First Week and a New Year!
Hello All!
It seems the calendar changed years during this past week. It is now officially 2014. So without further ado, here we go:
A) Pantry Challenge:
Weight Loss: My "official" weigh in days are from the day of my colonoscopy done just after Christmas. I'm using that weight as my base for the year. Granted, everything in my system was flushed out in preparation of the procedure, I kinda expected the number to go up slightly once the bowels started to accumulate food in them. I was quite surprised to notice that
I had lost 1 pound! Niceway to start the year!
Grocery shopping: I had set a limit of $25 per week to shop for food with. The last time I remember actually going shopping for food and not buying food anywhere else (with the exception of some Chinese Food for New Year's Eve) I managed to eat quite well using what I could find in the refridgerator and cupboards. I finally went shopping yesterday actually spending $7.08 at Stop & Shop and $11.02 at Market Basket in actual cash out. I did have a $10 Gift certificate to Stop & Shop that I had used. They had a great deal on some meat and now I will not have to buy meat for a few weeks with what I still have in the freezer. I do have several meals already packaged in the freezer since I tend to make things in batches and usually end up with 2 - 4 servings. It does help the variety and do get used up during the week as either breakfasts or lunches at werk. I also checked out the reduced produce section in both stores and got a nice selection of veggies that will add variety to the menu this week.
I did manage to avoid the bread, pastries and ice cream that usually manages to sneak into my cart this week. So far I have been good at avoiding the 9 forbiddens.
B) HPKCHC Crafting:
The new term started on Jan 1 and I'm back in Slytherin House for another fun term of "Craft All the Things".
1) Completed Projects: I have one - a hat/snood I crafted on New Year's Eve waiting for the OWL Proposals thread to open. Finished later in the day on New Year's Day and submitted as Detention.
2) WIP's: I submitted an OWL Proposal for the Detention OWL. While staying up for the thread to open, there was a flury of activity as I was not alone in posting. I did manage to snag post #43 so I knew I would be assured, if the proposal was accepted, of one of the 60 alloted slots for the Detention Owl. I've managed to work 4 rows on my Supersized Veil of Isis since approval.
I've also started a blanket square (no pic) for a class as I do need to submit one class per month.
3) PLOTS: I'm hoping to crank out another blanket square for quidditch this month and maybe some mini squares for another class. Although for HPKCHC, this Veil of Isis is so large that I really need to focus on getting a minimum of 4 rows per week done (literally takes me 3.5 - 4 hours PER ROW, it's that large!) in order to complete this project by the end of March. I plan to take a little break during February during the Ravellenic to complete another project that is also part of the Detention OWL.
C) Other Crafting:
This is the non-HPKCHC crafting. To start the year, I've been sorting through my fabrics to determine what fabric and yardage I have to work with. I still plan to go through my "repurpose" stash of other items I have saved to use the fabric in other things.
It seems the calendar changed years during this past week. It is now officially 2014. So without further ado, here we go:
A) Pantry Challenge:
Weight Loss: My "official" weigh in days are from the day of my colonoscopy done just after Christmas. I'm using that weight as my base for the year. Granted, everything in my system was flushed out in preparation of the procedure, I kinda expected the number to go up slightly once the bowels started to accumulate food in them. I was quite surprised to notice that
I had lost 1 pound! Niceway to start the year!
Grocery shopping: I had set a limit of $25 per week to shop for food with. The last time I remember actually going shopping for food and not buying food anywhere else (with the exception of some Chinese Food for New Year's Eve) I managed to eat quite well using what I could find in the refridgerator and cupboards. I finally went shopping yesterday actually spending $7.08 at Stop & Shop and $11.02 at Market Basket in actual cash out. I did have a $10 Gift certificate to Stop & Shop that I had used. They had a great deal on some meat and now I will not have to buy meat for a few weeks with what I still have in the freezer. I do have several meals already packaged in the freezer since I tend to make things in batches and usually end up with 2 - 4 servings. It does help the variety and do get used up during the week as either breakfasts or lunches at werk. I also checked out the reduced produce section in both stores and got a nice selection of veggies that will add variety to the menu this week.
I did manage to avoid the bread, pastries and ice cream that usually manages to sneak into my cart this week. So far I have been good at avoiding the 9 forbiddens.
B) HPKCHC Crafting:
The new term started on Jan 1 and I'm back in Slytherin House for another fun term of "Craft All the Things".
1) Completed Projects: I have one - a hat/snood I crafted on New Year's Eve waiting for the OWL Proposals thread to open. Finished later in the day on New Year's Day and submitted as Detention.
2) WIP's: I submitted an OWL Proposal for the Detention OWL. While staying up for the thread to open, there was a flury of activity as I was not alone in posting. I did manage to snag post #43 so I knew I would be assured, if the proposal was accepted, of one of the 60 alloted slots for the Detention Owl. I've managed to work 4 rows on my Supersized Veil of Isis since approval.
I've also started a blanket square (no pic) for a class as I do need to submit one class per month.
3) PLOTS: I'm hoping to crank out another blanket square for quidditch this month and maybe some mini squares for another class. Although for HPKCHC, this Veil of Isis is so large that I really need to focus on getting a minimum of 4 rows per week done (literally takes me 3.5 - 4 hours PER ROW, it's that large!) in order to complete this project by the end of March. I plan to take a little break during February during the Ravellenic to complete another project that is also part of the Detention OWL.
C) Other Crafting:
This is the non-HPKCHC crafting. To start the year, I've been sorting through my fabrics to determine what fabric and yardage I have to work with. I still plan to go through my "repurpose" stash of other items I have saved to use the fabric in other things.
There are currently 104 yards of fabric in those bins for whatever projects. There are smaller scraps not counted in that total.
I also finished a piece of tatting of which I do not have a photo of. A piece of Celtic tatting - or Celtic in design. That pattern has inspired me to tat a cotton dress featuring that pattern. Such an endeavor would have to be piece by piece and plots and plans on how to attach the pieces to create the fabric to be put together to form the dress. So far, this is just an idea. Much much planning and maths are needed before I can start.
D) EBAY/ETSY
Actually, I hate to admit I have not done anything in this category during the past week as both are still down. I need to plan some time this week to work on getting items up for sale and open for business for 2014.
E) Other Randomness
2014 has started the year with a bang! Barely 3 days in and a huge Blizzard has struck, closing work for Friday and digging ourselves out on Saturday. It was nice to have the day off and I used that day to work on the Veil to help get a head start.
My VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) site may not open this year as I do not have enough volunteers to properly man the site. If anyone in the Boston Area is interested in helping people fill out their Income Tax Returns for 2013 in my Chelsea based VITA site, please contact me and we'll discuss details.
Thank you! (Yeah, that was a shameless plug for a worthwhile cause.)
And with that, I'll bid you adieu until next week!
Have Fun!
Seashelly
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