Surprise Surprise

I actually lost just over the 2 pounds that I gained when I started not smoking. That was nice to see this morning since I had a lousy weekend. Well, not entirely lousy. I've been battling a cold for the last two weeks and I thought I was getting better but it came back and it came back with force! I spent the weekend feeling like crap; body aches and chills, coughing like there's no tomorrow, a mouth that feels like sandpaper because I can't breathe from my nose and a throat so raw, it hurts to even think about it. And I'm not sleeping at night so I'm exhausted. My husband stayed home from work yesterday so that he can help with Amelia during the day. Not that I was helpless, just really tired and achy. So that's why my weekend wasn't entirely lousy. I actually took a genuine sick day today and as soon as I'm done with this post, I'm going back to bed for a little while. Punkie told me this morning that I needed to lay down on the couch because I didn't look so good.

And no, I am not counting my 2+ a little more pound loss as a "side effect" of being sick. I'm counting it totally legit. LOL.

Oh, I promise I will stop talking about this soon but I'm 16 days smoke free today! And at over $6.00 a pack for my brand here in CT, I'm glad I quit when I did!

That's all. I'm tired. I'm going to bed.
Jen

I May Not be Down...

But I'm not out. Another week gone. Another pound up. But I know the reason. I am starting day 9 of my non-smoking quest. You heard me right. It has been 9 days since my last cigarette. I'm pretty proud of myself and what willpower I had yesterday! Amelia spent the weekend at my mom's and my mom drove her home. My mom and I were chit-chatting and she says to me "Let's go outside and smoke a cigarette." I said "You are on your own. I QUIT!" She is really proud of me but sad that she lost her smoking buddy. Oh well. She's trying to quit as well but not being too successful at it. But I will tell you, I wanted that smoke. Not a lot, just a puff. But I worked through it. And today is a new day.

Fruit recipe... I forgot to mention mine. I really don't have one. I eat fruit everyday. Whatever I find in the grocery store and at a decent price. Right now I'm snacking on grapes. What I have issues with is veggies. I'm very picky with the vegetables. I don't like any veggies that are green in color. I find them tasteless. I need to get better at eat them.

My weight is slowly going in the wrong direction so I need to pay more attention to that department. I'll get it. It's all about balance I guess. I need to train myself that just because I'm not smoking doesn't mean I get to eat everything in sight. That whole "eating for 2" myth... yeah, I fell into that trap too!

And how was your weekend? Mine was nice, even though I am nursing a cold. Since I was free all weekend, I spent most of it sewing. Saturday, I went to my friend's house and she taught me a very cute tote bag pattern that she took a class for a while back. I was there for a while. I think about 6 hours. Yesterday - I slept in some, did a little light cleaning and spent the rest of my day in front of the sewing machine. I worked more on the tote bag (I think a couple more hours and I'll have it all put together) and I worked on the fabric Easter baskets. Those came out cute. One more to do and I'll take their picture.

That's about it.
Enjoy your day!
Jen

Okay, I'm making this too

Check this mini tutorial out: http://twiddletails.blogspot.com/2009/03/getting-ready.html

A travel ironing board made out of a wooden TV tray! I mean, I have 4 of the exact TV trays in my garage right now. I can so use this when I don't need my big ironing board out AND I already have the cute little Rowenta travel iron to go with it.

Yup, I'm making this. For sure.

Once I do, I will post pictures!

Jen

Thanks for the Encouragement!

How great are blog friends?? Thank you so much for the encouraging words on my quest. My husband doesn't talk much about it with me which is fine. He knows it's my battle to fight but he's there if I need him. He's a strong rock to lean against.

I'm doing great so far. Going on Day 4! The Chantix prescription really has helped A LOT. My moods are pretty even - which is RARE for me. I'm not yelling my head off or getting easily irritated. My dreams are a little more bizarre than usual but not violent. I went to see my doctor this afternoon and he was happy that I'm on the right track.

So thank you everyone!

Here's a picture of my latest vice. My obsession really.

They really help when I'm driving in the car. But I'm running low on Tootsie Pops. I will be stocking up again in a couple of days.

Just a few other pictures from our nice weekend. We took Amelia to the park Sunday early afternoon and we enjoyed some ice cream afterwards.

Buddy came up to visit Punkie while she was lounging around on the couch... Amelia was very excited to have him visit with her.

And here's my favorite picture from the weekend. Amelia must have been waiting for rain. This is how I found her Sunday afternoon while she was napping.

My sweet Punkie Pie!

Enjoy your day!

Jen

Sale! Sale! Sale!

You need to go HERE: http://www.quiltartsonline.com/ and SHOP!

50% off sale!!! Most yardage... $5.00 a yard. Fat quarters... $1.25! One dollar and twenty five cents!

I just spent $50.00 on fat quarters. YOU need to as well! LOL!

Loser Monday Update

Am I a loser this week? Nope, not in the weight category but I AM a loser in other areas. Around 7 p.m. tonight, I will be 48 hours smoke free. I was a non-smoker when I was pregnant but took it back up as soon as I was home from the hospital, unfortunately. This time, I'm doing this for me and I'm feeling pretty good.

I'm not craving the nicotine too much but I've been picking at everything else this last week so I'm showing a gain. Oh well. I'm going to the gym tonight and I'm going to try to keep the eating under control.

Okay, I need to stop talking about this topic for right now. The more I talk about it, the more I think about it. I need to get busy with something else.

Enjoy your day!
Jen

I Can't Believe I Waited So Long to Make One!

After seeing Rachel's cute Valentine's Day basket and her recent bridal shower basket, I went home, found my paper print-out of Pink Penguin's tutorial and made a basket. Why did I wait so long to do so?? So cute and EASY! This is my "practice" basket which I'm giving to Punkie to do what she wants with. I made the handles too long - I don't care for them so on my next ones, I'm shortening them up. On my practice basket, I made 2.5 inch squares instead of the 2 inch squares in the tutorial. Made for a slightly bigger basket.



Cute, huh? And all the fabric came out of my stash so even better! I'm working on 4 baskets for Easter for the little girls in my family. I don't put a lot in the basket but I figure that a "made with Love" Easter basket won't get thrown in the trash a week after Easter and will be displayed and used.

I gave Amelia her basket when I was done with it. Look how she is planning on using it...

My clever girl!

Enjoy your day!

Jen