Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Fetching knitting

Here it is..

My first finished item done on double point needles. A fingerless glove from Knitty.com. The yarn is Bernat Softee Baby. As you can see it's a little too small. I have it cast on again, this time I'm adding one pattern repeat and a few extra rows to the top. It should be right this time. Once I finally finish this pair in pink, I want to make my Mom a set in blue. I'll have to go back and make another small one and give that pair to someone with smaller hands. By the time I finish all that maybe I'll be ready to move on to socks!

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Enough with the pity party!

Hey ya’ll. I’m still not feeling to good, but I am doing a bit better. I made an appointment with a new doctor to get a “second opinion” on the liver disease diagnosis. I’m working on gathering test results and medical records to take with me. I’m also trying to write down my medical history, symptoms and concerns to discuss with him. I really need a game plan to tackle this new condition along with all the other ones. I’ve also been trying to eat better and I have already lost a little weight. The exercise part is a little harder since I have no energy and I’m feeling so tired. I’ll just have to start slow.

If you’ve read my blog in the last week you may have noticed that my little Avatar over there was pouting. Her arms were crossed and she had a very sad look on her face with a background scene of question marks. I was feeling very upset and confused about this diagnosis, but a dear friend helped me feel better. When I came home from work the other day my husband pointed out a white binder and told me it was for me. Puzzled I picked up and looked through it. One of our friends (who also works with my husband) had printed out several articles on Fatty Liver Disease, treatments, vitamin therapies, and more. He neatly organized it with dividers and wrote me a supportive note on the first page. I was so surprised and touched. Thank you, Will.

So, I’ve changed my Avatar. That cheering crowd is all my friends and family supporting me right now. I love you all!!

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

What do you mean my liver is fat?

I'm not coping well with my life today. I was out sick for several days last week due to severe pain in my upper abdomen and back. My doctor and I thought it was my gall bladder and I was mentally preparing for surgery. Nice and simple and done with, right? WRONG. My doctor ordered an ultrasound on Wednesday morning. Afterwards the tech tells me the scan is negative for gallstones, go home and call my doctor tomorrow and it was only 9 am! After leaving two messages Thursday morning I was finally able to speak to my doctor late Thursday night. He informed me that I have "Fatty Liver Disease". What the h*** is that??? OK, so I need to lose a few (read: several) pounds. Apparently there is fat IN my liver, which is a bad thing and can lead to all sorts of not-so-fun complications such as cirrhosis or cancer. There is no "medical" treatment for this, the only thing I can do is diet, exercise and avoid alcohol. Yes, I should be doing these things anyway, and was planning to...see my New Years Resolutions. I'm just having a really hard time wrapping my poor little brain around this new diagnosis. You see, I have previously been diagnosed with SEVERAL other disorders and this is just ONE more and I'm wondering how many diseases one person can reasonably have. Maybe I shouldn't ask, the doctors might come up with another one.

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Another quiz

This is funny. I think "Crochet Guru" is probably more accurate, but the description is right on.



What Kind of Knitter Are You?





You appear to be a Knitting Guru. You love knitting and do it all the time. While finishing a piece is the plan, you still love the process, and can't imagine a day going by without giving some time to your yarn. Packing for vacation involves leaving ample space for the stash and supplies. It can be hard to tell where the yarn ends and you begin.
Take this quiz!







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Monday, January 01, 2007

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year to everyone, I hope your Holidays were wonderful and that this will be a great year for you all.

Here is a list of my 2007 resolutions:

* Lose weight. This will be the hardest one. No more Pop Tarts and less fast food!!!

* Exercise more. Use that gym membership my husband is always fussing at me to use or cancel.

* Use up some of my yarn stash. It’s really not that big (not like my mom’s, I love you Mom!), I know I can eliminate most of it.

* Finish up several of my unfinished projects. I’m going to log them all on the right over there and put up progress bars (once I figure out that tricky HTML thing).

* Post to my blog at least once a week. I gotta give you guys a reason to come back and leave me more comments.

* Write lots of crochet patterns. I have so many ideas, I’m surprised people don’t see them spilling out of my head.

* Get at least one pattern published. This does not include the ones I plan to self publish.

* Conquer knitting. I really want to make socks. I made a small swatch on double pointed needles the other day. The DPN’s weren’t so bad once I got going on them.

* Make more squares for Heartmade Blessings (see “use up stash”).

Here’s to the New Year and good luck on your resolutions!