BRRRR It's cold out there

I am so thankful for my nice warm home and my very nice warm bed to sleep in. The weather around here in Northwest Indiana has been COLD. Working the midnight shift it seems I go to work in the very bitter cold and get off in the very bitter cold. No sunshine to warm things up even a little bit. When I got to work last night I called Time & Temp and it said it was -1 and that was without windchill. My workplace is out in the open so just walking in from the parking lot can be a bear. Wind just whips all around you. It felt good to get inside the building where its nice and toasty. Very toasty. LOL we are talking so toasty we sometimes open the outside door to let the frigid cold in just to get the temp inside our work area to around 70. Something is messed up with the heating system and I don't see it changing anytime soon. Its been this way for the last 11 1/2yrs so... I really am not complaining honestly, but it does make it difficult to dress for work. You get all bundled up to get to work and then you are taking as much off as possible to not pass out from the heat. So an interesting time. When I get home in the morning one of the first things I do is turn on my heated mattress pad. Get my bed all nice and toasty warm. My very good friend Deana got me hooked on this thing. Best invention for the bed that is for sure. I LOVE IT!!! I didn't use to be this cold, and usually in the winter I just had one of those fleece blankets on my bed and that was it. Now since I have lost over 170lbs I am cold. I never thought that would be possible that I, Sue, would ever be comfortable being all bundled up. But I am. I love the warmth.
I am trying to finish up some last minute Christmas things and try and figure out what to make for Christmas dinner to take to my mothers. Some sort of side dish and some appetizer. Hmm need to get my thinking cap on. Time has gone by so fast and I have always said once Thanksgiving gets here I swear you blink and Christmas is here. I still need to wrap presents, I am way behind. Of course I have to remember where I stashed everything also. It never fails I always end up finding something that I forgot about after the holidays. Oh well nice after Christmas presents.
I just wanted to update a little about things going on around here. I need to get myself in gear today and get some things done around here before I need to lay down to take a little nap before work tonight. I hope everyone is having a very happy and joyous holiday season. I love this time of year. Love to all.

Almost done

I have been working on many different craft projects over the last couple weeks. It seems like I must have 12 different projects going on at any one given time. I also have had ideas pop up in my head that I take care of right then and there. Come January I will need to give my right wrist and thumb a break. I have had trouble with my right hand for awhile and even had to have a cortisone shot in my hand right below my thumb. That hurts really bad, and I really don't want to have another one but will if I have to because it does work. I have been wearing my brace on my hand which does help with my pain, but it plays havoc on getting caught on the thread or yarn. So its a win/lose situation. Oh well just something I deal with. But I do know I am going to try and give it a rest come 1st part of the year. For next year I will start my Christmas projects early and try and work on them all year long. That way won't be so intense all at once. Well at least thats what I hope to do. I also want to try my hand at doing some quilting. I have done some small projects where I have handquilted on fabric that has already been printed and that was fun. But I really want to try and do some of the piece types. I have seen some really beautiful ones while reading other peoples blogs. I would really like to give everyone of my family members a quilt for Christmas next year. Well at least thats my goal. I only need 7 of them. Hmmm

This is the embroidery I did for my son and my future DIL Kristal. It was a free pattern I received. It was called Happy Tree Family and there were 2 little trees also in it, but I just wanted these 2 trees in this pic. This was one of those projects that was a last minute thing and I made it yesterday.

These 2 ornaments are for my granddogs, Oliver the weiner dog, and Leonard. I couldn't find a pic of a dog that looked like Leonard so I just settled for a dog pic and did him in the color he is which is white and black. This one I also made yesterday. I took the ornaments and the pic over to my sons house last night and they both were very pleased with the presents.

Although I need a little break from doing some projects, I will be taking some knitting with me to work tonight. My daughter is still struggling with gettting the hand on knitting so she ask me to make her a scarf. She was getting frustrated and got tired of taking it apart. I can do the knitting without to much trouble and should help in keeping me awake at work.

Have a wonderful Holiday season.

