This is who I am

Stitchy Saturday

Posted on January 2, 2010 by Terri | Comments Off

Stitchy Saturday happened at my house instead of at the LNS. I just didn’t feel well enough to subject the others attending to what I may still have. So instead I played in my stash to help me with my stitching goals and then I stitched.

I think I have come to some firm goals:

1. Actual Stitching

Mirabilia Summer Queen – I’m already stitching this and it has to be finished and framed by mid-May in order to be entered into the fair. I’m thinking I may stitch on this every Saturday and Sunday as well as devoting a full week to it. The rest of the items I’ll stitch on Monday – Friday.

Carriage House Houses of Hawk Run Hollow – It will satisfy more than one ‘requirement’ for my rotation. There are 12 blocks and I am going to attempt to stitch one a month. I have a yard size piece of 40 ct Vintage Maple Sugar already in my stash, and I have been collecting the NPIs over the past year for this design and the Village. Just need to measure twice, cut once, surge and go!(Fortunately, the other two HRH designs have not tempted me, but I hear there’s an autumnal design in the works and I may be in B.I.G. trouble when it comes out.)

Glory Bee Flying Monkies – new and small. I want to put this over my desk at work so I can just point to it 🙂

With My Needle Quaker Needlework Treasures – this has been around for over a year (I think even over 2!) and will fall into the ‘smalls’ category. I will decide whether or not to attempt the actual finishing once I get all the stitching done. I may just ‘farm’ it out. I do have everything for all the parts, etc., kitted.

Once Summer Queen is finished I’ll probably add in my French Alphabet Sampler or La Marquoir de Justine. I really would like for the two of them to be finished and framed this year.

2. Framing – Most of the designs I would like to see framed this year will be going on a ‘sampler wall’ in my bedroom. I am aiming for at least 6 designs.

3. Stash Enhancement – I have myself on a stitching budget. I am going to try really, really hard to not purchase anything but we all know how that usually goes 😆 so I’m budgeting. I have tons of fabric, so really can’t see myself buying any of that in the future and am going to try to stitch as much from my stash as possible. One thing that has worked for me in the past is to trade for things. I may try that when I start on #4 below.

4. Stash Downsizing – I am going to be thinning out my stash. I have some fibers to get rid of (anyone need to purchase the complete set of Vikki Clayton silks for HoHRH?) and I even want to sell some of my fabric. I know I have some duplicates in charts to weed through, plus my tastes have changed over the past 30+ years. I’ll be doing a lot of eBaying (user name is mcbcpsdca) and will post here when new stuff is going up and may even post things for trade before putting them up on eBay.

So for now, that’s it! And can I just say that with all the football that’s on TV, this feels like Sunday to me so I feel like I’m getting a free day for stitching tomorrow ! !

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Posted in Carriage House Samplings, Glory Bee, Goals, Mirabilia, With My Needle

Woohoo 2010 is here and I have a plan.

Posted on January 1, 2010 by Terri | Comments Off

I don’t know where 2010 is going to take me yet as far as where I’ll be living at the end of this year. Kahuna is still not being decisive on whether or not he’s retiring or extending his enlistment to his 30 year EAS. If he doesn’t extend he’ll be retired on October 17, 2010. If he does extend he’ll be retired on January 12, 2012.

One thing I’m definitely doing this year is keeping my checkbook balanced. I made this a ‘resolution’ a couple of years ago and stuck to it faithfully. I was so impressed with how much money I had when I was keeping track of it. I quit doing it when I took my current job. I don’t know why, it just happened, and I am constantly transferring money from savings to checking and back again. This is stopping today. I have some financial goals I want to meet by the 10/10/10. If Kahuna decides to retire this year, then that is hopefully the first day of my new job….Kept Woman.

As to my weight, well I do have some thoughts but can’t exactly get them down until I have my surgery date. I’ll revisit that issue at that time.

