Valentines & Chinese New Year

Today is a busy day on the calendar! (and a good excuse to share some more pictures with you!)

(Photo : Gardens at Bolt Castle in the 1,000 Islands)

I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day! I hope your DH's and DBF's are much more thoughtful than mine and maybe actually get you a card or a little something to celebrate the day. Honestly I had no hopes, because he's just not that kind of guy and never has been. I on the other hand got him a card and his favourite chocolates just to mark the day.

(Photo : Chinese Gardens at the Montreal Botanical Gardens)

For those who celebrate it, Happy Year of the Tiger!

Start of a Long Weekend!

I have been looking forward to this weekend for quite some time! Its a long weekend here in Ontario, as Monday is Family Day. What exciting things do I have planned??? STITCHING!

I took an update picture of Tour before I picked it up tonight. So here it is as of Friday evening, and you're not going to see it again until Monday night!

Now, how about a PhotoHunt?

The theme for this picture is "Low"

On one of my tours around the back roads in the area I live in, I came across these Turkey Vultures. The air temperatures weren't right for them to get off the ground. Here's one of the flock in a vain attempt to get airborne.

Well I think I'm well enough to start hitting the treadmill again this weekend! Finally I've not done a lick of exercise since Monday! I've eaten pizza (my cold demanded it!) and a few other treats in the last few days... I'm sure I'll pay for that! Oh well, it was good, gotta live a little!

Feeling Better

Yes, I'm feeling better. Not 100% but breathing better, and I had the energy to make it through my work day. I was really worried that I'd hit the afternoon and just crash, begging for my bed! I stayed home again this evening, to recover... the bonus? Stitching time! Tour got a lot of my attention tonight (except for a 30 minute snooze in the stitching chair).

Here's a Photo Hunt to entertain you... yup the theme is Entertainment.

I love being entertained, and there's nothing I love more than a good concert! Back in December I had a fantastic time at the Three Days Grace concert. Sometimes I'm amazed at the shots I can get with my little point and shoot camera. It would be a thrill of a lifetime for me, to get behind the security barriers and shoot a big concert with my DSLR. At the moment I can't wait for late March, on the 26th I'll be seeing one of my favourite bands, Billy Talent! The best part, its a Friday night, and the next day, Saturday is my birthday! I'm going to have a great birthday weekend this year!

A Late Post

I bet you were all looking for my latest Tour update on Monday morning? Sorry I didn't update on Sunday night, I felt like I hadn't really gotten in enough progress to warrant showing off.

I didn't get in much stitching on Saturday, I met with Lori and her daughter. We got along right away, and spent wayyy more time talking than stitching. I think our visit lasted about 5 hours! I'm looking forward to stitching with Lori again.

Sunday was as many of you know, Superbowl Sunday. Since I spent Saturday visiting, I had to get up and start cleaning my house, Todd's family was coming over for my Kick Ass Lasagna and the Superbowl (I'd like to think my lasagna is more important!). So many hours were dedicated to domestic goddess duties, darn it should of been stitching!

Well, my insane habit of keeping busy and running around all the time has finally caught up with me! I've got a cold! Not one of those knock you on your behind and into bed colds but more like one of the walking wounded. I've been going around sniffling and sneezing for the last two days. Having a bit of a off-routine weekend, not working out since Thursday, and coming down with this cold has shown up at the scale. The two pounds I took off last week are back! Urgh! I'll be avoiding the gym and Taekwon-Do until I feel well, I don't need this to be a long lingering cold.

Here are some of the pictures I've collected in the last few days

Saturday February 6 -Close up of a fern. Just looking for something to shoot without going outside.

Sunday February 7 - Is that a tear in your eye? Nope, just the onion! Getting ready to chop up an onion for my kick ass lasagna.

Monday February 8 - I drive by this roll of wire fence every day. Finally I stopped to take a picture of it, I wish I had my DSLR it would of been a better picture.

