Home Forums Explore Media Fiber Arts Stitch in Time April 2018

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  • #453902
    Debby
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        One quarter of the year has vanished. Hopefully now, spring will actually come. We still had snow last week so not terribly sure if winter is done. The spring flowers have not made an appearance yet. Small green leaves, but no buds yet.

        To those who celebrate, Happy Easter.

        I’m gearing up for a little vacation. Going to go see my son and his wife. Then onto mom. (sigh) To appease DH we are scheduled to ride the Skunk Train in northern California before we head home. It should be fun. But, it’s a lot of work getting ready when you have food sensitivities and have to drag along medical equipment. :rolleyes: DH has it easy. All he needs is a change of clothes and his toothbrush.

        Debby
        Guide - Fiber Art Forum

        #596691
        Lena
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            Still winter here. We had about 4 inches of snow on Friday and then it dropped down to -20c. Ugh. Mornings walking the dog have been a challenge. I paid the “snow boy” for another month of snow removal because there is more in the forecast for next week, depending on when and where you look it could be and inch or a foot.

            However I am surrounded with seedlings in all the window sills! Hope springs eternal!

            I unravelled the white shawl I started. It just didn’t work. Designing under the influence of drugs is not recommended. The yarn is now in time out.

            I am knitting something in cheerful red, a mix of cotton with a shiny viscose thread. To be a loose lace shrug like long thing for me for the wedding.

            Doll Art by Lena

            #596680
            Debby
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                Lena, not quite that much snow here, but it did snow last night. Hope it warms up enough to plant out those seedlings at the appropriate time. I so understand yarn being in time out. :lol: I often have to put projects in time out.

                Still working on getting ready for vacation. Not as much done as I would like but I’ve got some time. I’ve confirmed that I’m not just gluten sensitive, I can’t eat any grain. I made chicken and rice soup to settle my digestion after the stomach bug. Mild, easy to digest. Um… yes and no. It didn’t upset my digestion any more than it already was. But, I swelled up like a balloon. Stopped eating rice and the swelling is going down again. I’m going to miss eating grain, I really am. It sort of makes sense because I’m terribly allergic to grasses. And grains are in the grass family of plants.

                Debby
                Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                #596692
                Lena
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                    No rice is hard! It is in everything gluten free!

                    I have some new grains to experiment with Teff and Fonio. Both are African. I am not sure if they are grass based.
                    I currently use a lot of Almond flour in my baking but it is expensive. Bean flours are so strongly flavoured that I only use them for spicy foods, like arabic crackers or felafel.

                    It will be cold here until sunday, then it will be around freezing. We don’t expect to be able to put most of the plants out until end of May, begin of June.

                    Doll Art by Lena

                    #596681
                    Debby
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                        Lena, yeah, no rice and no corn either. I’ve tried using the almond flour and tapioca starch combination. It works, sort of. However, I’m beginning to wonder if I can’t handle nuts either. First I need to let the swelling go away, then make sure everything in the digestion is happy before I test nuts again. That will probably be after we get back.

                        Just so y’all know, we are going on vacation April 7 for a couple of weeks. I’m trying to make food to take along that will keep and not trigger anything for me. Before the stomach bug I was experimenting with low carb/high fat. Not pure keto, but close. The excess weight was just falling off. I’m back on that now that the stomach bug has gone. But maintaining it while traveling isn’t easy. So, I’m in the kitchen this week making beef jerkey, pemmican, keto fudge and pre-cooked bacon to take with. DH doesn’t do low carb, so I’ll be baking him some foods too. He especially requested oatmeal raisin cookies.

                        I’m afraid fiber arts is taking a back seat this week. The stuff is out and all over my desk, but I haven’t touched it other than to shove it to one side as I make packing lists and a new blank book to take to mom.

                        We had snow again yesterday. But now it’s supposed to warm up enough that it’ll be rain not snow. Nothing but wet and clouds in the forecast.

