Wednesday 29 February 2012

Wednesday Weigh-in


A new weekly feature, my loves: Wednesday Weigh-in ;-)

Time to get serious, methinks, about this weight reduction/fitness increasing lark.  Once again the needle on the scales is creeping ever upwards; I am back to square one and I really don't feel well *sigh* 

Still, I know exactly what needs to be done to rectify this worrying situation.  So I've pulled up my big-girl knickers, had a serious heart-to-heart with myself and even as we speak, my sleeves are rolled up ready to get stuck in to the job in hand.

This week: 22st 7 1/2 lbs (315.5 pounds)

Tuesday 28 February 2012

A dog's love...

Monday 27 February 2012

Crochet, rescues and cuddles!


Julia, bless her, has got rather wide feet and I've found it difficult to get "real" children's footwear to fit her.  As I was idly browsing through my humungous file of crochet patterns the other day, sweetie~pies, I came across quite a few for baby "shoes" and bootees.  Unfortunately I didn't think to include a link to the appropriate website where I found this particular pattern when I saved it to my computer, so I'm sorry to say that unfortunately I can't point you in the right direction.

I made a test pair, then tweaked the pattern to get a better fit for Julia.  I didn't have to do much altering, actually ~ just adding a wee bit here and taking out a smidgeon there :-) 


I made this first pair as an "everyday" sort of slipper, something Julia can wear to play in.  I've got ideas for taking the basic, tweaked, pattern and making more pairs in prettier colours, adding embellishments, etc.  The pink edging on this pair ties in very nicely with Julia's winter dress.

I am very pleased with the end result ~ and more importantly, so is Julia ;-)


As usual I have a few WIPs on the go at the moment, my loves, and this latest crochet ripple blanket is one of them.  I am using double knitting yarn and a 4.5mm crochet hook.

I was supposed to be making this blanket as a Christmas gift but have to confess that I am liking it more and more ~ so I may well end up keeping it myself instead LOL  It makes a nice change using just three neutral shades rather than a riot of colours; it is proving to be very soothing to crochet :-)


And here is the "rescue" mentioned in the title to this post ;-) 

This poor battered little galvanised watering-can had been dumped ~ I found it the other day whilst dog-walking.  It's not that easy to tell from this angle but the spout is bent to one side, there is a pretty large hole in the base and it doesn't sit flat!  I'm going to use it as a plant container :-)


Nikki believes herself to be a lap-dog LOL  She adores having cuddles and most evenings she climbs up on to my chair ~ which is a recliner, so has a very convenient footrest LOL ~ for a cuddling session. She is turning out to be an amazing little girl; my Dad (in the photo above) can't believe how much she craves the closeness of people after all she has been through. I just keep telling him that she knows we love her and would never do her any harm ~ basically, she has learnt to trust us. I also think that having Matty as her doggy companion has helped enormously as he is such a happy, friendly and soppy boy :-)  

Start the week with a quote...

image from The Graphics Fairy



Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning

Sunday 26 February 2012

Prayer for World Peace

Dove of Peace ~ Giclee print



We pray to the great Spiritual Power in which we live and move and have our being.
We pray that we may at all times keep our minds open to new ideas and shun dogma;
that we may grow in our understanding of the nature of all living beings and our connectedness with the natural world;
that we may become ever more filled with generosity of spirit and true compassion and love for all life;
that we may strive to heal the hurts that we have inflicted on nature and control our greed for material things, knowing that our actions are harming our natural world and the future of our children;
that we may value each and every human being for who he is, for who she is, reaching to the spirit that is within, knowing the power of each individual to change the world.

We pray for social justice, for the alleviation of the crippling poverty that condemns millions of people around the world to lives of misery - hungry, sick, and utterly without hope.
We pray for the children who are starving, who are condemned to homelessness, slave labour, prostitution, and especially for those forced to fight, to kill and torture even members of their own family.
We pray for the victims of violence and war, for those wounded in body and for those wounded in mind.
We pray for the multitudes of refugees, forced from their homes to alien places through war or through the utter destruction of their environment.