I’m thinking really hard about making some stitching goals for 2010. I’ve stitched more this week than I think I have all of 2009. I’ve found myself not wanting to read and have grabbed a cup of coffee and my needle as fast as I could every morning. So here are some thoughts to help me gel a plan:

One of the things I keep promising myself is to frame more of my finished work. There’s really no excuse for this to not happen this year since Kahuna has said he’s more than happy to finance it. I did pull The Token out earlier this week to trim it down and surge the edges.

I’m thinking I need to get back to rotating. I’ve been thinking of a 4-5 item rotation: Large, Small, Old, New, or something similar. I love charts with salt box houses and American flags, so I may make these one of my categories. I also have a ton of ‘smalls’ charts/kits. Maybe AmFlag-House, Old, New, Smalls…ack! I don’t know, but I do need to clear up some ‘old’ projects. I have many projects that only have a few stitches in them. They’re from my craziness of starting tons of new projects during the month of January in years past. I pull them out and look at them periodically and still like them and would like to get more stitching done on them.

I’ve posted on my facebook, but I’ll put here that both puppies have been sick. I think they have puppy stomach flu or something. I got Jasper well (after a trip to the Vet), and Harley was up all night long with it. It’s making for a very tired me and Kahuna.

Tomorrow is Stitchy Saturday and I’ll post a progress picture of Summer Queen after that.

Happy New Year all.

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Posted in Goals

Hellooooo? Is anyone still out there?

Posted on December 28, 2009 by Terri | Comments Off

So, what have I been up to that’s kept me so busy I couldn’t post? Ummmm, I can’t remember further back than last week.

Doctor appointments galore! I had my last appointment on Christmas eve, believe it or not. The vampires were well fed when I left the hospital. So much so that I felt faint, had to have juice, and Kahuna had to feed me before we drove off. Now I need to e-mail the surgical nurse and get a surgery date.

I’m now the only admin support in my office. Other paralegal was ‘let go’ last week. It has been rather fun at work since I had ‘use it or lose it’ vacation time. Did I mention I’m the only admin support in my office. I was ready for this week to get here so I could collapse.

I’m fighting a cold right now. I.refuse.to.get.sick!

I’ve been stitching on Summer Queen. I need to take a photo to prove it though, don’t I.

Went to see Sherlock Holmes and Avatar this past weekend. Love them both. I was ready to sit through Avatar a second time, I enjoyed it so much.

Last but not least, we’re adding to our family. Meet Jasper.

He’s *visiting* with us right now to see if he’s a good fit for our family. He’s already turning into a ‘momma’s boy.’ He has been eating ‘raw’ at his foster home and we’re going to try to keep feeding him that way on a periodic basis. Harley will benefit from it as well. So, I had to go grocery shopping when Kahuna came home today and Kahuna said he stood at the door and whined while I was gone. He’s a sweet 3 year old boy. AKC color is ‘seal.’ That’s black to non IG peeps. He’s a rescued boy who’s old mom and dad kept him outside during the day and when they went to bed at night he slept in a plastic crate in the living room while they were snuggled in their comfy bed down the hall. They traveled a bit much to keep him so they gave him over to rescue. He’s been at his foster home for a little more than 3 months.

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Posted in Puppies, Stitching, surgery

Barium…it's what's for breakfast!

Posted on November 21, 2009 by Terri | 5 comments

and lunch and supper. Yum! Not. I have a CT scan on Monday so have started ‘prepping’ for it. Not being one for ‘flavored’ items, drinking berry flavored barium for breakfast immediately kicks in my gag reflex. Actually, just smelling the stuff got me started.

I had a psych appointment on Tuesday. Nothing like drudging through all 50 years of your life — starting at the moment you were born — with a stranger. Needless to say with some of the skeletons in my closet this has been a rough week for me. Not sleeping, or if I do immediately go to sleep waking up at 3 a.m. and not being able to get back to sleep.

I have several more appointments to make between now and December 14th. On that day one of my doctors will decide if I’m ready to be referred for surgery during January.