Stitchery projects

Since I work the midnight shift, I am able to do some craft projects at work. I still am able to get my job done without a problem. But I need to have something to keep me busy inbetween bedchecks and laundry. So I have been crocheting, making fleece blankets for gifts, knitting and doing some stitchery. I am loving it. It really doesn't take much time and I am loving the results. Yes I have a long way to go before I would consider it perfect. But what I have made has turned out nice. Or at least I think it has.

I also got some material at JoAnns for the backing. I have another project I have made but I can't post it yet as this person might see it if they happen to view this blog so don't want to take a chance. The fleece blanket was for a shower gift for a coworker. She loved the blanket and said she would use it at work that day since the boiler was acting up and it was cold at work. Hey whatever works.

I also have made a couple of knitted hats. These take no time at all and will come in handy for my family. It also keeps me busy and AWAKE while at work. Even though I don't like working the midnight shift, I have been able to get numerous projects done so all in all that is a good thing.

I will be finishing up the stitchery projects today and tomorrow since I am off. A couple of them will go in frames and a couple will go as wall hangings. I also made a small weiner dog picture that I am going to turn into an ornament for my son's tree. I will need to take a pic of that after its all done.

I hope you have enjoyed the projects. I know I have enjoyed making them. And there are so many cool patterns out there that I want to make so looks like I am going to keep myself busy this winter.

Have a wonderful day and stay warm, especially if you live in the midwest.

Christmas 2008

Just wanted to share a few pics of my Christmas decorations. I decided this year to decorate my living room only. Working these midnight shifts I pretty much am either sleeping, sitting in living room or at work. So I want to enjoy my things in one room. Also in past years I have put up decorations in all rooms and I usually end up forgetting something and find it after I have put away all the decorations back in the shed and we have gotten a lot of snow. So I put the object that was forgotten up so I won't forget where I put the next year and I usually forget where I put it. So one room this year and I should be good. I only have room for a small tree, so I have a 4ft one that I put on a small table. Its only me so this works. 99% of my ornaments are ones I have made over the years. I hope to get some different ones after Christmas this year and have a more unified tree next year. I would really like to have a country look. Will see what I can come up with.

The little stockings above the piano I made many years ago. They have our names written in gold glitter paint. I will need to make a new one for my sons fiance. The snowman pot on the hutch I made for a Christmas party at work. Its made from a clay pot and saucer. I have a snowman one also but haven't run across it yet. Must be one of those things I put away where I could find it later. The snowbabies on top of the hutch my mother gave to me this year. She said she just has so much stuff and really needed to get rid of some things. I was happy to take these off her hands. I have a few more pics to download and will share them later along with some of the craft projects I have finished up for presents. Hope you enjoy this small look into my world.

First attempt at embroidery, Piano & Snowflakes

This is my first attempt at embroidery. I worked on both these sweatshirts at work. I did the snowman first on wednesday night and then the soccer one on friday night. I am able to work on craft projects at work. I work midnights and there is a lot of downtime. So between doing bedchecks and laundry I can work on things. I really enjoyed the embroidery. I need some practice but I don't think they turned out that bad. The snowman I saw on another blog and then found the pattern, I Loved the pattern. It was pretty simple. The soccer one I made on a sweatshirt I found at goodwill for .25. So between the cost of the shirt and I already had the embroidery thread, this project was very frugal and recycling all in one. My granddaughter plays soccer and the schools colors are orange and black so this one turned out great. My granddaughter said she liked it but she wouldn't wear it because that was a grandma thing. LOL I told her its a good thing she wouldn't wear it because it was mine to wear to her games next season. And afterall I am a grandma so I guess it works out. I am sure I will be making more of these type shirts. I found making them very relaxing.

This weekend I got a piano. I have been wanting one for a long time. I can't play that great but its enough for me. I can just do the basics. I plan on getting some books to do some self teaching and then hopefully take some piano lessons. I am excited about this. It's something I have been wanting to do for a long long time. I also put up some of my Christmas things. It was fun decorating the top of the piano. I also made some snowflakes to hang in my bay window. These snowflakes are so easy to make but look so elegant and they look great from the outside also.

I am so in the holiday mood. I am enjoying the decorating and things are really starting to take shape. I need to go through my stuff in the shed and see what else I can put out. I will post Christmas pics after I get everything decorated. I hope you are enjoying this holiday season and making the most out of it. Enjoy.