We pray for suffering animals everywhere, for an end to the pain caused by scientific experimentation, intensive farming, fur farming, shooting, trapping, training for entertainment, abusive pet owners, and all other forms of exploitation such as overloading and overworking pack animals, bull fighting, badger baiting, dog and cock fighting and so many more.

We pray for an end to cruelty, whether to humans or other animals, for an end to bullying, and torture in all its forms.
We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving and the strength we gain in loving;
that we may learn to take nothing for granted in this life;
that we may learn to see and understand with our hearts;
that we may learn to rejoice in our being.

We pray for these things with humility;
We pray because of the hope that is within us, and because of a faith in the ultimate triumph of the human spirit;
We pray because of our love for Creation, and because of our trust in God.
We pray, above all, for peace throughout the world.

prayer for world peace ~ dr jane goodall

Saturday 25 February 2012

Spring is coming...


...the signs are there, my loves :-)  The rest of my garden may be in chaos but at least this little corner is neat and tidy!  Can you see Nikki watching from the patio door LOL


The spring bedding is looking good ~ just look at all the buds on the primulas!  It never ceases to amaze me how these tough little plants survive the cold, frost, snow, etc, of winter to flower so beautifully come the spring.  Isn't nature wonderful :-) 


Lots of new growth on my two ice plants.  I will cut off the old stems when I remember!


The terracotta fairies have faithfully watched over the newly-planted houseleeks all winter :-)


Just look at that gorgeous sky, my loves!  I took this photo early one morning a few days ago, it was just too beautiful to ignore, although sadly my photography skills do not do it justice ;-)

Friday 24 February 2012

Catching up...


Where is the time disappearing to, my loves?  The days are just flying by so quickly and before I know it, another big chunk of time has passed with no posts from your's truly!  I have administered yet another little slap on the wrist to myself, sweetie~pies, and will try to be a better blogger ;-)

 I have to confess that so many days have elapsed since I took the photo of pretty Miss Camellia above that she has since discarded that particular bloom ~ along with another LOL  She has more buds forming though :-)  She was living on my kitchen windowsill previously but when I had a little change around in the living room I decided to move her and her sister to the windowsill in there instead.  Plants do seem to like living on this particular windowsill, as you may remember from the photo of the jade plant which lives in the corner.  It doesn't get much sun at this time of the year as it faces more or less north, but there is a lot of good bright daylight for the plants to enjoy all year round.


Adrian bought me these lovely alstroemeria a couple of weeks back and they are still looking pretty good.  They certainly make for long-lasting cut flowers!


Ta-daah!  We have a new mirror on the chimney-breast.  After the soot door was fitted we couldn't put back the old mirror as the bottom fixing plate didn't clear the door.  It is now hanging in the hall and the mirror that was out there previously will eventually be put in one of the bedrooms ~ all change LOL

We were a tad silly about this mirror business, though.  I was sitting having a cup of tea the other day,  looking at the new mirror, when it suddenly dawned on me that we could actually have re-hung the old mirror like this, i.e. landscape instead of portrait!  Doh!  The thought just didn't occur to either Adrian or myself at the time.  In the summer I am going to take the old mirror outside and see if I can remove all the paint from the frame, as it appears to be oak like the fire surround.  If I can make a decent job of it we will put it back on the chimney-breast and hang the new mirror in the hall! 


I had to rearrange the mantel-piece again as the new mirror takes up more space than the old one did, leaving less room for ornaments.  We will get the decorating done eventually, sweetie~pies ;-)


Poor Matty was a little bit shivery so I covered him with the doggie blanket.  Greyhounds don't have thick coats and so they feel the cold, although Matty is usually okay in the living room.  It does get pretty draughty down on the floor though.  I have a thin fleece blanket which would be ideal to use to make him a housecoat ~ he really doesn't need one as thick as Nikki's.  If it turns out okay I will share photos ;-)


And talking of Nikki, here she is sharing one of the beds with Matty :-)

Thursday 23 February 2012

Things we say wrong...

