My friend Shawn came for a visit from Chicago, one of the things we did was go on a bike tour of Coronado Island. Total blast, and a bit of a cheat since we had electric bikes (but I swear I barely used the battery).
I got serious about losing weight and participated in a medical study through the VA. Part of it involved having genetic testing done to link my genes to an "ideal" diet. I can officially say I have the fat gene. Despite what a lot of people would like, its actually fairly rare. By the way, my ideal diet is low carb (30% fat, 30% protein, 40% carb). Lean meat, veggies and Greek yogurt are my friends now. Oh, and I'm down 25 pounds (it was almost 30 before the holiday season struck).
I went to my first ever pro football game, 2 actually (pre-season) and had a blast.
Managed to hook up with my college roommate that lives less than a mile from the house. How's that for coincidence? We've been having fun and I get to spoil her kids like an Auntie.
She hosted a Halloween party and I sort of dressed up.
I took up a new sport/hobby - paddle boarding! Totally love it. Even better I love the San Diego weather that allows me to go paddle boarding on Boxing Day (December 26 for the non-Anglophiles).
There was a single stitching exchange with Parsley. She sent me a gorgeous gold box and tons of extra goodies. She knows I love to cook, so included some cookbooks.
I chose to stitch a covered shadow box, borrowing design inspiration from Blackbird Designs, and using pattern elements from Blue Ribbon Designs.
I had some other stitching finishes as well
The last two are part of a larger project - a collage. I borrowed inspiration from Gigi's large sheets she stitches. I was getting tired of having a bunch of small pieces. You can only have so many pillows and framing gets expensive, not to mention running out of wall space.
Christmas snuck up faster than usual, and then was gone in a blink of an eye. Jim, Mary Lou and the goldens came out as usual. Buddy (on the left) is their newest rescue, and he's a mix, there's definitely some hound in him. Holly (on the right) is a playful as usual, despite getting up there in years.
I found out Annie is a total ham when it comes to taking pictures. I was trying to get the settings right on my DSLR and she had fun posing for me. No, the settings weren't correct for this shot, its over exposed!
Mom even got me to eat turkey this year. I enjoyed the duck I cooked for Christmas Eve much better, but never got a snap of it.
And probably the highlight of the season for me was getting my picture taken with Santa. I was bundled up in a ton of layers, we were at a members-only event on the Midway to watch the Parade of Lights (various boats decorated for the holiday cruise the bay in an aquatic parade).
Uncle Greg and his daughter Delaney came down for a visit after Christmas. Delaney is severely handicapped and has the most wonderful companion dog, Breona. Unfortunately she's getting up there in years.
Hoping everyone has a joyful and blessed 2014!
13 comments:
Whew! So glad to get caught up. And that you are alive. ;) And the awesome weight loss. Good for you!
Well done on the weight loss. We will move on from the paddle boarding on Boxing Day, we were cross country skiing in Wyoming, lol. We just had a storm here, about eight inches on top of what we had, now a howling gale and minus 7 F! Just going to book my ticket, is that okay?
Gosh what a lot of lovely stitching! I really like what you've done with putting a few pieces together as one!
All the best for a great New Year!
Looks like a good year and lots of great stitching. I love your idea of putting the Christmas things together in one big design.
Great to see you back and Happy New Year. Love all your stitches, especially like the look of the Winter sampler large piece you are doing.
I'm so happy to see a post from you! You keep so busy -- so much to catch up on! Your weight loss is fantastic. And the stitching. Wonderful! OMG, I love your WTNT collage of pieces! I've always wanted to do that sort of thing too! Happy New Year!
Great to see an update from you. I have missed seeing your stitching but it looks like you have been having a lot of fun which is even more important!!
Your stitching is gorgeous, so many beautiful finishes. I love Betsy and Give Thanks, I love them all.
So much fun you have been having.
Live the stitched piece you sent me. It was a fun exchange!
Love..not live
So nice to catch up on your year, Mindi--what a great group of finishes! I so love Betsy--have my own only about a fifth finished.
Great job on your weight loss--it sounds like you've found the right combination of eating right and exercising (and living in the San Diego area certainly helps with the latter--lucky you!!)
Wishing you all the best in 2014!
A great catch up post! Lots of pretty stitching! Love the shadow box! Wishing you a wonderful 2014!
Where do I start?? Go NINERS!! I remember when Gigi did that sheet--it was terrific! Yours will be too! It is so great already! And that shadow box--going to file that one away because it is a great finish! Good going on the weight loss. Portion control is definitely the way! One of my stitching buddies has lost a lot doing that! Best wishes for a great New Year!
Slightly longer than 60 seconds!!
You're looking lovely and slim in the photos so congrats on the weight loss.
There is some beautiful stitching here, love the shadow box for the BRD.
The collage idea is great, I scrapbook alot of my smalls for the same display reasons.
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