Update on Doctor visit

I went to my doctor appt yesterday and it went well. I didn't lose much weight but lost some inches. I lost 4 more lbs and another 4 inches. I know my body is shifting in how the weight is distributed because I can tell how my clothes are fitting. I gained inches in some areas and lost in others. I am not disappointed and I am sorry if it sounds like that. I spoke to the doctor about felling like I am at a standstill and he said that I will slow down now and by me working these midnights my body rhythms are off kilter. He was saying that there are studies done that show people that work midnights and shift work are low on the totem pole so to speak in losing weight. And he said some people stop all together and possibly start gaining weight, its a scientific fact. He went into detail on how the body works in its hormones, etc and it made sense because a lot of the things he said are exactly how I feel. He ask if there was any way I could get off these midnight and I just chuckled. I explained how seniority doesn't count for anything where I work. He was surprised, but he told me to do the best I could. Which I am. No matter what happens with my weight, whether I lose a few lbs here and there I am happy with the amount I have lost so far. I am doing things now that I never dreamed I would be able to do. I have energy, well most of the time I do if I can get some sleep.

I went to my appt with my friend Joe from work, who had the lap band surgery. He lost some but not much, and his problem is he still has a lot of the bad habits he had from before and he knows this. He still eats pretty much what he wants but just not as much as he used to. I think its been a year since he had his surgery and has lost right around 60+. He looks good and I am proud of him. We went shopping after our appt and had a blast. We left LaPorte around 2:30p and I pulled into my driveway around 10p. We also go out to eat everytime we go to appt. Boy doesn't that make good sense, go to weight loss doctor and then go out to eat. LOL But neither one of us eats much, and always bring home leftovers. Lots of leftovers. Either way its nice to spend time with him.

I spoke to the doctor also about my hernia and the trouble I have been having lately with it. He checked it out and said I am doing ok and it has not shifted or gotten any bigger, so just keep an eye on it. Having a hernia is really a good thing after weight loss surgery. I know sounds funny but...by having the hernia that means I will be able to have the loose skin removed from my stomach and the hernia repaired and my insurance will take care of it because it will be medically necessary. It won't do any good if I just have the hernia repaired because the loose skin will just pull down on the hernia site and cause me to get another one. SO...this is a good thing. He wants me lose at least 40 more lbs before he does surgery. This will be better because I will be closer to my goal weight and I won't run the risk of having to have a second surgery to remove more skin. I am happy about this. Not so much about going into surgery again but having my skin removed. Its a long process but one I can deal with. But no matter what happens I am happy for the 170+ that I have lost. I really never thought I could feel this good. Now if I could just figure out how to get off these midnight shifts????????? Oh well time will tell.

Craft projects I have been working on

I have been working on a few crocheting projects over the past month or so. I work the midnight shift and we have a lot of down time so I am able to take these projects to work with me. Might as well use my time wisely and get some things accomplished. I have already posted the afghan I made for my daughter, which I am sure she is going to love. She found the extra yarn I had from that project and has already questioned me about it. She liked the colors and wanted to know where I got it from so she could get some. I told her I couldn't remember, which is partly the truth because I have bought so much yarn lately I have forgotten which of the 2 places I have bought them. My granddaughters (Morgyn) afghan was made with 4 different colors

made into individual 8x8 in squares and then 4 squares put together to make 1 square and then I attached them all together and then crocheted a border around it all. I really think it turned out nice. I have people at work asking me to make them one.

I also made Morgyn another fuzzy scarf. She must have about 20 of them now. This one is florescent orange and hot pink crocheted together. She picked out the colors and I wasn't sure about it, but hey she is a teenager so I let it go. But it really turned out pretty.

I also made me a scarf and hat. I worked on it yesterday and today. I figured I better get mine made before the really cold weather hits. Not that these fuzzy scarves are all that warm they sure look pretty.



I have about 10 different projects running through my head that
I want to get accomplished. Now I just have to figure out when
to get them all done. Most of them are for Christmas presents.


As soon as I get the pics downloaded from my granddaughters formal dance I will post them. She is growing up so fast.

I hope you enjoyed the projects I have been working on. Will post as I get the others done. Have a wonderful and joyous day.