Crazy Eyes

This photo demonstrates the baby's precious smile as well as her completely surprised and wild eyes that she often uses:



Sometimes all you can do is find a box and sit in it:



Today I took the yarn that I have been spinning (a wool and silk blend) and plied it. Then, I "set the twist" by soaking in hot and then cold water.



Lastly (no picture provided), the weight loss update: just click away if this is of no interest to you! I'm just trying to keep myself accountable. The scale read 184.2 pounds today. I'm still in the "approaching obese" category according to some medical charts...yikes. But! I did lose over 3 pounds this past week, so progress is being made.

Hope the week is a great one for you!

A Post.....With Pictures!

I finally grabbed the camera to post a few updates. Let's see if I can "make it work".





One fun summer activity for the older two children seems to be pans of dry beans and rice. I set them outside with various kitchen utensils, and the kids are enjoying filling cups and ice cream scoops. It's our cheap sandbox!

Here are a couple of pictures of my new spinning wheel and some lovely fiber:





I'm trying to spend a few minutes each day getting acquainted with my wheel. It really is enjoyable, and I'm making some fabulous "art" yarn.

My weigh-in was today. I have no picture, but the scale is still moving in the right direction. It read 187.4 pounds, so that's 2.6 pounds lost since last Monday. I am finding that I am a "sneaky snacker". I grab a few animal crackers here and a handful of the kids' dry cereal there. It all adds up! This is something I hope to work on this coming week. This goal will be added to my other goal of drinking more water.

Well, I'm about to publish this post and see if the pictures actually get uploaded! Have a great week; Happy Summer!

Monday Check In

We're busy celebratin' birthdays (Brookie and Small Fry and me!) and an anniversary (12 years) this month. Lots of blessings for which I am so thankful.


Big Fish surprised me with a beautiful spinning wheel for my birthday. He had found it at an auction; and I truly believe that it is in like-new condition. The biggest tip-off? The wheel was not set up right! Now that I've watched many youtube videos and re-read the instruction packet many time, I'm happily spinning away. My yarn is not pretty, but it's yarn! One of the items included in the auction lot was a basket full of wool that I'm using to practice.


The children and I picked strawberries this morning and then came right in and had some for lunch. We are having a bit of a problem with chipmunks stealing some of our produce!


The hardest part about all these birthdays is trying not to eat birthday cake! I weighed in this morning at 190.0. I'm happy to see the scale moving in the right direction! This is the plan I've been following. I appreciate it's structure and am very happy with the breakfast and lunch shakes/bars. I feel like I'm getting good nutrition instead of grabbing things here and there that don't add up to a meal.


We're thinking we might have a thunderstorm here this afternoon, so I need to refer to my list of indoor activities for the two older kiddos.


Enjoy the warm breezes!

And so it Begins

First weigh-in today: 195.8 pounds. I cringe to post that number, but I have to start somewhere! The baby is sleeping almost through the night. She prefers to go to bed late and then sleep late. We're hoping to slowly adjust that, so that she goes to bed closer to 9 or 10 rather than 11! She is in that cute little stage where her eyes are always so wide open; it's like she's constantly surprised! We've been re-organizing our living areas. The TV has been moved downstairs, and the school area is expanding upstairs. Big Fish and I are starting a collection pile of things to sell at our local flea market. Today was cleaning out the school shelf and cabinet. One of the next things on my to-do list is refresh myself on how to upload pictures to this blog!