Year in Review

2010 projects by Stephanie Hughes

1. Raw Edge Quilt, 2. Yo Yo Quilt, 3. Scrap Purse, 4. Dear Jane blocks, 5. Mom's Sampler 1982, 6. Large Scrap purse, 7. Kevin's Texas Star Quilt, 8. Stacked Coins Quilt, 9. Flip Flop Quilt, 10. Pink and Blue baby quilt, 11. Paducah KY with Kaffe Fassett, 12. Snowball Quilt

As far as my personal life's year in review....many changes happened this year.  I found out I have an autoimmune kidney disease now but it is not progressing and with God's help, it will not take me out any time soon.  I just went to the doctors last month and my kidneys are functioning as they should.  Kevin gave us a scare with his chest pain but he found out a medication he was taking was causing the abnormal heart arrythmias and pain.  Finally, my mom is now living with us and she has added a little more responsibility to our household duties but it has been such a blessing to have her there.

Here's to a great year coming up and lots of time with friends and family.  My goal for this year is to continue to lose weight and to continue to support my friends in my Wednesday Weigh-In weekly posts! 

Happy New Year to all! 

Snowball Quilt finished!

This quilt is for me!  I am not giving this one away to family or friends.  I tend to do that alot but this time I wanted to keep one!  This one got started in April at the AQS Quilting festival in Paducah KY in a Kaffe Fasset class.  It took me quite some time to get it finished because it is HAND QUILTED by me!  I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and that this quilt brings you color and spring into your cold winter weather!  

I decided to put a patch on the back to remind me years later about my class with Kaffe Fassett at the AQS in Paducah Kentucky!  It was here he helped me design my "Cheeky Quilt".  I had to look up what it meant in the dictionary since I think it's a english term.  It means:  saucy, audacious, bold. That's me!  LOL  I simply wanted a bold quilt with great colors from Kaffe Fassett and some of my other favorite designers.

 

 

close ups of my hand quilting

top half view

Wednesday Weigh-In Week 32

Welcome to Wednesday Weigh-In Week 32

All are welcome to join the fun!

370+ POUNDS LOST BY OUR GROUP!

Our group has lost a total of 378.4 lbs in 31 weeks!

Here are the results this week's weight loss and the running totals:
(updated as comments arrive)

Me -13 lbs total
Kevin -20 lbs total
Suzanne (my mom) -16.5 lbs
Chris -15.4 lbs total
JulieQ -11 lbs total (at goal!)
Deanna -17 lbs total
Pat -10 lbs total
Cathy -6.5 lbs total
Helen -11.7 lbs total
Kim D -9.2 lbs total
Barb -14.2 lbs total
Jamie K -11.5 lbs; -14 lbs total
Linda B -5.5 lbs total
Katie Q -3.5 lbs total
Tonya -6 lbs total
Barb (DD) -1 lb total
Marianne -22.5 lbs total
Diane -13.4 lbs total
Judy -4 lbs total
Linda P -10 lbs total
Bunny -6 lb total
Laura -7 lbs total
Nicole -9 lbs total
Susan -2 lbs total
Rita -8.5 lbs total
Steph D -33.6 lbs total
Pamela (Keeb.) - 11 lbs total
Pamela K -6 lbs total
Pamela E -4 lbs
Janice -31.5 lbs total
Becky -5 lbs total
Micki -30.5 lbs ~ met her goal!
Sue S  +1 lb;  -8.4 lbs total
Dana ~ Welcome new member!
Denise ~ Welcome new member!

Let me know your weekly totals and I will update the post with this weeks numbers.
So far we have lost a total of 11.5 lbs this week and 386.9 lbs in 30 weeks!

This week has been very difficult for us.  It should have been relaxing with the holidays and the kids home but Kevin had chest pain and an abnormal EKG that kept him in the hospital for a couple of days for tests and observation.  Thanks to everyone's prayers, he is just fine.  He was taking a new medication called Niaspan which was giving him cardiac symptoms.  Now that he is no longer taking the medication, he is much better.  His heart is no longer racing and he is not having chest pain.  YEAH! 

Kevin in the hospital last week

Meanwhile, I got sick as well.  I started with a GI bug on Sunday that progressed into flu like symptoms last night. Today I mostly slept all day after taking medication for my cold.  That is why I am late creating this weekly post.   So rest is what I need and that is exactly what I plan to do.  I don't work again until Friday night so I need to rest in preparation for working the weekend. 

I hope this post finds everyone enjoying the holidays!  If you didn't see my Christmas post you missed the pic of my family on Christmas day.  Everyone was home except Sarah who is visiting her mom in San Diego for the holidays.  She is planning on going to the Rose Bowl this weekend and then will fly home next week. 

Christmas 2010

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from all us to all of you!

Jimmy, Paul and Matthew

Our Christmas dinner tables

Kevin, my Mom and my Granddaddy

Cousin MB and sister Amy

Why does the kitchen end up always being where we hang out?

Now for the decorations.... 

Aunt Grier and my Mom  (sisters)

Just a few pics of my Christmas with my family.  As always, not enough time to enjoy all the good food and family time.  The boys are all planning a paintballing adventure tomorrow if the snow stays at bay.  Word has it though, we are supposed to get 24 inches on Sunday.  We shall see. 

