Finish What You Start

It was a busy weekend! Much of it was spent in taking care of the strawberries. They froze beautifully! They'll be wonderful to have in the winter and I know that there are no pesticides in them. I also tried my hand for the first time at jam making. I quartered them and only mashed them a bit leaving it nice and chunky. I used half the sugar most recipes require and added pectin to make sure it thickened up alright and it too turned out great. I'm thinking of going out again today--I'll see how I feel after breakfast.

Now, you may be wondering what that picture is all about in this post. Well, it ties in with the title of today's post "Finish What You Start". I was having lunch with a girlfriend on Sunday. She's an avid knitter and is always making something for someone. She asked me if I had finished my project. What's my project you might ask? Oh well, I'm a cross-stitcher from many moons ago. My sister got me started on it 20 years ago and from my very first pattern I was hooked. I went into it whole hog. Not for me the simple little patterns. No, I went in for the large, complicated projects that took months, sometimes a year, to finish.

Well, I've finished all my patterns except for what you're looking at today. That blank space is all that is left of an enormous pattern of a famous piece of art. When it's unwrapped and I look at what I've done I'm amazed at the detail and broad range of colours that are in it. Come back tomorrow and I'll unwrap a bit more of it for you.

So, another goal for this summer is to finish that project. The HYC is going well for me and I've lost 2 more inches this past week. No weight but I feel great. I don't want to let the numbers rule me and I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing. I won't quit and I'll finish this "me" project too.

Is there something that you have sitting around waiting to be finished? If so, what's holding you back?

Let's finish what we start and have a great time doing it!

*SPECIAL NOTE: Simple math problem that I solved this week. Manuela+Heat/Humidity=Bad Run. I actually tried running again and had great runs yesterday and Sunday. Yesterday was the farthest I've ever run and I felt great! No humidity and it was cool so that may very well have been the problem. Nan, tried the skort and I didn't like it. Too clingy for me. Guess I'll stick with my shorts :)

"Strawberry Fields Forever"

What a bumper crop of strawberries there is this year! The cooler weather in the beginning has made for some gorgeous berries. Yes that's me in all my picking glory. I want you to know that I do clean up pretty well!

I picked 19 litres which is approximately 19 quarts. Most will be for eating, some jam and then freezing for smoothies in the winter.

I'll say one thing. It's good that they don't weigh you before you start because I ate, and ate and ate... Trust me, I had enough for me and the rest of you too!

Hey, you've got to see if they taste as good as they look!
Have a great day all!

Know Your Limits

It's a beautiful morning, although it promises to get quite warm today. I'm off to pick strawberries but wanted to post a short thought this morning.

Yesterday I woke up early feeling wonderful and thought that I'd try for another run. My previous attempt was on a warm, muggy morning and left me feeling tired and irritable. I started off really well. It was warm but the humidity hadn't gotten too high yet. After about 10 minutes I started feeling breathless, just like the last time. I was getting warm and NOT enjoying the experience. Somehow I managed to push through a 25 minute run but I just didn't have fun.

I'm beginning to think that I'll never be a true runner. Maybe it's the warm weather--who knows. I was bored and irritable even though I had my music going. I've decided that my outdoor exercise will consist of biking and walking early or late in the day. I'll have another go, maybe, with the running and see how it is.

Is there anything you prefer to do? Or do you make yourself do things that are supposed to be good for you even though you hate them? I think it's good to be able to accept that we can't do EVERYTHING and need to set limits for ourselves. As long as you're doing something, it's all a positive move forward.

And now, off to the strawberries!

June Goals

Well, back to business. I must confess that when it came to my blog posts last week, much of it was consumed with setting up my party. I took forever playing around with various slide programs and trying to set up music to play at the same time.

The party was a success and I'm excited that so many of you showed up so I'm sending you a thank you once again.

I've joined the exercise challenge for June yet again. I'll enjoy this one more than the abs focused one (check out the sidebar). I'm also doing to blog parties which were the easiest to incorporate into what I'm already doing. If you're looking for something fun check out Blogger's Biggest Loser and Why Drive When You Can Walk or Ride. Thanks to Thinking Think and Grumpy Chair for chairing these challenges. I'm already having fun!

So, goals for June are to just keep at what I've been doing because I'm already seeing results! I'm happy to say that last week I lost 4 pounds finally getting me to 15 pounds gone and then some. I realized that I haven't been doing all the things I needed to and had to start practising what I preach! I know that I'm rather competitive and seeing the results of some of you out there really got me to thinking "Why not me?" Uh, 'cause you're not doing what you ought to be!

I'm already doing well with things like water (it's pretty much all I ever drink), eating (really loading up on fruits and veggies--ooh, I'm seeing cherries in the stores!). My focus always blurs a bit when it comes to exercise so I will:

1. Commit to going to the gym twice a week, by bike, to do weights and swim.
2. Continue with my home workouts using various pilates dvd's.
3. Do my June challenge faithfully 3x a week.

Well, should be easy right? I hope so because I've got some exciting things happening in the near future and I want to be at my best physically for them.

Good luck with your goals for June and into the future. Have a happy Tuesday!

Thank You Ladies

Thank you ladies for making my garden party such a huge success!



What a fantastic turnout! The weather was wonderful and you all look beautiful in your lovely summer outfits. I hope that we could do this again sometime!

Take a Walk in My Garden

Welcome to my garden party!


I have some snacks so help yourselves to the goodies.








Take a walk in the garden and breathe in the fragrance of the peonies. The roses have just started to bloom this week for your visit. They are old-fashioned roses and have a beautiful aroma that hints at romance. The irises are finishing their work for the year but soon they will be replaced with daylilies.

Enjoy your time in my garden and may you take a piece of nature's beauty with you throughout the rest of your week. *Lora asked and the answer is yes, these are all in my garden.

Garden Party Invite

I'd like to invite all those who visit every week to come to a "garden party" this Thursday. Stop by and "smell" the roses!

(My week has been good--results for May are in an earlier post)

Hope to see you all!