 lbs.  Can you even imagine?

Hashimoto's is very treatable, although uncureable.  Basically, I will need to be on some sort of thyroid hormone replacement therapy for my entire life.  Unfortunately, identifying the best treatment can be a lengthy process (it's taken 2 yrs for me to get here!).  However, I'm proud to say that I think my endocrinologist has found what will work for me.  Now, we are to the tweaking the doseage stage to get me to a point where I can lose the weight I've gained relatively easily and feel like the vibrant 29 year old I should be.

I started my new thyroid treatment back in June, and I feel like a totally different person now!  I feel like the old me again!  The me I used to be in college.  I have energy to clean my house and spend time with my husband while I'm awake.  I have energy to write this blog post!  It's all really amazing!  As I mentioned, I went to the doctor last week, and he is now tweaking my dose because I still gained some weight.  Hopefully, the dose will get straightened out in the next 6 weeks.

The other thing I'm doing is proactively trying to lose weight.  I am working with a personal trainer/nutritionist to eat healthier and exercise.  She has given me a calendar of what to do each day for my workouts, so I don't have to think too much.  I also downloaded an app called "My Fitness Pal."  It's free on iTunes, and I can track my food, workouts, weight loss, and inches lost all from my phone!

I am well on my way to getting healthy and really feeling and looking like my old self again!  I will report back as this journey continues...

Olympic Sports I Could Do

Disclaimer:  After reading my friend Rhonda's blog, I've decided that I need to have more funny posts in my blog and also write about some of the things that cross my mind instead of purely fibery endeavors.  This is a first attempt.  I can't promise that it's funny, but I do promise that it's some thoughts ;)

So, I've been enjoying watching the Winter Olympics and all, but after watching them several times over the last week or so, I've decided that there are other things that should be considered Olympic sports. Since I'm not the most sports-oriented person, these are (I'm convinced) the only things I could win a gold medal in.  Here is my list:

1. Knitting - How would one judge this?  How fast?  Most finished objects?  Or my personal favorite...most Cast on objects :)  Most cast on objects...I'm pretty sure I could win at that ;)
2. Vacuuming - I hate doing it, but if someone were to offer to give me a gold medal for fastest vacuum time, I could be convinced that it's a lovely thing to do and do it faster.
3. Hauling Crap While Climbing Stairs - hands down, I would have the gold medal here.  Our TV is located in our loft upstairs.  We are non-traditional and don't usually sit down at the dining room table for meals...we prefer in front of the TV.  Therefore, we must haul plates of food, drinks, knitting bag, etc. upstairs.  I usually only want to make one trip.  Therefore, I haul all of the above-stated items at one time.  My husband and cat are usually awestruck by this feat of trying not to spill the drink or food or lose my fork.  Personally, I think it helps me burn off whatever calories I'm about to ingest by hauling more ;)
4. Hauling Groceries in the House - Right along with #3, I only want to make one trip from the car.  So...whenever I've gone grocery shopping, I try to take the entire load in one trip.  This means about 9 bags on each arm, the package of toilet paper being held only by my index finger in one hand (make a hole in the plastic for this and either a gallon of milk or case of Diet Coke in the other hand.  You think I'm exaggerating....actually, I'm not!

Umm..that's probably about it.  Signing out...your Hauling Crap While Climbing Stairs Gold Medalist...