The Thursday Poem



My Heart Leaps Up

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man;
So be it when I shall gor old,
Or let me die!
The Child is father of the Man;
And I wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety

William Wordsworth
(7th April 1770 - 23rd April 1850)

from the book: Poem for the Day One
 

Monday 20 February 2012

Start the week with a quote...

image from The Graphics Fairy



Love means nothing in tennis,
but it's everything in life.

Sunday 19 February 2012

Prayer for World Peace

Dove of Peace ~ Giclee print


We pray to the great Spiritual Power in which we live and move and have our being.
We pray that we may at all times keep our minds open to new ideas and shun dogma;
that we may grow in our understanding of the nature of all living beings and our connectedness with the natural world;
that we may become ever more filled with generosity of spirit and true compassion and love for all life;
that we may strive to heal the hurts that we have inflicted on nature and control our greed for material things, knowing that our actions are harming our natural world and the future of our children;
that we may value each and every human being for who he is, for who she is, reaching to the spirit that is within, knowing the power of each individual to change the world.

We pray for social justice, for the alleviation of the crippling poverty that condemns millions of people around the world to lives of misery - hungry, sick, and utterly without hope.
We pray for the children who are starving, who are condemned to homelessness, slave labour, prostitution, and especially for those forced to fight, to kill and torture even members of their own family.
We pray for the victims of violence and war, for those wounded in body and for those wounded in mind.
We pray for the multitudes of refugees, forced from their homes to alien places through war or through the utter destruction of their environment.

We pray for suffering animals everywhere, for an end to the pain caused by scientific experimentation, intensive farming, fur farming, shooting, trapping, training for entertainment, abusive pet owners, and all other forms of exploitation such as overloading and overworking pack animals, bull fighting, badger baiting, dog and cock fighting and so many more.

We pray for an end to cruelty, whether to humans or other animals, for an end to bullying, and torture in all its forms.
We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving and the strength we gain in loving;
that we may learn to take nothing for granted in this life;
that we may learn to see and understand with our hearts;
that we may learn to rejoice in our being.

We pray for these things with humility;
We pray because of the hope that is within us, and because of a faith in the ultimate triumph of the human spirit;
We pray because of our love for Creation, and because of our trust in God.
We pray, above all, for peace throughout the world.

prayer for world peace ~ dr jane goodall

Thursday 16 February 2012

The Thursday Poem




From: Ode: Intimations of Immortality
from Recollections of Early Childhood

There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight
To me did seem
Apparell'd in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is now now as it has been of yore;-
Turn wheresoe'er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more!
The rainbow comes and goes,
And lovely is the rose;
The moon doth with delight
Look round her when the heavens are bare;
Waters on a starry night
Are beautiful and fair;
The sunshine is a glorious birth;
But yet I know, where'er I go,
That there hath pass'd away a glory from the earth.

William Wordsworth
(7th April 1770 - 25rd April 1850)

from the book: Poem for the Day One

Tuesday 14 February 2012

Indecision and procrastination = disatisfaction and unhappiness

image from eDigg.com


Sadly my life can be summed up in the title of this post, sweetie~pies, and to be frank I am sick and tired of living this way *sigh*  I also rather suspect you are sick and tired of me telling you so often how sick and tired I am! 

I've really struggled with feeling low these past two or three weeks.  I hesitate to describe myself as feeling depressed; I have suffered with depression on and off over the years and know that how I have been feeling recently is nowhere near as bad as I have done in the past.  Nevertheless it is still debilitating to feel so much below par, and something of a struggle to cheer myself up. 

