You are Looking at a Winner!

I have some great friends who blog here. Many of them are quilting friends. My friend Debi loves to hold contests and challenges. No matter what the season, Debi has something fun going on--challenges, giveaways, new blocks--something fun all the time. This week she is participating on another blogger's OP Challenge and weekend blog hop. The fabric in the challenge is orange. I love orange :)

Debi said, "Saturday, I am hosting a giveaway as part of the OP Challenge. My giveaway is this 19 piece set of Millefleur by P & B Textiles fat quarters." So who gets an email last evening that says, "Congratulations...You are the winner of my blog giveaway....." Yes! You are so right! ME! Look at those gorgeous fat quarters! Thank you thank you thank you so much, Debi!

I'm a winner! I'm a winner! I never win stuff! And I'm a winner! YippeeSkippee!!!!
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Celebration: The Week is Over!

Celebration time c'mom!

We are celebrating that this week is finished and put to bed! Whew what a week! The struggle was tough, even as I was as busy as all get out. Scales showed half a pound up for the struggling effort. C'est la vie, n'est-ce pas?

I have been trying to figure out why I am having such difficulty with these past few weeks. I think I need to shake things up a bit. I feel the need to mix things up. Part of my struggle is that I am just doing the same things. It is time to mix things up, remotivate myself, get things moving. I want more time in the day :)

First I need to add some exercise into the mix. I have lots of excuses not to exercise. Let me list them.

TIME: When should this happen? I get up at 5:30 to catch the bus at 6:30. I arrive at school by 8:00 and leave at 4:00 to arrive home by 5:30. I make dinner. Doug gets home by 5:45. We eat by 6:00-6:30 and Jeopardy is on at 7...then I have a bit of time to relax and go upstairs to finish grading or getting ready for the next day. Bedtime...so I can get up at 5:30.

I could try to figure out how I can take some time during the work day to do this, but I have never been able to figure this out. I have tried to take a class now and again in the middle of the day but after about two weeks, I have to drop out. I just never can get away from my office. Too many things I need to do. I rarely get to visit with my colleagues. I can make more of an effort to do this, but I have my doubts.

With days longer, I could get in a little walking in after dinner. I can give up Jeopardy but Doug won't. It is our only TV watching and he really enjoys it. I could walk alone, but I won't. Motivation. I will find the answer to this. Before I started riding the bus, I did my biking before school. I sometimes can get on the bike between Jeopardy and finishing school work, but mostly I forget. And I want something besides the bike. I want to swim, but can't yet. In a few weeks I can but not yet.

MOVEMENT: What am I able to actually do? Most machines that helps one get good cardo I can't do. It is too difficult on my knee. But I can swim, if I get some good fins. My knee doesn't bend enough to get me moving, but a good pair of fins will help. Perhaps since I may never get my reward massage (that is another story), my rewrd for 30 pounds will be a set of fins :) If I stop riding the bus, I can swim in the morning at school. If I swim at the public pool (just down the street) the cost adds up, but might find lap swimming in the evening. I will check that out.

So as we celebrate this week finally coming to a conclusion, we can also celebrate a new mix. Whatever that new mix involves. I'll let you know how that goes... Weekly picture will soon be up (I have to wash my hair and get pretty).
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Bright Eyes

I now see the world in bright colors
in all it's technicolor
without halos
the world without hesitation

Life is good :)
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Tough Week; Instant Gratification

Whew was this ever a tough week. I struggled each day to stay within my point allowance. I went over some days, under others. And all along, I was struggling. And on top of that, I was sloshing with excess fluid. Fluid. Fluid. Fluid. My joy LOL Some days up to 12 pounds of extra. Most days only five or six.

I have been battling excess fluid for the past few weeks. I knew I was holding more fluid than my normal 3 pounds and it was not showing the loss I knew I had at the scales. So Thursday I decided to take the highest level of diuretics allowed me later in the evening. Yes, I was up multiple times during the night. Yes, I forgot and flushed most times (if it's brown, flush it down; if it's yellow let it mellow). But I was unsloshed by morning. Eight pounds of unsloshable fluid gone. It just feels so free to be able to bend my legs and ankles and wiggle my fingers easily. And that showed up at the scales: 2 pounds down. This week's pic shows some difference, I think. Either that or it is wishful thinking :)

On another note, I am having eye surgery on Thursday. I have a bad cataract in my left eye. It is causing me to not drive at night comfortably. Nor at dusk and dawn. I can't wear my glasses to see at a distance, so I drive without glasses on. Watch television that way, too. I have them on now, so don't worry about your safety ;) So Thursday morning I am having the lens removed and a new one installed. They are going to take care of my astigmatism at the same time. My right eye isn't bad with distance nor astigmatism, so I won't need glasses for distance, only reading. But I won't be able to read for a few days, not comfortably anyway.

I don't know if I have mentioned but I had my knee replaced two summers ago. My body decided it needed to protect itself after the surgery, so I built up gobs of scar tissue. A second surgery cleared that up...for a bit anyway. The result is that I still can't bend my knee more than about 90-100 degrees. My knee doesn't go straight all the way, either. I'm happy with the replacement. I have so much stamina and have no arthritis pain. Yeah, life is good.

Life is good except when I am in a chair too low and can't get up. Now this is a sight no one should miss. It is the funniest things and I always end up laughing my ass off. On Saturday I was tired and had on stockings. They kept slipping on the hardwood floor, so I couldn't edge my leg under me as I tried to stand up. I asked Doug to help me. Unfortunately I continued to slide and ended up on the floor. Now right away I am already laughing. How the hell can I get up off the floor? When we had carpet, I could rest my good knee on the floor, quickly put pressure on my fake knee to shift my left leg bent under me. I would then stretch out my fake knee leg and by pushing with my left leg and the top of my right foot, I could eek my way standing. I always would yell "TaDa!" when I got up.

This time, I tried to do this, but with the hardwood floors, it was too hard to put any pressure on my fake knee. I even rolled over and put a folded quilt under my knees, but it was too painful. I tried, but couldn't get up. So I looked around and thought of the stairs! I scooched my way over to the stairs but could not lift myself up the steps. I sat by the steps for a bit, thinking I might need to have my laptop brought to me and a bed pan...live by the foot of the stairs. And then it came to me: the front porch steps.

So I scooched to the door, unlocked and opened it, scooching back and forth. Doug was trying to help but I finally asked him to move please. I scooched outside on the porch and made my way down the stairs. And when I hit that ledge and the first step, I grabbed the handrail and pulled myself up. I of course flung my arms in the air and yelled, "TaDa!"

Ha! You really gotta laugh, eh? So the beat goes on, all the while laughing! peace~~~
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