Thank you for stopping by! This week has been a whirlwind of celebrating weight loss, shopping, visits with friends and rest. Since starting the Mediterranean Diet to help control RA pain, I've felt healthier and even lost weight! Less weight for me equals less pain, and new jeans. Though thrilled about the weight loss, not so much shopping for jeans. After a couple of days shopping, and an ever so tactful suggestion from a sales lady to go down yet another size, I found jeans! Score!
I enjoyed our monthly Colcha Embroidery group, learning hard lessons regarding cross-stich and resting while fibromyalgia visited for a few days. Today is looking good and I'm eager to move on!
Here's what we were working on. The second one shows the work of a brand new Colcha embroiderer. By the way, she knitted the sweater she's wearing. The last one is mine.
I hope you enjoyed these photos! Please settle in with your favorite snacks and beverage while you read this weekly post.
Take good care and, as Daddy used to say,
"Make memories; it's later than you think."
HERE'S A WORD
The other day, the LORD reminded me of a daily Scripture writing journal,
"Write 'Fear Not' on my Heart" by Alyson, which I had purchased years ago. God kept reminding me about it every day, so I finally got the message, pulled it out and started it up again. It has blessed me immensely. Today's reading was Deuteronomy 26:5-10, and the written verse was Deuteronomy 26:7. I wrote the verse thinking, "How did God respond to their cry?" He responded with love, freedom and provision. So beautiful.
I recalled another lesson about crying out to God: Are we describing our circumstances and asking why, or are we asking and trusting that He will provide what we need? During my time in the desert, I spent a lot of time asking why, blaming God and soaking in anger and resentment. If I had trustingly prayed about the situation and for Him to work it out, how would the circumstances have changed?
Then I remember Romans 8:
How do we cry out to God? With anger, confusion and resentment?
Or with faith asking Him to work in our hearts, in the situation and in our loved ones' hearts?
I pray, oh LORD, for You to help us pray with faith!
Please know this:
You are loved. You are not alone. You are being lovingly prayed for.
FIBER FUN
I broke down my "To Dos" into three categories: Finish, Focus, Prep/make a kit, and Be Kind = Soft Deadlines. FoF represents the Fields of Fancy BOM, which I'm doing with Liberty of London Tana Lawn fabrics. FBF represents the Flower Box Friends BOM Last Week's List
Oh my! I had a huge hiccup this week with Grandson's #1's ornament. Just as I was in the last 10 rows, I realized about 10 rows down, my count was off by 1 stitch. I quickly realized starting over was more time-effiecent than ripping out stitches.
This might have been a time I would have set this project aside to "marinate", but it's a small project for Christmas, so I simply cut new fabric and started again - from the top. After a few days of finding time to stitch, Yoda is almost finished. The eyes are all 1/4 stitches, which I'm learning, but they came out pretty good!
After some careful "investigating", I realized my grandchildren are either too busy or too young to even remember my blog, much less read it! Imagine that! LOL! I'll be sharing progress photos on their ornaments.
1. Finish - hopefully Grandson #1's ornament Almost there! I learned that I much prefer cross-stitching without the hoop!
2. Focus
- Grandson's #2 ornament prepped! He loves Pokemon.
- FBF - the Poinsettia block: Appliqué the leaves onto the background not even touched
- sew embellishments on the red and white Christmas ornaments. Here are the four ornaments with their embellishments. Most of the birds have a brown eye as a nod to Daddy. He used to sing a song to me about "beautiful brown eyes".
3. Prepare/make a kit
- Grandson's #3 ornament Done!This will be a Spiderman face.
4. Be kind = Soft Deadlines - which are good for my mental health!
This is the final stitched ornament for my granddaughter. I used the Colcha embroidery stitch. Once I finish stitching all four of the designs, I'll complete them as ornaments.
This Week's goals
1. Finish - Grandson #1's ornament
2. Focus
- Grandson's #2 ornament
- FBF - the Poinsettia block: Appliqué the leaves onto the background
- sew embellishments on the red and white Christmas ornaments.
3. Prepare/make a kit
- Nothing at all! Everything is already prepped and part of "Focus".
4. Be kind = Soft Deadlines - which are good for my mental health!
LITERARY LIFE
I love how my focus has increased with the "Finish, Focus and Prep" methodology I use with my Fiber Arts. Consequently, I'm going to apply that to my reading life with a bit of a twist. The categories will be "Finish, Focus and Next".
This should help with my "Backburner Reads" which are books I started, enjoyed, but lost focus.
Finish Next
***** I started this Pulitzer Prize winner three times, the third time being the charm. Here's the first paragraph of the review:
In the early hours of July 16, 1990, Liliana Rivera Garza was murdered by her abusive ex-boyfriend. A life full of promise and hope, cut tragically short, Liliana's story instead became subsumed into Mexico's dark and relentless history of domestic violence. With Liliana's case file abandoned by a corrupt criminal justice system, her family, including her older sister Cristina, was forced to process their grief and guilt in private, without any hope for justice.
But Liliana's older sister, Cristina Rivera Garza, did not grieve for naught; she immortalized her sister's life and tragic death while calling attention to the "global epidemic of femicide and intimate partner violence". She shared the initial part of her search for justice and then she introduced Liliana to us via her memories, conversations with those who knew her and Liliana's own words via her notes and journals. I laughed as I read about Liliana's life with her friends, cried when she suffered and died and raged at the injustices of a society that women faced every day: even today.
I very highly recommend this book.
DNF
I started both of these books which deal with the grieving process. They seem like good books and perhaps I'll pick them up again at a later date.
MAILBOX MONDAY is a gathering place for readers to share books that they added to their shelves or eBook readers the previous week. Here's what I've picked up this week.
Nothing this week
Hoopla: None
Kindle Freebies: None
Libby: These are all audiobooks.
Purchased:
FINDING JOY
LeeAnna's I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color helps me consistently find the joy in every life. She also provides a prompt for us to use. This week's prompt is: Do you decorate at all for Thanksgiving? Special dishware? Wall hangings? Pumpkins lining your walkway? Whatever. I decorate for Fall. This year is especially poignant as Daddy loved fall colors. Years ago, I used to go all out with garlands of fall leaves, table toppers, figurines and such. Now, it's much simpler.
Song for this week:
Too Young to Be Old
Jax
Your comments are so appreciated!
I read each one and will respond by email.
You can also expect a visit from me as well!
Here are the parties I sometimes link up with:
Sundays
Oh Scrap! @ Quilting is More Fun Than Housework
Slow Sunday Stitching @ Kathy's Quilts
Sunday Salon at Readerbuzz
Mondays
Mailbox Monday @ I'd Rather Be At the Beach
Sew and Tell at Melva Loves Scraps
What Are You Reading at The Book Date
Tuesdays
To Do Tuesday posts at Quilt Schmilt
Thursdays
I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color
No comments:
Post a Comment