I know that recent health issues have definitely not helped.  I slipped in a muddy patch whilst dog-walking and fell over about three weeks back, which left me feeling very shaken (and more than a little embarassed!) and with a pulled muscle in the back of my right thigh.  The following week I came down with a rotten cold; I seemed to be on the mend by the weekend but last week back came the dratted cold again :-(  There seem to be some horrible persistent bugs doing the rounds at the moment as I know of quite a few folk who have had colds following this same pattern.

So yes, all that hasn't really helped with how I have been feeling mentally.  Everything always seems to come at once, doesn't it my loves?  I know that the key to changing my life is in my own hands, and I just have to keep plodding on, but my word it really is not easy at times!  I do feel guilty about feeling this way; after all I have so very much to be thankful for and should feel blessed that my life is rich in so many ways.  That still doesn't stop the "low" feelings, though ~ to be honest it just adds to them!

The fact that I am indecisive about so many things in my life is also part of the problem.  Not to mention the fact that I could probably procrastinate for England!  I could do so much with my time, my loves.....if only I stopped "thinking" and actually started "doing".  I really need to set out goals and make some big decisions as to what I would really like to do, instead of all this flitting about from one thing to another.  After all, that has led to ~ well, nowhere to be honest.

Spring is on its way and this feels like the perfect time to change direction: new life, new growth, spreading of wings.  Time, methinks, to start living, making the best of things and moving forward :-)

Happy Valentine's Day, my loves!

image from freedigitalphotos.net



Wishing you a day filled with love.....

.....and chocolate....flowers.....wine ;-)

Monday 13 February 2012

Start the week with a quote...


image from The Graphics Fairy



Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance

Sunday 12 February 2012

Prayer for World Peace

Dove of Peace ~ Giclee print

We pray to the great Spiritual Power in which we live and move and have our being.
We pray that we may at all times keep our minds open to new ideas and shun dogma;
that we may grow in our understanding of the nature of all living beings and our connectedness with the natural world;
that we may become ever more filled with generosity of spirit and true compassion and love for all life;
that we may strive to heal the hurts that we have inflicted on nature and control our greed for material things, knowing that our actions are harming our natural world and the future of our children;
that we may value each and every human being for who he is, for who she is, reaching to the spirit that is within, knowing the power of each individual to change the world.

We pray for social justice, for the alleviation of the crippling poverty that condemns millions of people around the world to lives of misery - hungry, sick, and utterly without hope.
We pray for the children who are starving, who are condemned to homelessness, slave labour, prostitution, and especially for those forced to fight, to kill and torture even members of their own family.
We pray for the victims of violence and war, for those wounded in body and for those wounded in mind.
We pray for the multitudes of refugees, forced from their homes to alien places through war or through the utter destruction of their environment.

We pray for suffering animals everywhere, for an end to the pain caused by scientific experimentation, intensive farming, fur farming, shooting, trapping, training for entertainment, abusive pet owners, and all other forms of exploitation such as overloading and overworking pack animals, bull fighting, badger baiting, dog and cock fighting and so many more.

We pray for an end to cruelty, whether to humans or other animals, for an end to bullying, and torture in all its forms.
We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving and the strength we gain in loving;
that we may learn to take nothing for granted in this life;
that we may learn to see and understand with our hearts;
that we may learn to rejoice in our being.

We pray for these things with humility;
We pray because of the hope that is within us, and because of a faith in the ultimate triumph of the human spirit;
We pray because of our love for Creation, and because of our trust in God.
We pray, above all, for peace throughout the world.

prayer for world peace ~ dr jane goodall

Friday 10 February 2012

A Monthly Make for 2012: February


Here it is, my loves, my February Monthly Make for 2012 :-)

Do you remember Beverly's Birthday Blanket and how I told you that when she opened it, Niamh (the little girl she looks after) thought it was for her?  Well since I had plenty of yarn left I set-to and made this mini version of Beverly's blanket for Niamh!  It didn't take long at all as it is so much smaller than the original version; it contains all the colours I used in Beverly's blanket though :-)


And here is a tiny bonus blanket especially for Niamh's little baby dolly :-)


