Wednesday, June 24, 2015

A Little Self Love...

Hello, dear friends,

This will not be a stitching post... Not that I have not stitched - in fact, it's what I have been doing most of the time, - but... there is something else on my mind today: my own needs...

To begin: with all the non-stop stitching, my bum has taken over. It has been growing exponentially, and no matter how I tried to curb my eating habits, it did not seem to make any difference. It was growing, and growing, and nothing would stop it - while I at the same time was feeling more and more tired, getting dizzy spells every time I left the house.

The situation forced me to look at myself - and sign up for a gym membership. For the past three weeks, I have been going to the gym - three times a week: walking on the treadmill, exercising on the bike, swimming in the pool - among other things.

Now, exercising in the gym when you are thirty six is a different experience from when you are, say, eighteen or twenty five. When you are eighteen, exercising is more of a "pleasant distraction", it seems. You are naturally graceful - at least on the outside - and slender; working out is done "just for upkeep" or "just to gain some extra strength", - or, in my case, just because I liked swimming. Mirrors are your friends: every time you look at yourself, you think, "I look all right!"

Not the same when you are thirty six, after giving birth to three kids... All the marks life has imprinted on your body - stretch marks, saggy boobs, "love handles" (why the hell are they called that? there's not much to love there), extended stomach - all that is there for you to see in every mirror you pass by - so, you avoid mirrors.

Exercising is no longer "just for fun" - you came with a purpose: to lose weight, to lose the gut, to get healthy, - however you phrase it, the goal really is to both look and feel better.. So, you focus on the exercises, on strengthening proper muscles, on increasing resistance, - instead of "just doing stuff". This time, you know what you want. Consequently, this is no longer a social get together with friends - it's a place of sweating and pain. You do not expect to look "sexy" or "attractive" during these times - you just want, mostly, to be left alone, and occasionally for someone to let you know if you are doing something wrong- and correct you.

My personal goal is to lose 20 pounds (about 9 kilograms) in the next six months. It is a long road, and I even had a meeting with a personal trainer, who assured me that my goal was entirely reachable - provided I exercised regularly and ate right. He took my measurements, gave me an outline of cardio and workout exercises, showed me a couple of machines I could start on - and I went to work.

For the first two weeks, I worked out entirely by myself: walking on the treadmill and riding a bike for cardio, doing sets on the machines the trainer showed, and swimming in the pool. By the end of the second week, I noticed that walking no longer pushed the wind out of me, and I could increase the speed on the treadmill. The bike became more familiar, and as far as stomach crunches - I could now do three sets of 20 (up from 15) and not feel like I needed to lie down.

I have obviously been getting stronger. So, feeling brave and certain that I was ready for the "next step", I decided to go to one of the group lessons... Oh boy was I humbled! Every time I jumped, my boobs were flying everywhere... When the trainer said to the group, "Drop it, push-up!" - I could only think, "If I drop it, I won't be able to get up." Some exercises - designed to be "funny" or "sexy" in addition to working out the muscles, perhaps - made my inner voice state with dignity to me, "There are things I just will not do!" So - I was able to last about 40 minutes out of an hour workout.. I am not giving up, and will try again tomorrow. Maybe bring a longer shirt, hehe...

This is my third week at the gym. I know I am getting stronger: I can walk longer distances without getting dizzy, I don't have to catch my breath going up and down the stairs... I have been sleeping better and not feeling as tired. Also, I can better concentrate when stitching, so - it's an improvement. I have not bothered weighing myself - the trainer said that, most likely, I am not to lose weight during the first 4 to 5 weeks, and I may even gain a couple of pounds - because of gaining muscle mass.

Back to the gym tomorrow morning... wish me luck! 

Saturday, June 6, 2015

An Online Diary?

Hello, dear friends,

  This morning, I have been trying out new templates and fonts for my blog. The idea behind all the changes is to make it look like a diary, as handwritten looking as possible....

   After messing around with (both) my blogs I discovered that the Russian one does not "accept" certain font changes! No curly Q's for me in Russian. Meh...

  Meanwhile, my daughter's birthday celebrations are continuing... Tonight, we are having a sleepover for a few of her friends. I am still not used to the whole sleepover party concept, for I grew up believing that the only people you can sleep over at are family. But - times are changing, and we have to change with times. Cliche? Cliche...


  This is my daughter Rita, trying to pose for the camera and getting distracted by our cat who is, in turn, trying to get her attention...


This is our cat, Dusty, slightly disgruntled, because his efforts did not lead to success, - knocking over cans of food and mewing loudly did not lead to him being picked up or fed - at least not immediately...



  This is Rita with Dusty... Looks like he is not getting the type of attention he wanted.


... and this is Rita with her stitched present. I am happy to say that she did like it. It is now hanging on the wall in her room. I do hope she keeps it - forever and ever..

Thank you for reading my ramblings...

Until next time,

Thursday, June 4, 2015

A Happy Birthday And A New Finish

Hello, my dear friends!
Today is my daughter Rita's birthday. She has turned 14 years old. For  the past six years or so, every time it comes to one of the kids' birthdays, I always have to check and pinch myself: really? They are - how old?
For the past couple of days,  I have been busy - ordering the cake, organizing dinner plans, buying birthday gifts, and - stitching. Now the cake is in the refrigerator, the dinner plans are made, and all we need is for the birthday girl to come home from school. As for the stitching - this is what I have been stitching all the way until last night.

"Gemini" by Julie Hasler
Stitched on 14 ct Navy Blue Aida 
I own a whole book of patterns by Julie Hasler, called "Fantasy Cross Stitch. " I bought it, I looked through it, and I decided to stitch a Zodiac pattern for every one of my kids - five of them, - and also one for myself and my husband. That was...let's see.. about ten years ago. Every year I want to, and every year something comes up: work, life, other stuff... This year, finally, I stitched one! "Gemini" - for my daughter Rita.



After big projects, it did not look like much work - indeed, it only took about 2 weeks of very relaxed, "free time" stitching. Yet, the color changes and the details do require a lot of attention... it seems like, just as I set myself to stitch on one color, it was time to switch it to another and re-thread the needle....
Originally, I got one of these brass/gold looking hoops to mount it on, but then decided instead on a simple wooden hoop. Decorated it with rickrack ribbon from Nancy Turner's collection, and put a red flower bead on the top.

Gemini Close Up

Tonight, we are having a quiet family celebration - talking, eating cake (and sushi), and spending time together. All the noise - friends, guests, sleepovers - are still ahead, this weekend...

Several hours later - here's the cake...



The petit fours...


And the complete ensemble! 




Thank you for reading my ramblings, friends! 

Until next time,