Today Kahuna and I are going to see ‘New Moon.’ Housing shut our water off at 6 a.m. this morning and we’ve already been showered and shaved, filled our tubs with water for the toilets), had our breakfast, entertained Harley (an all day affair, anyway), and are nursing a cup of coffee while we play on our respective computers. I intend on spending the majority of today (while not at the movies) watching college football, DVRd stuff, and stitching (working exclusively on Summer Queen). I’d like to start up a “goodreads’ on my facebook, too, but that might wait until tomorrow since I won’t be able to leave the house.

Although I haven’t posted it here (I don’t think?) Harley smacked Kahuna in his left eye a couple of weeks ago and tore his cornea. At his last appointment this week he was told it’s as healed as it’s going to be, and there’s a wrinkle in the cornea. He’s having vision problems because of it and they’re talking LASIK surgery….again. This will be the 3d time for that eye…his good eye. Sigh. He’s undecided about having it, but has set an appointment with the doctor who did the first two (he’s the eye doctor for the San Diego Chargers) and I think he’ll decide based upon that opinion.

We’re headed to Disneyland on Thursday for our almost annual Thanksgiving tradition. There are rarely any lines for any of the rides on that day and they serve turkey and dressing at the major eateries. We try to eat at the Blue Bayou for lunch (but this year we waited too late to get reservations) and in downtown Disney at Brennan’s for supper to get our Louisiana fix every year. We did manage reservations at Brennan’s and may even head over there for lunch and get a poboy. I love Disneyland, especially this time of year. The carols and fireworks in the evening even make me cry and miss home. Kahuna and I are both still kids enough that we have a good time, just the two of us.

5 Comments

Posted in Life, LSU, Stitching, surgery

How long does it take you to make major decisions?

Posted on November 8, 2009 by Terri | 11 comments

I’ve been contemplating whether or not to blog about this but I figured since this is who I am, I may as well.

Believe it or not, that’s the major decision — whether to post about it — not what I’m about to post 😉

I have decided, after two years of discussions with my health care providers, to have bariatric surgery. I fought it vehemently the first time it was suggested — two years ago. I don’t know if it was because I didn’t feel 100% comfortable with my primary care provider (PCP), or if I was in denial, but I said absolutely not.

Last year, I got a new PCP. She was very close to my age, from the south, and we talked for almost 1/2 an hour before we got to do the business of my annual well-woman visit. I was thrilled to find out she had just gotten here about a month before so I knew she’d be around awhile. I’m one of those people who just dumps every little thing that’s been bothering me into my annual exam. I don’t know if it’s a military family member thing or not, but it’s just darn inconvenient to get a doctor appointment so I feel like if I’m not in major pain, I can just hang on until it’s time for my annual exam. One of the things we talked about was my weight, and my blood pressure. I really detest taking the pills and talked to her about what I needed to do to get off them. She was the first person who ever explained to me, in terms I could understand, exactly WHY I was taking them!!! This was when she mentioned having bariatric surgery and I balked. I think she might have ‘gotten me’ because she talked to me about the different methods and asked me to seriously consider it over the next year and talk to her again at the next annual exam. I saw her a couple of times during the year following that exam, and she remembered me, but never brought it up again.

Then this year, right before I was scheduled to have my physical, I got an UTI — and a new male PCP — who I didn’t like. I knew the other person was still around, so while I was at the appointment for my UTI I asked the Dr. to schedule me for lab work and my mammogram so I could have the results back when I wanted my annual physical to take place. Since I knew the other woman was still around I hit the check in desk before I left and asked if I could schedule an appointment with her after my lab work was scheduled back.

When I got to my exam, before we started the actual physical part, we talked. She pulled up my lab work and told me my cholesterol and triglycerides were excellent (ha ha Kahuna!!) but my blood sugar levels had started to rise. I knew this was going to be the case, because I can feel it. She asked me if I had done the research she had suggested last year and because my blood pressure isn’t changing, and because my blood sugar is going up, she scheduled me for a consult.

