Life is a Journey not a Destination

Such a mad house around here lately. Left on Friday afternoon for Crafting Connection. I was lucky enough to get upgrade to a suite. Such a shame I had no-one to share it with but I did enjoy sitting on the lounge reading until my first class started.

I did all three classes that Stacy Jullian taught. She’s just even more wonderful in person. I just love her whole philosphy. Over the last year as I’ve been doing more Big Picture classes I’ve found myself wanting to move away from traditional chronological order scrapbooking. I bought her book to further inspire me and help me along my new path. I’ll share my work from her classes when I get them finished off.

I was also so pleased I took a class with Wendy Smedly (not realizing at the time she was co-author of the Organizer and Inspired Scrapbooker). Her class was great - a quick organising review (can’t wait for her online class in Jan) and then making an Inspiration board where we can store any mag clippings that inspire us and to remind us why we scrapbook.

I also did a class with Nic Howard called confessions. It wasn’t really my thing. I rather fiddly project that I didn’t get finished. Hopefully I will feel like finishing it or I might use it for something else.

I had to come home late Sat afternoon to attend Amy’s singing and drama concert. She did great and I was thrilled to be there when she won a speical award for most enthusiastic in her Drama Class. So exciting, esp. when she only started in the middle of the year.

Not a great day weather wise - it’s not been all week. I skipped the gym today and gave the bedrooms, bathrooms and study a good tidy and clean. Sat for a while over lunch and watched a British show on debt and then Wife Swap - one of the women today was frightfully racist. In the end she was saying how nice the boy was and “he should grow up to be a wonderful young”….I was ready for “man” but nearly fell on the floor when she said “black man”. Do people really think like that? Obviously they do - quite scary. I was totally gob-smacked. Don’t think Rosie was too impressed either - she fell asleep on the lounge beside me.

The afternoon was spent doing a bit of cooking and working a layout for my “Wellness” scrapbook class. Then picked up the kids and since it was such a yucky day we put up the new Christmas tree I bought yesterday. We have our big, main one in the loungeroom but since the girls and I spend so much time in the family/kitchen area I thought it would be nice to have one here as well. Looks great. We might do the other one on Sunday.

The kids had a disco at school today to raise money to build a house is Africa - so they had to go in African dress (if possible). I happened to remember Amy had a “Tarzan” leotard from last years dance concert so she wore that with some brown pants, and Christy wore a safari hat we got from Disney on Ice a few years back.

Okay, a warning that this video is very shocking and disturbing - I’m sitting here in tears, shaking and feeling sick to my stomach. There is no blood or gore but just the terrible treatment of living animals. Please watch so you know what happens to animals in the Middle East. Please support Animals Australia to end this suffering.

More videos from Animals Australia

Okay, so I just couldn’t resist buying one (okay, two) of these gorgeous canvas bags. For my fellow Aussies I got it in Big W.

On Sat I cleaned and tidied much of the kitchen - including re-organising the ever messy tupperware drawer. Looks great now doesn’t it. Well, this is one of the drawers anyway - the one with all the lunch containers.

Yesterday we took the girls to see “The Game Plan”.  I really enjoyed it and it was a good way to spend a few hours (especially when you can’t eat :-)). While we were out I spotted, and bought, this fabulous book.

Today I’ve cleaned all of downstairs so that house is lovely, clean and tidy. I would have to have done upstairs as well but wanted to get a workout in at the gym. Also spent some time in the veggie garden. I picked some strawberries and the first (very little) zucchini. The tomatoes are cute small green things and the cucumber is just starting to flower.  Here’s some of my pickings from last week.

Yes, I’ve been saying it for years. Even went to one lesson (but then Kevin could never make it home from work on time). But if I could sew I could make these wonderful lunch bags on Sew, Mama, Sew. How brilliant are they?

Now that the girls are both at school I must find out about any sewing classes offered during the day. Otherwise I’m going to make it a priority to teach myself - and I don’t think that’s the best idea since I’ve always been sewing challenged. I mean, I can’t even get a button to stay on - they ALWAYS fall off.

I’m VERY excited to report I lost 4.5kg (10lbs), which is what I lost on the 12 weeks I did the Body for Life program. Now I do realize if went back to eating “normally” it would all go straight back on but since I’m not going to’ it’s weight lost forever. I’m now under 120kg and feeling a lot better. It’s not been too bad a week, though yesterday was HARD - I really wanted to eat- like a normal person or even cook dinner for my family- like a normal person. I did have some rice paper rolls while we were out for lunch instead of a bar, which I think balanced itself out. But it was a LONG afternoon. Feeling better today (though rather hungry). The fantastic shift on the scales certainly helps :-). And this time next week I’ll be getting ready for the op.

The current highlight of my day is dinner - low-startch veggies stir-fried in chicken stock and soy sauce - YUM!!!

This morning I was very excited to get an e-mail from Disney saying that Pirates of the Carribean III will be out on the 21st November. I was just thinking the other day it must be coming out soon. Not sure why we’re getting a few weeks before it’s out in the States - not that I’m complaining. Might start watching I and II again before III comes out. I think No.1 is the best movie EVER made - pirates, romance, Johnny and Orlando - does it get any better than that?

Now, I’m back from the gym and checking e-mail again and now I find out Ricky Martin’s concert CD and DVD is going to be out in a few days. Looks awesome (there is a preview on the website) and oh, boy, what a yummy cover (would like great on the cover of a romance novel).

Gee, can’t wait to check my e-mail again this afternoon. Don’t good things come in threes?

The kids went trick-or-treating with some of the neighbours last night. They had a wonderful time. Christy is the one in the green mask.

This is a little present that I bought for the girls.

I was inspired by Aby at Creative Organizing to make over the medicine cabinet. Still need to add some tags but I think it looks at lot better don’t you? And it only took about 5mins :-). Oh, and I did move the spare egg cartons and put in our wheat pack and hydrolight ice bl0cks later on.

I’m going to try and not bore you all to tears with news of my WLS but will update once or twice a week for those interested. If not feel free to ignore.

The pre-op diet requires only 3 meals a day of meal replacements shakes/bars/deserts plus some extra veggies. Now I have to admit this does get pretty boring fast but I’ve been having a green salad with my lunch and bowl of veggie soup with dinner. Day 1 went okay, day 2 I felt lightheaded and woozy and kind of spaced out, day 3 I felt rather sick at times but found I had more energy, by dinner time I was starting to feel more like myself. I’m about to start day 4 and have been told it should get better from now and should stop feeling hungry - let’s hope. I’ve still be going to the gym - not sure if it’s wise or not but want to be in optimum fitness as I know I’ll have to have around 4 weeks off lifting weights after surgery.