Our Fifth Grandchild has arrived :) ... & other thoughts

So he kept us waiting but it was well worth it!  Anthony arrived on Jan. 20th at 10:04 am and all 8lbs 4ozs of him is simply adorable :)
His big sister is crazy about him & I have been told she often refers to him as "little man" it's so cute!!!

I've been working hard & have finally gotten under 200 lbs ~ this past Monday I hit my 3rd weight loss goal.  (I have set them at 10% increments) and now I am working to meet the next one.  Some days are harder than others but I push through to the best of my ability.  Some days I fail horribly while others I seem to sail through without any mishap in my choices.  So I want to share with all of you that there will be days like that & we have to pick ourselves up & move on without wallowing in the poor choices of the day before otherwise we go on a downward spiral that gets increasingly harder to break free from.

I will be alternating between the walk away the pounds & the Wii Fit exercises since I have found that I am getting too comfortable with my "routine" and I know it is important to try & keep the body moving & not in the same "rut" to stay successful.    So yeah the hula hoop exercise was fun but I still feel it two days later!!  And the boxing (Wii Sports) I am so funny trying to do it right but it gets the heart pumping!  And tennis yeah could never play it all that well in person so to see YOU LOSE come across the screen makes YOU WIN all the sweeter!!!
Yes I am enjoying this form of activity very much & often find I can play for an hour or more & not even realize the time has passed.

Okay need to move away from my computer ... get up move, run some errands etc.  But I will ck back in soon.
Maybe get a chance to go hold Anthony again ;)
Now that's one "activity" I could do forever :)
Wishing you all a "frog free" day & may your crochet hooks be busy busy busy !!!

Hello 2010!!!!

Okay so if you are wondering where in the world did Anne go?  Let me tell you I've had an incredible time finishing up 2009 and entering into 2010.
I am happy to say my darling grandson arrived October 25, 2009 ~ just 3 weeks before his "due date" so he was waiting for my arrival instead of the other way around :)  and I was able to spend all of November with him and his parents.  Made a quick, short return to his side in December so that grandpa could meet him too.  And now we pine for him.  Thankfully Skype (even though we don't have a web camera here) so we can see him and hear him over the video conference call from our computer does make us pine for him more :)
Excitement in Dec. of 2009 as we thought our other grandson was going to make an early appearance on Dec. 19th he was putting up quite a fuss but not enough of one to show up just yet... and here it is Jan.11th, 2010 & he still has us waiting on him :)

As for the whole weight loss journey I am thrilled to report that I am officially half way to my goal!  YAY ~ hard work and even with slacking for the family Christmas party & for the rest of the "holidays" which of course resulted with a weight gain (come on this is the reality of over indulging) I was glad to get back to the seriousness of watching what I eat counting those calories & carbs and seeing the number on the scale going back in the right direction.   So since Mondays are my "official" weigh in day this morning was no different ~ I am 203 ... yes 77 pounds and counting since July 6th. (that is the day I officially began counting calories & carbs)   and I do exercise daily.  At least half an hour of "activity" or more.  Something to get the heart pumping.

And let's not forget the whole crocheting aspect of my life.  I finally took the time to work on a basic diagonal box stitch in order to "learn" it for the first time!  And I love it!!!  (It goes by several names, corner to corner etc) ~ my project to learn this stitch was a simple little doll blanket so when the girls come over they can play with the dolls & put them in a little cradle that we pulled out of storage (my dad, God rest his soul) made it for our daughter and now our granddaughters can all enjoy it every time they come over.

So I'm excited to see what this year holds in store not only for my weight loss journey but for my crocheting journey as well.   I still haven't sat down long enough to attempt Broomstick Lace (which you might recall was one of my "resolutions" in the past to learn it before the yr. was done oops missed out on that one) ...
Okay so my challenge to you is to make an honest review of where you stand crochet wise ... do you need more time to organize your stash? do you need to settle into a regular routine to finish up outstanding projects?  do you need to just face the challenge of learning that new stitch or moving from scarves & afghans to sweaters or hats or slippers?  Whether it is learning something new or just finishing up projects to make room for new ones my challenge is for each one of us to face it this year.  Grade them if you must hard, easy really difficult ... then chose one of the hard to difficult ones & one of the easy ones ~ once you finish with them then chose another and before you know it you will have accomplished it all and new challenges will come along :)

Happy New Year ~ happy crocheting :)   Happy journey to being the healthiest YOU that YOU can be :)

mind your p's & q's ... a few thoughts

"Mind your P's & Q's" ... so funny how growing up that was used to remind us that we were to mind our own business ~ I had read some time ago that originated from when travelers (mind you this is back to when travel was by horse & carriage) would stop to get refreshed, and change the horses the tavern owner or barkeep would tell the customers' to mind their p's & q's ~ referring to the pints & quarts that the ale was sold in ... not so much so that they could settle their bill when they were done but more to keep them from getting drunk and doing &/or saying something they shouldn't.  

