A Full Fiber Diet

Most people in my life are aware that after my two children, I have two major loves in my life: the fiber arts (knitting, crocheting, and hopefully one day spinning) and food! Unfortunately the combination of fiber and food has gotten me into a lot I trouble. I am majorly overweight (read: 80 pounds) and majorly in debt.

I cannot blame the singularly on one issue. I have been struggling since getting out of grad school because I of course timed my graduation perfectly with the economic downfall of our country. I also know that I don’t have the best spending habits. I am driven by want and desire. When I decide that I want something, I have to have that thing. It doesn't help that I married a man that has similar impulsive tendencies. Also add into this recipe a dash of depression and viola!!!! We have DEBT!!!

In the last handful of years I have been getting myself to a manageable place. This habit of change has been fuels by the birth of my two boys, a year apart. Yes... We are Irish! I want to do better for them and I do t want them to know want when they are old enough to know the difference.

Now that I have addressed one major problem in my life it is easier to see the two other growing issues... The growing waist line and the growing fiber stash! Lets address the easy one first. I have bins and bins of yarn. It of course all has projects designated, but there is one major problem.. We live in an incredibly small apartment with limited space for things to be “out and visible”. All of my yarn is in big boxes in the closet. I have no idea what I have. I have a hard time getting into the closet to see it. So that means, when I start a new project, I inevitably go out and get more yarn!!! This does not make for a good situation for either the budget or the stash issues! In the last few months, I have been doing much better using what I have on hand that I can get access to. My dream…to one day get out all of my yarn and create a catalog of what I have so that I can “shop” to my heart’s content in my own yarn store.

The growing waist line is a bigger issue. This has been many years in the making. In the past 6 years I have had two MAJOR surgeries and 2 kids (both c-section). Talk about taking a toll on a body. During this time, I have moved 4 times, changed jobs twice, gotten married, and lost my grandmother. Talk about stress! I have also been battling depression. I have not been formally diagnosed, but having worked in the past in the mental health field, and having a strong family history of depression….. well you can put 2 and 2 together. All of this has lead me to find comfort and solace anywhere I can. The easiest place to find those two friends is in the kitchen. You can take anger out with the chop of the knife and feel the warm embrace of an old friend with a soup or hot cocoa. Because of this I have ballooned up to 80 pounds of extra weight. Because of some joint issues that I have, it is hard for me to exercise in the way that I would want to. And because of my schedule, it is hard to find the time. But really, it is just easier to make excuses. I know what I have to do to lose the weight and yesterday I recommitted myself. I have set myself a lofty goal of 10 pounds by Thanksgiving, a mere 4 weeks away!

Now to the reason for the title of this post… A full fiber diet! I have set my goals, lofty as they may be… 10 pounds in 4 weeks. I know that I can do it if I try really hard… To make a big goal less scary there should always be a prize!! I have set my prize and I am excited! I stumbled onto a website/yarn store that has a great web presence and following. I have spent a lot of time browsing through their stock and had to dry off the screen a few times because of the drool.. This is luxury yarn, more expensive than what I usually purchase. But, there is something special about working with fine yarns… it moves faster across the needles… it is kinder to your hands… it is…an experience…. I want to thank The Loopy Ewe for inspiring me. For each 10 pounds that I lose, I will be making a purchase from this website or a luxury yarn for me. I will make something for me. I find it difficult to carve the time out to work on a project if it is for me… but I deserve the time and the dedication. So I am going on a full fiber diet! I will be consuming more fiber in my quest to lose more weight and to gain more fiber!!!