Here is the batik motif all completed. I LOVE it! I am so happy with the way it came out. The colors stayed true even after soaking for 8 hours. All the wax came out really easily once I got the water boiling.
This is what the wax looks like when it rises to the top and cools. It was easy to peel off and dispose of using this method. When I tried to pull it off while it was hot, it made a huge mess. I thought this picture of my sister's blue water looked like the moon. :)
But what is amazing, incredible and just gorgeous is my Hue Shift Blanket. All four squares are complete. Since we are doing each step together, they are only laid out here to show you what the completed blanket will aspire towards. OMG! This is so lovely. I am so proud of myself that I kept up with it and got this far!
Yes, there are ends, seams and borders still...but wow that is 100 squares there!
Baby steps lead to amazing things.
We got the elliptical this week. It is amazing! I hopped right up and did 10 minutes before I realized it was on some crazy program with steeper and steeper inclines and I had to stop. But it really was a smooth experience and after 10 minutes with the incline program, I was sweating. I will do 10 minutes every other day for a week and then bump it up to 15. I'm trying to work up to 20 minutes every other day. I will do something on the alternate days when we get the Total Gym set up again; right now I'm just doing crunches and lunges and some other exercises for 20 minutes.
That is on top of my walking. I have consistently walked 3000 steps now for about a month so I have bumped that up to 3500. I know that really isn't a lot, but for me who sits at a desk most of the day, it really is. I have to really work to get those extra steps in. When I started the program I only was only walking 1500 and now I'm up to 3000. I'm pretty proud of that.
When I started I was 167. I thought the 7 was a 1 and totally misread my weight. lol So now the 7 is a 1 and I have lost 6 pounds over the course of 6 weeks. I want to lose a pound a week so that this is a lasting life change and not some quick fix. I'll be at goal in October and that is fine with me.
A scale is just a number. I love myself no matter what size I am. But my joints, they let me know when I'm getting over my BMI and about three months ago I couldn't barely move when I woke up in the morning. Also, I refuse to buy new clothes when I have so many nice things. Some of my clothes had gotten a little too tight and I knew that was a sign as well.
Just losing 6 pounds has lessened the joint pain and I have so much more energy. I have eaten under calories all month and have really been trying to insert more fruits and veggies in my diet. It is hard when I am at a desk all day but I have found little things that really work for my lifestyle.
Today my UP decided it would start in on my fiber intake. I'm averaging around 15% where it wants me to be at 25%. Sigh. Being healthy takes a lot of steps and each is like a color on my squares. Individually they might not seem to mean much but when you intertwine them with other health-building squares you can really see the impact that they have on the body. In this case, I am the creation. The diamond in the rough. The blanket of beautiful hues. And each step, each day of calorie counting, each workout, each time I go to bed on time and all the little things I do for me, add up into a beautiful whole.
The blanket has taught me so much and it will always be a gorgeous reminder of what you can accomplish when you take a step at a time and just keep pushing forward. In the end, you will have something lasting and worthwhile. The journey is just as important as the goal.
What will be your first step?
Hugs!
Happy crafting,
Ruinwen
:)
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