I thought that was a funny thing to grow up hearing "mind your p's & q's" referring to not telling others what we heard (or over heard) in various situations then to read where it originated stuck in my brain.
I share that because this morning so many things have been running through my mind ~ and how we have been told to mind our own business growing up & yet we crave connection with one another so much so that we join online communities to get that feeling of being heard, or understood, or agreed with in some manner.  Even if it is only a connection through joint interest in a game.   Then when that thought settles itself down I can't escape the fact that God Himself wanted, desired, craved fellowship and that is why He created man ~ so that we would have fellowship with Him.  He desired true connection with His creation & so He gave us all a Free Will to chose Him freely.  Once we learn that He Loves Us it can be so much easier to chose to  Love Him back. 
(a bit of a change of thought but I think it can be tied in...)
1 Corinthians 1:9, 10 states: "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement."
I often refer to just verse 9 ~ it is so amazing to me that we have all been called to fellowship with Jesus & that it was God the Father himself that has called us to this fellowship. (fellowship with God!!!)  but as I continue reading ~I know this was directed at the church in Corinth, but that does not mean it isn't valid for all of the body of Christ ~ to realize that when we have contentions among ourselves within our communities that there is a problem.  As the bride of Christ we need to be "perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement" ... to me this means that we need to all get to the same understanding that we are not of this world but just passing through until we go to our heavenly home.  In the process of passing through we need to worship God and have fellowship with Jesus Christ our Lord.  When our focus is on HIM we can mind our "p's & q's" more easily.  
Keep pressing on in the path He has laid out for you ... doing the work He has placed before you often we don't understand the path we travel on but when we press forward & keep standing firm on the Word of God we are rewarded with glimpses of what it all means to one day be standing fully in HIS GLORY forever without end ... oh what a day that will be :)   so don't forget to mind your "p's & q's ~ Press on & don't Quit!!!!  from my heart to yours :)

Baby Sweater photo (finally)

Here's the blue baby sweater

the pattern can be found here : http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/tonis-newborn-sweater.html

it calls for a baby weight yarn & I did work one up using a 3 ply and I loved it so much I actually took the time to work up some gauge swatches in the DMC Petra cotton size 3 in order to make the one pictured above.

Weight loss update/ and something from my heart....

Hi everyone ... if you were wondering how my weight loss journey has been going since my last update you're in luck :)    I'm down a total of 45 pounds right now.  I am just 9 pounds away from my second 10% goal.... I believe I can do it in this next month.   My routine now is to get up every morning & within an hour of getting up doing 30 minutes of "activity" which means my 2 mile walk away the pounds workout.   Some times I will add something more (I have Time Warner Cable so I can go to the exercise on demand channel & select a 10 minute workout to increase my activity level for the morning) ... mind you I have only done this a couple of times but it's really nice to have that option.   (Can you tell I miss the Wii?)  See when I was at my daughter & son in law's home I did use the Wii sports for increasing my activity level every day.   I look forward to my next visit there (coming soon) so I can do my 2 mile walk away the pounds & follow it with the Wii fitness & / or sports.  

I just wanted to say it's great that I am finally eating with more awareness of making the healthier choices, and that I am to the point where if I miss a morning of activity I miss it & look forward to moving instead of just sitting around.... and I am thrilled when I see the number on my scale as it reads a smaller weight on my bones .... but I also know & understand there are many of you who have done all that was "supposed" to work and they haven't had this result.  (remember I was doing all I knew to do Healthy right & gained 20 pounds which led me to my doctor looking for some answers)  Please don't give up on your health.  If you find that what you have been doing isn't working talk with your doctor or find a dietitian who can help you learn different ways to work on your goals.  Also keep in mind that some medications actually cause weight gain.  One other area that is completely different for me on this weight loss journey is that I have my VPap to treat my sleep apnea.  So if you have sleep apnea and have not been treated for it that can really affect your weight more than you realize. ... yes an underactive thyroid, obstructive sleep apnea & pre-diabetes can do a job on one's weight, but with the proper treatment for the thyroid & OSA one can turn the pre-diabetes around to prevent becoming diabetic.  