                        Debby
                        Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                        #596693
                        Lena
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                            The nuts thing is very individual.
                            My ex reacted to walnuts( allergy) but was a ok with pecans.
                            My sister can handle most except for peanuts(allergy).
                            My youngest reacts to cashews and pistachios, but not other nuts. This meant we had to avoid vegetarian places when I visited last fall which was a pain since most of the GF places were also vegetarian.

                            My stomach has issues if I eat to many nuts, not an allergy reaction though like my daughter who now carries an epi pen. She also reacts to eggs both as a food intolerance AND an allergy, but can handle them in baked goods – or at least for now, the doctor wants her in for testing yearly.

                            Do have a nice trip.

                            Doll Art by Lena

                            #596682
                            Debby
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                                Lena, I hear you on eating out. I’m in high anxiety over the trip simply because of the amount of eating out we’ll be doing. Any mix up with dairy and I’ll be in a world of trouble. That’s miserable when traveling.

                                Got the jerky finished. I’m still drying meat to be very dry to make the pemmican. Turns out I am doing a little sewing. The bag a made a couple of years ago I put a pocket on the gusset. It was supposed to be for sunglasses, and I do use it for that. But, when I take the cell phone with, I put it in that pocket instead. If the bag falls over the phone falls out. So, I’m adding a strap and snap to the pocket to keep the phone in.

                                Debby
                                Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                                #596694
                                Lena
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                                    My sister only eats grilled steak when eating out. No sides, nothing on it. Often the chef comes out and asks to make sure the server got it right.

                                    My daughter and I had a great experience at a sushi restaurant. They had a “Tick of your allergies” part to the order you make. The hostess came over, asked some questions and adjusted the order. She had GF soy sauce for me. I am not sure exactly what we ate but we knew it was safe. Apparently they now use a lot of mayonnaise based sauces so a lot of stuff was out for my daughter. Everything on the table was GF and egg free.

                                    My red swish top is going well.

                                    I have looked at the doll…. There were a bunch of medical tests this week. Oh and meeting with the tax accountant tomorrow. That is my excuse.

                                    Doll Art by Lena

                                    #596683
                                    Debby
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                                        Lena, yeah eating out with allergies and food sensitivities is a challenge. That is why I’m focused on making foods I know I can eat that are portable. Sometimes when we travel, DH will get a burger to go and I’ll just eat from the snacks I’ve made. Glad the red top is going well. Maybe you can get on that doll this weekend. You said the event was in May. That’s next month. :eek:

                                        I’m tired. I’m not naturally a high energy person. I feel like all this cooking and prepping for vacation has just drained the life out of me. I’m still not done. There are still some things to do before I pack yet. *sigh* I honestly dislike traveling. It’s not like when I was in my 20’s or 30’s and could throw a change of clothes and my toothbrush in a bag and go. I didn’t realize I had food issues back then. I certainly didn’t worry about having to sleep in my car if I couldn’t find a hotel. All that’s changed. Getting old isn’t for the faint of heart.

                                        Debby
                                        Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                                        #596695
                                        Lena
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                                            It has been snowing off and on all week. I am so fed up with winter! This year has been so long. We have had snow and cold weather off and on since mid September!
                                            I am waiting for a call back from the doctor because she is trying to get me booked in with a specialist. I am still dizzy and have hissing ears. The meds I am on currently are like a kick in the stomach so I am nibbling constantly to protect it – I have put on 3 pounds….

                                            So I am still knitting a lot because if I focus on it and sit still I don’t feel dizzy, I should take pictures. I have started the sleeves to the red swish thing. And I am making a Chemo turban to donate.

                                            Doll Art by Lena

                                            #596684
                                            Debby
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                                                Lena, I do hope you have gotten to that specialist and are starting to feel better. Looking forward to seeing what you’ve been making while sitting still so as to avoid dizzyness. Yup, winter can now take a hike.

                                                The vacation was as draining as I expected. Went to Las Vegas to see DS and DIL. They are doing well and are quite happy there. It was good to see them and visit. DS took us axe throwing. DH loved it. I wasn’t up to that, but enjoyed watching. The heat in Vegas was a shock to our systems. That’s why I wanted to see them in the spring.