Julia and Florence wanted to try out Niamh's blanket to see how cosy it was.  I have an idea, sweetie~pies, that they would rather like me to make one for them ;-)


And here is little Violet, trying out the tiny blanket.  I don't think that I have introduced you to Violet yet ~ I'm pretty sure that I didn't get round to taking her photograph when she arrived.  She is another Rosebud dolly to add to my little family ~ I have such a soft spot for Rosebuds because my very first baby doll, Jane (who I have had since I was about two years old), is also that make.  I find them very hard to resist LOL 

Thursday 9 February 2012

The Thursday Poem




From: A Shropshire Lad
XXXII

From far, from eve and morning
And yon twelve-winded sky,
The stuff of life to knit me
Blew hither: here am I.

Now - for a breath I tarry
Nor yet disperse apart -
Take my hand quick and tell me,
What have you in your heart.

Speak now, and I will answer;
How shall I help you, say;
Ere to the wind's twelve quarters
I take my endless way.

A.E. Houseman
(26th March 1859 - 30th April 1936)

from the book: Poem for the Day One

Wednesday 8 February 2012

A little bit of random and some faux flower love...


Some days, my loves, Matty and Nikki like to share the same sleeping space :-)


And they both like to toast their furry little bottoms!


These blue tits were in our back garden for quite some time which, was so lovely as we don't usually see many out there these days.


The gave my butterfly bush a good doing over and were hanging off the side of the shed too ~ but I wasn't quick enough to capture a picture of that.  They sure are little acrobats!


And this photo was taken through the living room window ~ which goes some way to explain why it is a little fuzzy.  At first I thought this was a blackbird as we have one who regularly visits our front garden but on closer inspection I rather think it was a thrush.  It sat in my holly bush, helping itself to the berries.  It had quite a feast, I can tell you ~ the poor bush is now utterly bereft of berries!


I know some folk find them tacky and/or terribly twee and kitsch, sweetie~pies, but I confess that I rather like my faux flowers ;-)


I think these faux carnations look rather sweet in this pretty tin :-)


I have had a wee bit of a change-around with some of my houseplants and the camellias which were in the kitchen are now residing on the living room windowsill.  I'm so happy to see that this one is coming into bloom again this year.


No, not faux flowers this time but real daffodils ~ this week's purchase with my Tesco shopping.  I have some more on the living room windowsill and every time I look at the pretty yellow blooms it makes me smile :-)

Tuesday 7 February 2012

Female Heart Attacks

My sister sent this to me recently, sweetie~pies, and I thought it was well worth sharing here:
NURSE'S HEART ATTACK EXPERIENCE

I am an ER nurse and this is the best description of this event that I have ever heard. Please read, pay attention, and send it on!


FEMALE HEART ATTACKS

I was aware that female heart attacks are different, but this is the best description I've ever read.

Women and heart attacks (Myocardial infarction)
 Did you know that women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that men have when experiencing heart attack… you know, the sudden stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest and dropping to the floor that we see in the movies. Here is the story of one woman's experience with a heart attack.

I had a heart attack at about 10:30 pm with NO prior exertion and NO prior emotional trauma that one would suspect might have brought it on. I was sitting all snugly and warm on a cold evening, with my purring cat in my lap, reading an interesting story my friend had sent me and actually thinking “aah, this is the life, all cosy and warm in my soft, cushy Lazy Boy with my feet propped up”.

A moment later, I felt that awful sensation of indigestion, when you've been in a hurry and grabbed a bite of sandwich,  washed it down with a dash of water, and that hurried bite seems to feel like you've swallowed a golf ball going down the oesophagus in slow motion and it is most uncomfortable. You realize you shouldn't have gulped it down so fast and needed to chew it more thoroughly and this time drink a glass of water to hasten its progress down to the stomach. This was my initial sensation ~ the only trouble was that I hadn't taken a bite of anything since about 5:00 p.m.