Now from my heart to yours ~ my prayer is that you will find the strength you need to face your challenges & make the changes necessary to meet your goals.  I know from personal experience that it is not easy to make the changes necessary but once begun and continued it becomes easier day by day.  If you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ I pray you will meet Him and discover for yourself how much He Loves You.  I met Him when I was a teenager.  I always had a faith in God.  I always believed that Jesus Christ was God's son.  So going to church & loving God was a fairly easy thing for me to do as I was growing up.  But one day I was at a church picnic and the minister there took about 20 minutes to share with everyone the Love of God.  This included explaining how God created man in His image and then a woman to be his helpmeet.  How the choice to disobey God brought sin into the world & that everyone born is born with sin in them.  How in order to redeem mankind God sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ into the world with the purpose of dying on the cross so that all who believe on HIM would be saved.  This was nothing that I had not heard before.  This was not "news" to me.  As I listened to him he continued with this tidbit... not only did Jesus love us enough to leave heaven & live life on earth as a man, then willingly give up his life on the cross to pay for our sins he did all of that so he could have a personal relationship with each one of us.  Yes a personal relationship.  One where you can meet with Him daily, through the reading of the Holy Bible and in prayer.  It was as if I had suddenly heard about Jesus for the first time that day instead of knowing about Him all my life. I recognized that I needed to have that personal relationship with HIM.  I wanted more from my prayer life, more from my time spent reading the Bible.  I wanted more of Him in my life.   So when the minister asked who would like to have that personal relationship with Jesus Christ I raised my hand & prayed the prayer he led us in ... it has been 32 years since that picnic and I know I have a long way to go to truly become the person He desires me to be but the journey has been incredible.  I know that there are days when I fail to live for Him but I also know that when I turn to Him He is faithful to forgive me & He helps me to move forward.  I know that there are days when it seems as if I have managed to do everything "right" and on those days I know it's because of HIM who lives in me, it is in His strength that I managed to do everything "right".  My prayer is for you to know HIM as your friend as well as your savior.  My prayer is that you will grow in your relationship with Him daily.  That you will see His hand moving in your life. That when you feel that there is nothing left in this life for you you will find that He is right there with you & He will bring you through.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me ... I may not have all the answers but I will certainly pray with you.  

Now for those of you seeking the crochet info... I have recently made some preemie hats for Heartfelt Angels.  I began three berets for Kathleen ... she needs them by October 7th so I need to concentrate on getting them all done .... I found the yarn I will use for my exchange partners square ... I hope the pattern I selected will work up nicely.  I need to begin the sweater fronts for Angie's sweater (now that the sweater back panel is done I am really excited about casting on the front panels) ..... yes, knitted, but once I have the front panels knitted I will turn to crochet for the rest of the sweater (so in about 2 more years LOL) .... wait for it ~ it will happen!   I still have to determine which sweater I am making for Carter (I haven't forgotten but want it done soon) .... and there are some friends expecting this November (as well as my daughter) that I would like some items made for them & also my new grandson who is expected this January.   So yeah I'm a little busy these days :)  & you know I love it.

So this week my goal is to get as far as I can on the berets, make some baby items for the November babies that are expected, make my exchange partner's square & mail it out ... and to work on the Missions display board for our church's Missions Convention which is being held Oct. 3 & 4.  

May all your goals for this week be easily obtained/ met and may your projects be "frog-free"!  Write me about anything at all ... if you have any ?'s regarding crochet, or about my personal walk with Christ or even about my weight loss journey please feel free to contact me.

"Hunted"

So I wrote this out late last night & just getting around to posting it here... hope it encourages you.  Let me know ~ leave a comment please.

Hunted … by Anne Fatato Sept. 16th, 2009


Seriously didn't know what to call this topic but the truth is that I was looking out my kitchen window and I did witness something that God used to "enlighten" me ...

Anyway looking out my window I spied a black cat sitting in my back yard. Don't usually see cats in my yard so I stood there to watch & see what it was doing. It looked as if it were hunting. The posture, the intense stare (mind you our back yard looks like a jungle since it needs mowing) and I stood transfixed watching this cat as it stared at its’ prey (which I couldn't see).

Suddenly a movement caught my eye & that cat just pounced on its’ prey so quick & I was surprised by the scene unfolding in front of my eyes. Was it a mouse? Was it a chipmunk? The cat turned toward the house & I could see it's captive caught in its’ mouth. Then what I saw really surprised me. The cat shook his head and dropped the captive on the ground. Then sat & stared at it some more. Was it dead? Was it going to get away after all?

What was that cat up too?

By this time I had to go get my glasses so I could have a better look at this scene as it continued to play out before me as I stood looking out my window. When I returned with my glasses the cat was now pawing at its' prey. I guessed it wanted to see if it had any life left in it. Again the cat picked up its' captive and shook it, released it and watched it, almost daring it to get up & run.

It was a while but sure enough that little chipmunk (I could finally see what creature it was) moved slowly. I watched intently to see what that cat would do now that it's prey was on the move. I was really surprised when that cat just sat there watching. It didn't pounce on that chipmunk for quite some time. It just let it move away.

But not so far out of it's reach. Just enough to make the chipmunk think it might be 'safe'. Then very suddenly up jumped the cat & pounced on the chipmunk yet again.