Merry Christmas

and

 Happy New Year to all my blogging friends!

Kevin is feeling better!

Kevin showing off his EKG monitor ~

he just loves the leads attached to his chest hair!

Thursday evening UPDATE: Kevin is feeling better, no more chest pain. Tests did not show heart blockages and his heart seems strong, just some funky arrythmias (abnormal EKG). They think it's from stress so they have put him on a mild sedative to see if that helps. If his EKG normalizes and he does not have anymore chest pain tonight, he can come home tomorrow, just in time for Christmas! Thanks for all the support and emails!

Enjoying hospital food

Kevin has chest pain...

Kevin in the ER yesterday, always with a smile!

Yes, not that we needed anymore stress in our lifes but yesterday my husband had chest pain and had to go the ER for evaluation.  It couldn't be stress could it?  Not that we have anything going on in our lives...three kids in college, mother-in-law living in the dining room, wife who works way too much.  Well, after some tests in the ER and an abnormal EKG, they admitted him to the CCU for monitoring and a Nucleur Medicine Stress Test this morning. He is no longer having pain which is a great thing.  I came home to sleep at 1 am this morning and he just called me at 7:30 am to say he was already taken to Nucleur Medicine for the test which lasts 3 hrs.  Hopefully he gets a clean bill of health but I will keep everyone posted.  He is the love of my life and I pray everything is fine and this is simply a wake up call to us.  We have been trying to lose weight but I think this will make it more of a necessity now.   

Kevin, my love.

Thursday evening UPDATE:  Kevin is feeling better, no more chest pain.  Tests did not show blockages and his heart seems strong, just some arrythmias (abnormal EKG).  They think it's from stress so they have put him on a sedative to see if that helps.  If his EKG normalizes and he does not have chest pain tonight, he can come home tomorrow, just in time for Christmas!  Thanks for all the support and emails! 

Wednesday Weigh-In Week 31 ~ CONTEST GIVEAWAY!

Welcome to Wednesday Weigh-In Week 31

All are welcome to join the fun!

370+ POUNDS LOST BY OUR GROUP!

Our group has lost a total of 378.7 lbs in 30 weeks!

Here are the results this week's weight loss and the running totals:
(updated as comments arrive)

Me +3 lbs; 13 lbs total
Kevin -20 lbs total
Suzanne (my mom) -2.3 lbs; -16.5 lbs
Chris -15.4 lbs total
JulieQ -11 lbs total (at goal!)
Deanna -17 lbs total
Pat -10 lbs total
Cathy -6.5 lbs total
Helen -11.7 lbs total

Kim D -9.2 lbs total

Barb -14.2 lbs total
Jamie K -4.5 lbs total
Linda B -5.5 lbs total
Katie Q -3.5 lbs total
Tonya -6 lbs total
Barb (DD) -1 lb total
Marianne -22.5 lbs total
Diane -13.4 lbs total
Judy -4 lbs total
Linda P -10 lbs total
Bunny +2 lbs; -6 lb total
Laura -7 lbs total
Nicole -9 lbs total
Susan -2 lbs total
Rita -8.5 lbs total

Steph D +1.6 lbs; -33.6 lbs total

Pamela (Keeb.) - 11 lbs total
Pamela K -6 lbs total
Pamela E -4 lbs
Janice -1 lb; -31.5 lbs total
Becky -5 lbs total
Micki -30.5 lbs ~ met her goal!
Sue S -9.4 lbs total
Dana ~ Welcome new member!

Let me know your weekly totals and I will update the post with this weeks numbers.
So far we have lost a total of 3.3 lbs this week and 378.4 lbs in 30 weeks!

OK GUYS....I am having a contest for everyone to guess how soon we will hit 400 pounds down (or 28.5 stones four our European Friends)! Everyone guess which Wednesday we will hit 400 lbs and what the actual total of pounds and ounces lost will be. (Example: 400.2 lbs) The one who comes closest without going over will win a prize from me. If there is a tie, I will pick a random winner from the tie. One prize for the members of WWI group and one prize for non-members!

Here are the two prizes I will be giving away, cute little note pad covers made by me....

A pink note pad to one of the WWI members

inside pink pad cover

AND

A green note pad cover to anyone who wishes

to enter that is not a WWI group member...

for all other friendly

supporters of our group!

inside green pad cover

If you would like to win one of these wonderful notepads, please let me know the Wednesday you think our group will hit a 400 pounds weight loss!  AND TO EVERYONE, thanks for all the encouragement!  Please tell your blogging friends about how well our group is doing and about the giveaway in hopes to get more bloggers who would like to loose weight to join our group!  Thanks, Stephanie

Birthdays and Snow

Happy 16th birthday to Matthew

Happy 21st birthday to Sarah

We enjoyed a big homemade spaghetti dinner with garlic bread and then cake with candles.  It was nice having them both here.  Sarah was born on Dec 8th and Matthew on Dec 13th. 

My specialty and requested by both of them.  Spaghetti and homemade meatballs and hot italian sausage. 

Dale got to enjoy the first snow here in Maryland today.  It was great fun for him but it didn't last.  It looks like we only got about 1 inch this time.  That is a big different from last year with our 84 inches total snowfall.