Tuesday February 9 - This is another thing I drive by every day! The first time I noticed this little guy was in the pre-dawn winter light, I thought oh my goodness! A woodpecker, how cool. The the next morning he was there again. What strange behaviour. Then I finally saw it in full light... fooled me!

Its the Weekend!

Yay! Its Saturday! I'm heading out shortly to meet Lori, whose new to this neck of the woods and wanted to find some people to stitch with. Also to bounce ideas off of someone whose local on where are the best places to get supplies. I'm looking forward to meeting a new local stitcher! Stitching groups in my neck of the woods seem to be few and far between.

Here's Tour as of last night, I'd like to work on it a lot this weekend, we'll see what happens!

Here are my pictures for the week!

Monday February 1 - Hunter, being cute as usual, I went into the bedroom on Monday morning, and there he was, sitting in Todd's empty laundry bin.

Tuesday February 2 - At work there are two staff members who drive VW Bugs, they always park them together! What a hoot!

Wednesday February 3 - I was greeted by this lovely sunrise as I was heading up the stairs to my library at work. So I went out the back of the building and took this shot.

Thursday February 4 - Stitching paraphernalia, yes I mark my charts(working copies that is)!

Friday February 5 - This is Cuddles, my other cat he's 13 and isn't anywhere near as cute or photographic as Hunter (sorry Cuddles). He spends a lot of his day now lying around and sleeping.

So that's it for now, we'll see if I get any great shots while I'm out today!

Photo Hunt "Utensils"

The week is almost over! Once again, I have gone through my week looking forward to Friday 3:30, I know I've got to change this mind set I've gotten into. Most likely, just February blahs.

My weight loss (well, getting back to goal) is progressing nicely! I dropped another 2lbs this week, I am now half a pound below my doctor set goal weight! I haven't been at my goal weight since mid August. I've been hovering around 2-4 lbs over that. Its nice to be back where I belong. What has made the difference? Honestly I think its getting back to the gym. I started focusing on running on my treadmill at home over the Christmas holidays. Once I got back to work in the New Year I started back at the gym twice a week. Since then I have slowly dropped 5.5 lbs, it proves that hard work does pay off! My current routine is two nights a week at Takewon-Do and two nights at the gym. The remaining three days of the week I use my treadmill at home, and usually one of those three ends up being a rest night.

Speaking of Taekwon-Do, over the last three weeks I've taught once a week. Slowly I'm being pulled back into the teaching schedule, which is great! The first week I actually was scheduled to teach, the last two I've been called in to teach for other instructors who needed coverage. Last night, I had the most fun when I filled in for the Little Tigers class, 4-6 year olds! We had so much fun, and they were so cute. I was a little apprehensive at first, but they were so much easier to work with than the older kids. I still feel like I have my teaching training wheels on but I know soon enough I'll be comfortable with teaching again.

I suppose I should get on with that Photo Hunt???

The theme is Utensils

I took this picture of Sylvia, Rebecca's Mom at the Knowledge and Needles Timberhouse Retreat this past fall. What a riot! She was sitting there waiting impatiently for Chef Dan's creation. Dan, the hostess's husband makes us lunch on the Saturday of the retreat weekend every year. This picture makes me look forward to this March when we'll do it all over again at the spring retreat.

January Review and February Goals

One month is over, and another month begins (this also means 5 weeks until I go to the Dominican Republic... on a school trip!). Its time to review how I did last month and what I plan to get done this month, stitching wise.

January Review

Stitch one Ornament - Yes

Finish Lettres A Mon Chat - Yes

Work on Tour - Yes

Work on Art Deco Spirits - Yes

Blogiversary Gift - Started, but not finished

February Goals

Stitch one Ornament

Finish Page 6 on Tour Des Marques (high hopes!)

Blogiversary Gift

Here's another Photo Hunt to entertain you!

The theme is "Rocks" - Late summer Rebecca's husband too me on a boat ride down this very calm waterway between lakes. The scenery was just amazing!