Bronchitis…UGH

I have been sick for over a week and finally went to see the Dr. yesterday.  Just as I suspected I had asthmatic bronchitis again.  This happens at least once a year and starts with a simple cold.  I have an antibiotic and a steroid so I am already feeling somewhat better.

We have been sticking to the South Beach Diet like we should.  It has become fairly normal to us now and wow do we feel better (except for the bronchitis).  :o)  Prayerfully we will be smart enough to continue eating this way and get the weight off and keep it off.  As of today my hubby has lost 20 pounds and I have lost 19 pounds.  It has taken 6 weeks to lose this weight, which is slower than we have lost in the past.  We are older and probably move way less than we used to…LOL  Either way, we are pleased and psyched.

I am off to Joann Fabrics tomorrow to buy a pattern and some cute fabric.  I plan to make our little granddaughters matching sun suits for summer.  I love it when Joann’s runs their patterns for 99 cents each since they are normally between $10 and $15, which is just crazy..I would never pay that for a pattern but evidently some people do.  :o)

Found an Amazing Etsy Shop

The other day I was checking out some of the great shops on Etsy and I discovered this incredible fabric florist shop.  The owners of this shop make the most amazing fabric plants and leaves.  I have never seen anything like this before, so I thought I would share this great find with my blog readers.  Please check out this shop and I would love to hear your thoughts on these cool plants.  :o)

http://www.etsy.com/shop/janejoss

Wheat Pasta

We have been doing great following the “South Beach Diet”.  I have lost 14 pounds and Steve has lost a bit more.  We are feeling so much better and have more energy.  The first two weeks we didn’t eat any flour foods (breads, pasta, ect), starchy vegetables or fruit.  We have introduced fruits back into our diet and things like sweet potatoes, rutabaga ect.  We do eat a slice of whole wheat or rye bread once in a while.  I love wheat bread and it is so much better for us.  The problem I have is with the wheat pasta products.  It doesn’t seem to matter what I make with wheat pasta, whether it is spaghetti, wheat bow tie pasta made into a Greek salad, or most recently I made a tuna macaroni salad…..usually my macaroni salads are well received in our house…most of this particular salad went down the garbage disposal.  I managed to eat two of the little shell macaronis and all I could taste was wheat.  I seasoned it well and used two cans of tuna….but the wheat taste was so strong.  I told Steve that I think every once in a while, when we are hungry for some pasta, we should just make a small amount of the white pasta.  The other foods we have been eating are great.  I love fresh spinach and we eat a lot of that.

We had a C.S.E. meeting for Bradly at his school on Monday.  The meeting went so well.  He created and presented his own power point presentation explaining his disability which is “E.D. or “Emotional Disturbance”.  He has learned how his disability relates to some of the problems he has in school, in his relationships and his everyday life.  One of the new services he will have for 7th grade is a program on the computer which will read  back whatever he has written, aloud to him.  This allows him to be able to pick up on his choppy or run-on sentences and make corrections.  The teacher did bring a sample of his writing from Sept. and a current sample…what a huge difference.  This new technology should help him to improve even more.  We are so proud of Bradly for the hard work he has done trying to improve his problems and for trying to understand his problems.  :o)

Announcing the Winner

I am pleased to announce that “StunningAnnaK” is the winner of the “Spring Break” purse I was giving away on my blog.  Congratulations Anna.  I will ship out her new purse as soon as I get her shipping address.  :o)  I thought it would be nice to also share her Etsy shop with my readers.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/stunningannak

Thank you to everyone who participated in my give-away and I hope everyone has a great week.  Spring has actually arrived!  :o)

Tooth Fairy Pillows

I got 5 new tooth fairy pillows finished yesterday and even got the pics taken.  It felt great to have 5 new items to list on my Arelel Designs 2 shop.  I have another 5 I am working on.  Walmart did not have any white embroidery floss, so I had to borrow from my mom.  I like to do the hand appliqué while watching t.v. and then I go to my studio to finish them up on my sewing machine.

One of our past foster daughters who went home over a year ago is coming for a visit this weekend.  We had her sister here last week as she had gotten suspended from school and her dad works so there was no one to watch her at home.  It was so nice having her here and I know we will have fun with her sister this weekend…..they really need some mom attention and loving.  The boys love when the girls come to visit.  Nick still has a hard time understanding why they don’t live at “home” anymore (meaning our home).  Considering the girls lived with us over a year and a half and Nick is only 8 now, I can see how that would be confusing.

Our daughter Rachel is off to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada for the weekend.  She is going to visit our daughter Megan and her hubby Scott. They always have a great time together and I am so glad our kids are close.  Rachel is also planning a trip to Houston, TX to visit our son Steve in June.  Her and Steve had a wonderful time when she went down to see him last year.

Here are some of the pics of the new tooth fairy pillows.  This is the link to my shop if you would like to see the rest of them.                http://www.etsy.com/shop/areleldesigns2 

  http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=43001962

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=43001544

Corned Beef and Cabbage.

We had our traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day (and just because we love it), on Saturday rather than yesterday.  We cooked our corned beef with cabbage, carrots and rutabaga.  Normally we  cook potatoes also, but since we are eating low carb, we omitted the potatoes.  We had just enough corned beef left to slice thin and make open faced Rubén's on a slice of dark rye bread for lunch on Sunday.   Rachel and I skipped the sauerkraut, but Steve had it on his.  They were fantastic.

I have been feeling the effects of my exercise on the “Gazelle”.  I am assuming since I am feeling the pain, that I must be doing it right.  :o)  Now, I just want my efforts to start showing.  I must admit that I do feel better and have way more energy thanks to eating low carb and exercising……I really do hate the exercising part though…LOL

I did complete the two drawstring bags I was working on on Tuesday and I got the pics taken and the purses listed in my Etsy shop.  I am now working on 10 new Tooth Fairy pillows for my Arelel Designs 2 shop.  Tooth Fairy pillows sell fairly consistently, so I thought it was time to add some new ones with different fabrics.  I have to buy more white embroidery floss because I can get all of them made.  Here are a couple of pics of my new drawstring purses.  :o)

   http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=42865708

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=42864630

Getting up in the Dark Again

It was so much nicer last week when I was up at 6:15 a.m. and it was actually daylight.  Saturday night we had to turn our clocks ahead for “Daylight Savings Time”, and now I am getting up in the dark again.  I know it will be nicer having the extra daylight in the evening, but it was great to start the day in the light!!

I have been working on two new drawstring purses.  One is zebra print with a bright pink lining and the other is a cute girly skull print with the same pink lining.  I am hoping to have them finished today and listed by this evening.

If you haven’t entered the contest for the Spring purse, don’t hesitate.  Leave me a comment that you already are a follower or that you just became one.  Check the other ways to score an extra entry below. :o)

We babysat our darling little granddaughters on Friday.  Emma waved at me when she got here…yes I know it was a fluke, but I enjoy it anyway.  :o)

Don’t forget to check out my daughter Megan’s new blog.  She has some great low carb recipes complete with pictures.  I love it when I can see a pic of what the recipe is supposed to look like.  She would love to have to stop by.  :o)

http://thetattooedcook.blogspot.com/