When I got to that hospital I was thoroughly taken back by the way I was treated. Most of the time over the past 29 years I’ve felt like I was on a conveyor belt in a factory when it came to dealing with the hospital and appointments. This was not the case here. The only other time I’ve been treated so respectfully was when I was seeing the doctor about my hysterectomy. Maybe it has something to do with the specialty clinics, but other areas of the hospital really need to take note of it. Not once did I feel any humiliation, embarrassment, etc., during my appointment. Face it, going to the doctor can be a real humiliating experience, no matter what your reason for being there.

This was two months ago. Since then I’ve been poked and prodded in new ways. I’ve had more Dr. appointments in the past month than I’ve had in a year. I’ve even had more appointments than I had when I was ‘gearing up’ for my hysterectomy. I have many more appointments ahead. The approval process for surgery through the military hospitals is more stringent since it is an elective surgery. The military just doesn’t ‘do’ elective surgery. Because I have been approved, it one more sign to me that this is a wise decision on my part.

What are my hopes for this? Do I want to be a beauty queen? Nope. I don’t want my family to have to take care of me because of some weight related health issue. It scares me that I could go full-blown diabetic. I don’t want to lose the ability to see.

What are my fears? I really only have two…that I will fail, or that I will lose too fast.

Because of the amount of weight I need to lose, and my current healthy state (ha!) I am able to pick which of the three surgeries available most appeal to me. Because of my fear of losing too fast, I am leaning more toward the laparoscopic banding than the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass or Sleeve gastrectomy. Of the other two the Rowx-en Y scares me less.

I won’t go into what other appointments I’ve already been to, but Monday marks the day when I have to start making some more major changes in my eating/activity lifestyle. I’m thinking my surgery will probably be in February. I am scared to death!

11 Comments

Posted in Weight

I excel at procratination!

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Terri | Comments Off

I swear I’ve been meaning to post forever. I even sit in front of my computer, then my ADD kicks in and I’m off on a tangent of reading blogs, checking my email/bank account/book sites, or even better heels.com and the next thing I know I’ve been sitting here for 2 hours and haven’t posted. I have pictures to share, stories to tell, etc., but not today 😉 I promised I’ll be back…sooner.

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Posted in Life

The proof is in the pictures!

Posted on August 11, 2009 by Terri | 5 comments

See! I have been stitching!

Hannah Beeby

Today marks six months since I lost my sweetie baby. The last photo I have of him on my camera is on Christmas Eve when we gave him and HarleyQuinn their new toys. He loved squeakie balls and is nibbling on his new one (while trying to hide Harley’s pink bunny).

Christmas Bandit

Here is Harley a couple of months later curled up on one of Bandit’s blankets. Doesn’t she look so lonely!

Harley Sunshine

I miss him very, very much, and I know Harley does too.

Booty Buddies

She’s learning to keep my spot in the stitching chair warmed up though 🙂

Harley Chair

This week (when I’m not stitching 😉 ) I’m reading Angela Knight’s Warlord/Warfem books.

5 Comments

Posted in Hannah Beeby, Puppies, Reading, Stitching

Lost, found, and wanted

Posted on August 4, 2009 by Terri | Comments Off

I found my lost camera thingy not 5 minutes after I posted last night. I also found a stack of designs (I quit counting at 16) — most of them were Little House Needleworks, Sheepish Designs, and Blackbird Designs. They’re happily filed away where they belong. The funny thing is that I found all of this in a spot that Bandit like to put things when he was snooping around in my office. I suspect he was climbing around on my desk and knocked the camera thingy off during one of his nosey sessions.

Wanted: I’ve been out of the loop for so long that I don’t even know who sells hand died fabrics anymore. I’m looking for a possible piece to do Mirabilia’s Summer Queen on (Kahuna picked her out for next year’s fair entry). I have a few bluish pieces in my stash (that I haven’t compared yet) but I’m looking for a 32ct evenweave that will match, as close as possible, DMC 747.

