I Never Promised You an Organic Garden

Group before the ride

We Did It! Matt and I biked to Oxford, Ohio and back this weekend, and we reached the metric century mark on the way.  For those you who don’t know, and I didn’t until Matt told me, a metric century is 62 miles.  We actually did 67 miles total, and it was quite an experience.  Five of us set off from Mark’s house at 7:30 Saturday morning, and we reached the Oxford Farmer’s Market at 10:30am.  After a tour of the farmer’s market, a nice lunch, and a visit to the Oxford bike shop, we got back on the bikes around 12:30pm and rode back to Richmond.  Matt and I got home around 4:00pm. (more…)

If you happen to be reading this while standing, let me advise you that now is a good time to sit down.  I have an announcement to make that many of you may find hard to believe …  I am baking.  In fact, it has become my newest project. (more…)

2011 has been a great year for Loops of Love.  We recently did an inventory of all the items made in 2011, and it was quite an impressive number of items.  In case you aren’t aware, Loops of Love is a charitable knitting and crochetting group I started in cooperation with Richmond Church of the Brethren and Unwind Yarn Shop.  We meet the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month from 5 to 7pm at the yarn shop, and we donate handmade items to a number of local organization including: Birth-t0-Five, Salvation Army, YWCA, Genesis Women’s Shelter, Reid Babies, and Nobel Women’s Circle.

Photo Copyright Jim Hair

Our tally of donated goods for the first half of 2011 is:

Baby Hats: 33
Kids Hats: 23
Adult Hats: 15
Baby Blankets: 19
Chemo Caps: 7
Washcloths: 10
Mittens:3
Baby Sweater: 1
Scarfs: 9
Booties: 7
Slippers: 1
Shaw : 1

A big thank you is in order to all the people who show up every week to knit or crochet, all the people who don’t attend but donate completed items, all the people who donate yarn and needles, and especially Unwind Yarn Shop for hosting us each week.

I can’t wait to see how much stuff we create in the rest of 2011.

I mentioned in a pervious blog post that I set as a goal for myself to reach 130lbs by my 30th birthday. I have been working at it for almost a year now, and I am getting so close. I am actually about 3lbs away, and I am still hopeful that I will make it.  However, staying motivated has been especially hard as I get closer to the date. Last night I got some much needed extra motivation.

I went shopping while Matt was at Community of Song practice and found a pair of shorts I loved that were only available in a size 6.  I figured it would be a long shot, but I tried them on.  And…They Fit!  I couldn’t believe it.  I was in a size 10 a year ago, and while there is still a part of me that believes as soon as I publish this post that I will instantly and magically return to my previous size, I wanted to share my joy!

UPDATE: I will post a photo of my cute new shorts later this week!

I have decided to try an experiment and participate in the Six Items or Less challenge. According to the Six Items or Less website, the idea of the challenge is to pick six items of clothing (not six outfits) and for 30 days only wear those items.  Sounds crazy, right?

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For those of you who don’t know her, the girl in the photo next to me is my little sister.  I say little knowing she would quickly remind me that she is no longer my little sister but my younger sister.  Only 3 years, 11 months, 10 days, etc.  I am pretty sure she even has the number of minutes separating our ages memorized. But to me she will always be my little sister.  (Deal with it Meg, it’s not changing).

My little sister who,  by virtue of me being her BIG sister, I feel the need to harass, help, direct, give unsolicited advice to, support, and protect. So two years ago when I found out she has Lupus it was quite upsetting.  Lupus is a chronic, autoimmune disease that can damage any part of the body.  Basically it causes your immune system to attack various parts of your body.  In Megan’s case, it is currently manifesting itself in joint pain and extreme fatigue, but it can vary from person to person and even from year to year. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for Lupus only treatments to keep the symptoms under control.

However, this May, Megan is participating in a walk to raise money for the Lupus Foundation of America.  The money she and other walkers raise will go to support research for a cure and help provide programs and treatments for people suffering from Lupus, along with supporting their friends and families. I would love to be able to join her team and walk with her in May; however, the walk is taking place in North Carolina, and I am in Indiana.  So in order to still participate and support my little sister, I am trying to help her raise as much money as possible.

Her team has set $1,000 as their goal, and they are on their way.  But, they could use your help getting to that goal.  You can donate online at Megan’s website or by giving me check or cash.  I will be sending her all the cash donations I round up before the walk.

I know everyone is probably already inundated with request to support various causes or groups, and I am sorry to pile on.  But this is something extra close to me and my family, and I want to do anything I can to support my little sister.

Thank you for your help!

As I am sure most of you who are still reading my blog have noticed, I took a seven month break from writing here. I simply got busy and felt uninspired.  Recently, I have been compelled to write again, so here I am.  I won’t promise that I won’t take another break at some point, but for now I am back.

A lot has gone on in the past seven months, and rather than try and recap that time, I want to focus on the exciting things coming in my future.  In two months and three days, I turn 30.  I am actually quite excited about this.  I know a lot of people are very upset when they turn 30, but I am excited about marking a big milestone in my life.  I will finally feel like a “real” adult.

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Thanks to my friend Emily, who took the time to organize a local team, I am participating in the March of Dimes’ March for Babies this year.  The event is a 6 mile walk on September 18th to raise money for babies.  Specifically, to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality.

Since my husband was a preemie, and I have a lot of friends who have had to deal with sick or early babies, this is something that I feel connected to and I am excited to raise money for. Soooo, I am aiming high and hoping to raise $1,000 by the time of the walk.

This is where I am hoping for your help.  Please make a donate to support baby health.  You can make a donation online at my personal site or by cash or check.  Every cent is a step in the right direction!

We have finally finished our landscaping and herb garden in front of our house.  After two long months, 39 bags of rocks, two bags of mulch, 100s of squirmy worms, and way more plants than I thought I would need to fill the space, it is finished!

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Matt and I both are participating in the Let’s Go Ride a Bike Summer Games and today we completed two of the items for the Social Cycling Category.

The options were:
* Go on a group ride
* Leave a nice note on a bike, or say hi to a cyclist at a red light
* Schedule a bike date with a friend or partner — dress up!
* Recruit a non-biking friend for a ride
* Ride with your family
We chose to do a Ride with your family and also ended up doing an impromptu group ride.

For the Ride with your family, Matt (my husband) and I biked to church. It is pretty common for us to do so, but it was the first time I got to bike to church on my new bike. I am still loving not having to try so hard to keep up with Matt.

Here we are in our church clothes after returning home.

Our Group Ride turned out to be impromptu.  We were heading to buy some gas cards for a friend moving out of state after church, and one of our other biking friends biked with his.  We were quite a bunch. I rode my recumbent, my husband rode his converted mountain bike/commuter bike, and our friend, Kurt, rode a home-built long-tail cargo bike.  It was a lot of fun and made biking up the hills seem less difficult.

Matt took pictures and video while biking behind us.

I am really enjoying participating and can’t wait to take on some of the items in the next category.