As I stood there taking in this scene it was very clear to me that is exactly what Satan does to us. He sits ever so patiently, staring at his prey. Waiting for the perfect moment of weakness to pounce on us in order to destroy our relationship with Christ. In any way possible he will attack. As the cat toyed with it's prey ... that is just how cruel Satan is with us. He will shake us & then drop us daring us to show any signs of life so he can attack again.

I watched to see if this poor chipmunk got away or if the cat would actually finish him off. But the cat finally chased the chipmunk out of my line of vision. I wasn't disappointed that the cat & chipmunk were no longer visible to me through my kitchen window becasue the scene that was now playing out in my mind was so much larger than the life & death situation outside in my yard. Here I was basking in the truth of God's faithfulness & love. In the knowledge that whatever Satan may do to "trip" me up and to "catch" me that my God is bigger & stronger & more than able to sustain me through anything the enemy can throw at me. Pounce after pounce my strength is in Christ who is there for me every trial, every testing, every disappointment. He is also there with me in every success, every victory, every joy.

So when I am feeling like I've been chewed on & spit out, pawed at & toyed with I will always remember that the goal is to escape Satan's wiles and move closer to my God. I can overcome because I have an advocate who is always praying for me.

Did the chipmunk escape? I have no idea. How many people are lost in this world being shaken & pounced upon with out a clue that there is a way of escape? And before you ask why I didn't just go out & scare off the cat ... to be honest that thought never entered my mind ... how like us to be silent when we should be speaking up, sharing the truth of God's love & His plan of 'escape'.

Just thought I would share what was on my heart tonight.

So much is going on .... have you played with your hooks & yarn today?

I am home for now.  I do have a decent photo of the baby sweater I made for my new grandchild due this November.... just can't play with it right now perhaps before this week is through ;)

The excitement of visiting my dd & sil has slightly worn off ... like a slow fading away of the fun we had together ... leaving enough of a remnant of the feeling so that looking forward to my return visit builds some fresh excitement for that trip.   Continuing reports that all is well with my daughter keeps my outlook bright. Not knowing who is coming makes life more interesting in that we simply have to be prepared for both genders ~ but in my "own opinion" (which, let's face it really doesn't amount to much in this case since it's a 50 - 50 chance of being "right" or being "wrong" ... my opinion is that she's having a b.... admit it you wanted to fill that sentence in didn't you? ..... Baby is the correct answer ;)   I will tell you who arrived to join our family after they arrive so I can " know" who I'm announcing.

Baby things .... let's see a sweater for Carter (hey he was only born this past March so I'm not horribly late on his little gift am I?)  ... still selecting the right yarn & pattern ... too many ideas to settle on one just yet.   Will need a baby item or two for my new grandson due this January.  Yes my ddil has been told it's a boy!  Yay.  Friends of mine are expecting this November as well so I would like to make something especially for them ... if time permits I will. Keeping in mind that I need to create my granddaughter's shrug for her birthday.  We have decided to make that a "tradition" for my little sweetie. This will be her 4th 'birthday shrug' so I do want to make it really nice.  I think I found the stitch I want to do but I will see.

Then there are some more hats & scarves for Kathleen that are needed rather quickly so everything will be put aside in the hopes that I can get them started & completed fast! 

Combine all of that with doctor's appointments & various projects that have nothing to do with anything else & you find a fairly busy schedule can look daunting from time to time... I know I'm not nearly as busy as most of you are ... seriously I mean that.  I know there are many who hold down a full time job & some who also have a part-time job besides & they still manage to run their errands, and work on their projects that are just as important to them as mine are to me. So I mean this when I say take care of yourself.  Make time to get the rest you really need & also make sure to schedule in your crochet time~ it helps to reduce the stress in our lives (take a few deep cleansing breaths, don't hold your breath ~ let it all out) ....
Relax & enjoy your hooks & yarn.  Play with it & see what you can create.  Or pull out the pattern you've been wanting to make & get it going.  

I've had a good report ~ my "pressures" will be reduced ~ thanks to my recent weight loss.  And as I continue to lose the weight my "pressures" should be reduced at every 20 pounds off.  (for those of you who don't know this is all about my OSA & the treatment for it)

Speaking of weight loss ... I've lost the first 20 (which shouldn't have been there to begin with but without it I may not have gotten the help I needed) ... and 21 more besides!  For a total of 41 so far.  Almost every morning I get up & do my 30 minutes of Walk Away the Pounds the 2 mile walk.  Sometimes I "play" some more to keep the "fat burners" turned on.   Who knows that may be the main reason for the weight loss... but I doubt it.  Instead I really believe it is a combination of everything that I am doing right.  I get my sleep.  I get my "exercise" (okay "activity" if you insist LOL) ... and I eat right.  I enjoy my food very much.

Okay so it's time for bed but before I go I wanted to say I played with my hooks & yarn today & can't wait to play some more tomorrow.
Good night / Good morning ~ either way enjoy your day.