Work is crazy right now. The paralegal is on vacation, an attorney is leaving Thursday for her vacation, I’m returning after being gone for 2 days vacati0n, and there’s tons of stuff that needs to be sent out to 2 new expert witnesses on a H.U.G.E. traumatic brain injury case. My feet were killing me when I got off work today from all the trotting back and forth I did between my desk and the copier. I knew I shouldn’t have worn those 3 1/2″ heels today!

HarleyQuinn had a vet appointment today. She has some type of bacterial infection that’s making her feet miserable. It took them 1 1/2 hours to get her seen and tested today and I was beyond stressed when I finally got out of there. I thought when they took her from me that she’d be gone for about 5 minutes. At 30 minutes I felt myself going into a full blown panic attack and they brought her to me. Kahuna freaked out when he got home and couldn’t find her and called me on the phone. He forgot she had her appointment today and thought she had somehow gotten out of the house and yard. We’re just a teensy bit overprotective, I guess.

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Posted in Puppies, Work

Oops, where did it go?

Posted on August 3, 2009 by Terri | Comments Off

I swear I wrote up a post a week ago! I even agonized over what author to share. Of course other than that I can’t remember a single thing I wrote about since my life has been so boring lately. However, that has changed a teensy bit.

I have stitched! and played in my stash! and cleaned up my dungeon some! and bought stash!

This past Thursday and Friday were vacation days for me. I had a week of use it or lose it vacation and am taking a day here and there for some long weekends. (I am keeping a week saved for Christmas) I thought I was going to be spending them with Kahuna but he got called into work and while I was fairly lazy those two days I did get all my laundry done and I played in the dungeon for a bit.

Friday night I did some major damage in the dungeon. I had thought to start a new project on Saturday but the one I wanted to stitch, believe it or not, I didn’t have fibers for! 😆 I didn’t feel like fondling my fabric either.

Saturday I drove up to the all day stitch in at Melissa and Darla‘s LNS — Needlepoints, Ltd. Darla had no clue I was coming and it was wonderful to see her bright face when I rounded the corner. I brought FAS, Justine, and Hannah Beeby with me but ended up just stitching on Hannah. I started her in Hawaii and haven’t touched her since. I was stitching on FAS when Bandit died and I haven’t stitched at all since then. I can honestly swear that stitching on Saturday, after playing in the dungeon on Friday, my stitching mojo is back! I had a very good time and stitched until my butt went numb – 3 times 😉 Anyway, I’m planning on attending all the other stitch ins through the rest of the year. I’m also going to be taking my Mary Wigham chart up (and the pillow from my stitching chair) and pull fibers on the 29th.

Sunday, I watched baseball, and I stitched! Didn’t even feel guilty about it either. Nope, no guilt.

As soon as I hit “post” I’m off to sit and stitch some before heading to bed…after I sort out the dungeon some more. Believe me this dungeon sorting is going to take some time….I’m hunting for my thingy that goes to my camera so I can upload some pictures. I don’t want to have to climb the mountain in the dungeon that’s between me and the cord whatsit to connect my camera to the computer since that will take me in the opposite direction I’m already sorting. How’s that for logic?

My author for this post is Leah Brooke.

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Posted in FAS, Friends, Hannah Beeby, Justine, Mary Wigham, Reading, Stitching

But wait! There's more!!!

Posted on July 19, 2009 by Terri | Comments Off

I was headed out the door to a concert when I had to end the previous post.

I do have one more tattoo to share, that I got this past Wednesday.

It looks rather yukky right now since it’s so new. It’s all white ink so once it’s healed it will probably barely show, and that’s what I wanted. I know it’s there, Kahuna knows it’s there, and that’s what matters most.

Yesterday we went to a country concert. Bomshel, James Otto, and Joe Nichols. Yummy! Before we went to see The Half Blood Prince. Yowzer! Today we went to a jazz concert. Ollie Silk ,Peter White, and Mindy Abair. We just got home from that.

As soon as I hit send I’m planting my butt before the TV for TrueBlood. Sigh…tomorrow is Monday, already!

Oh, and before I forget, my current author to share is Tymber Dalton. Go forth and read 😉