                                                Then it was off to California to see mom. That was a difficult time for me. Any time I’m in contact with mom it completely drains my energy. Of course she had to get her 2 cents in and fat shame me and claimed it was because she was worried about my health. :rolleyes:

                                                Escaped further north and was able to go on the Skunk Train ride. That was fun. Had a minor problem having picked up a screw in a tire. Fortunately there was a tire company a mile away that fixes it for free because we’ve bought tires from them. So that just took a little time.

                                                The drive home was pushing us to our limits as we were becoming more and more exhausted traveling. Driving through Humbolt Redwoods Park was lovely and made the drive more enjoyable.

                                                We are very glad to be home again. Able to prepare our own foods and sleep in our own bed. Now to spend a couple of days recovering before taking up the normal schedule again.

                                                Debby
                                                Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                                                #596696
                                                Lena
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                                                    Hi Debbie welcome home.

                                                    I am still waiting for the call from the specialist. Things take time here but it is 100% covered.

                                                    I just cast of the last sleeve from my lace swirl thingy. I will block it and take pictures soon.

                                                    It is FINALLY spring here. I have the windows open! Earlier this week we had what felt like a blizzard but the forecast is now for warm weather. Now to get the garden cleared up and ready for planting! I bought new rain boots today because it is a muddy mess outside and much too warm for my winter boots.

                                                    We are going to a tasting evening at the butcher’s tonight – all gluten free products – One of the butchers has celiacs so the store carries GF products and he is really knowledgeable too. He found GF Dutch licorice!!!! Total junk food but so nice to find your favourite childhood treat back.

                                                    Doll Art by Lena

                                                    #596685
                                                    Debby
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                                                        Thanks Lena. Looking forward to pictures of the lace thingy. Glad you are getting some spring weather. Now that we’ve had some, everyone is out mowing lawns. All that grass in the air is making me keep my windows closed. Have fun at your tasting.

                                                        Finally starting to feel like myself again. Things are unpacked and put away. I had a “what if I try this?” idea for my doll making. :rolleyes: Now I have to try it. :lol:

                                                        Had a surprise this morning. Since I’m feeling better, I want to get back onto the low carb/high fat way of eating. To see the damages from the vacation, I stepped on the scale. I lost weight while on vacation! :eek: I have no idea how that happened. I wasn’t eating low carb at all. Tho’ I did avoid dairy, nuts, eggs, and grains because I didn’t want to chance upsetting my digestion while on the road. Maybe there is something to what I read about grain allergies. Supposedly, it can cause weight gain. Go figure. At least I’m at a better starting spot than I thought. Onto the bacon. :D

                                                        Debby
                                                        Guide - Fiber Art Forum

                                                        #596678

                                                        Catching up with you all! I have also been away, and just getting back in the saddle. Good to hear you have settled in, Debby. Pretty cool about the GF and allergy sensitive restaurant. More and more are handling dietary needs!

                                                        Jen

                                                        Jennifer Landau
                                                        Proud to be published in Art Quilting Studio magazine and educating about wool at The Great Dickens Christmas Fair.

                                                        #596697
                                                        Lena
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                                                            So I haven’t blocked the red thing yet. Spring and summer suddenly descended with a vengeance and we have been trying to work in the garden. This dizziness thing is not helping. Bending over to clean up the old plants makes the world move in odd ways. I ended up sitting in the garden instead while the world slowly stopped rocking.

                                                            We should have done the clean up last fall but the weather got so cold and miserable so early it never got done.

                                                            I have been making more flowers. I just did an oriental lily. The yarn looked so nice on the ball – a lovely shiny cream (silk & bamboo mix) the resulting knit flower leaves remind me of a slightly bleached set of slugs. It knit up much darker then it looked on the ball. I hope when it gets all wired up it won’t look like some under water alien as it does now. I don’t have much hope for it.

                                                            Doll Art by Lena

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