After it seemed to subside, the next sensation was like little squeezing motions that seemed to be racing up my SPINE (in hind-sight, it was probably my aorta spasms), gaining speed as they continued racing up and under my sternum (breast bone, where one presses rhythmically when administering CPR).

This fascinating process continued on into my throat and branched out into both jaws. AHA!! NOW I stopped puzzling about what was happening.  We all have read and/or heard about pain in the jaws being one of the signals of an MI happening, haven't we? I said aloud to myself and the cat, Dear God, I think I'm having a heart attack!

I lowered the foot rest dumping the cat from my lap, started to take a step and fell on the floor instead. I thought to myself, if this is a heart attack I shouldn't be walking into the next room where the phone is or anywhere else.... but, on the other hand, if I don't nobody will know that I need help, and if I wait any longer I may not be able to get up.

I pulled myself up with the arms of the chair, walked slowly into the next room and dialled the Paramedics. I told her I thought I was having a heart attack due to the pressure building under the sternum and radiating into my jaws. I didn't feel hysterical or afraid, just stating the facts. She said she was sending the Paramedics over immediately, asked if the front door was near to me, and if so, to unbolt the door and then lie down on the floor where they could see me when they came in.

I unlocked the door and then laid down on the floor as instructed and lost consciousness, as I don't remember the medics coming in, their examination, lifting me onto a gurney or getting me into their ambulance, or hearing the call they made to St. Jude ER on the way.  I did briefly awaken when we arrived and saw that the radiologist was already there in his surgical blues and cap, helping the medics pull my stretcher out of the ambulance. He was bending over me asking questions (probably something like 'Have you taken any medications?') but I couldn't make my mind interpret what he was saying or form an answer, and nodded off again, not waking up until the Cardiologist and partner had already threaded the teeny angiogram balloon up my femoral artery into the aorta and into my heart where they installed two side by side stents to hold open my right coronary artery.

I know it sounds like all my thinking and actions at home must have taken at least 20-30 minutes before calling the paramedics, but actually it took perhaps 4-5 minutes before the call, both the fire station and St Jude are only minutes away from my home, and my Cardiologist was already to go to the OR in his scrubs and get going on restarting my heart (which had stopped somewhere between my arrival and the procedure) and installing the stents.

Why have I written all of this to you with so much detail? Because I want all of you who are so important in my life to know what I learned first hand.

1 Be aware that something very different is happening in your body, not the usual men's symptoms but inexplicable things happening (until my sternum and jaws got into the act). It is said that many more women than men die of their first (and last) MI because they didn't know they were having one and commonly mistake it as indigestion, take some Maalox or other anti-heartburn preparation and go to bed, hoping they'll feel better in the morning when they wake up...which doesn't happen. My female friends, your symptoms might not be exactly like mine, so I advise you to call the Paramedics if ANYTHING  unpleasant is happening that you've not felt before. It is better to have a 'false alarm' visitation than to risk your life guessing what it might be!

2. Note that I said 'Call the Paramedics.' And if you can take an aspirin. Ladies, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!

Do NOT try to drive yourself to the ER - you are a hazard to others on the road.

Do NOT have your panicked husband drive you either; he will be speeding and looking anxiously at what's happening with you instead of the road.

Do NOT call your doctor - he doesn't know where you live, if it's at night you won't reach him anyway, and if it's daytime his assistants (or answering service) will tell you to call the Paramedics. He doesn't carry the equipment in his car that you need to be saved! The Paramedics do, principally OXYGEN that you need ASAP. Your doctor  will be notified later.

3. Don't assume it couldn't be a heart attack because you have a normal cholesterol count. Research has discovered that a cholesterol elevated reading is rarely the cause of an MI (unless it's unbelievably high and/or accompanied by high blood pressure). MIs are usually caused by long-term stress and inflammation in the body, which dumps all sorts of deadly hormones into your system to sludge things up in there. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know, the better chance we could survive.

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this mail sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life.

*Please be a true friend and send this article to all your friends (male and female) who you care about!*