Fitness Friday - up and down week

Its been a really up and down week exercise wise. Staying with people and staying in cities is not good for the step count!

Saturday we were at my cousin Jo's place. I spent the day sewing so was more sedentary than usual. We did go for a little walk around the farm but it had rained and started to rain again. The soil is clay based so very sticky so we ended up with chunky shoes! Some jogging on the spot (to catch up to Fixit Guy's step count for the day) got me up to a more respectable  6 567 steps



Sunday we went to church and then on a bbq to a local lake. The kids swam but we adults sat and chatted. Later I realised that there was a track around the lake that I could have at least attempted but by then Jo was dressing the kids ready to head home. FG and I headed out on a walk up the road for a couple of kms so ended up with passing our target for the day 11 039 steps

At the playground by the lake

Tree by the lake

My cousin's youngest worn out by swimming at the lake

Monday we left the farm and drove to friends at Bordertown. On the way we visited a National Park - Little Desert National Park and did a couple of small walks in there. We also explored the small town on Dimboola on foot, spending time in their art gallery and buying some lunch at a cafe. We arrived just after the roadworks crew had knocked off for lunch so we had a bit of a wait for our food and then had no tables to eat it at. Probably the busiest half hour the place sees. Steps 11 193

Tuesday we drove into Adelaide, dropped the trailer off a our friends house (she was at work) and then drove across town to visit a quilting friend of mine who took me to her favourite quiting shop for a bit of a browse. Back at our hosts place we sat and chatted and so my step count was a bit sad... and even then it included a couple of thousand added by running on the spot at bedtime. 5 111 steps

My friend in Bordertown has this gorgeous organ they bought at auction years ago. It is very similar to one we own that I inherited from my grandparents. 

Wednesday. Our host had the day off work so she took us driving around her lovely city. At Victor Harbour we had a good walk around the shopping area (trying to find a patchwork shop that used to be tehre. We think its closed. Its certainly moved from where it had been) and then we walked out to Granite Island and walked around it. At bedtime I determinedly jogged for a while  on the spot to catch up to FG. He ends up 20 000 steps ahead of me on our weekly average otherwise. Steps 11 995

Granite Island

Yellow pig face 

Fixit Guy and I on Granite Island

Thursday. I spent most of the morning tracing off embroidery designs so as to have some hand work for the next part of our trip. FG was working on mending our friends watering system so he was doing quite a bit of walking around the yard although it wasn't very big. I then went out to lunch to catch up with 3 other friends through ABA (Australian Breastfeeding Association. I was a counselor with them for almost 20 years) We sat and chatted for 4 hours. Back at the house our host was home and we ended up sitting eating cheese and crackers for a while and then we went out to dinner. Not surprisingly my step count was absolutely abysmal. I was very stubborn though and jogged for over 5 000 steps till I got to 10 000 steps! Steps 10 031

Lunch with my friends

This morning I braved it and got on the scales at our hosts. 93.4kgs ....  ooops. That means I have put on 4kgs this trip. I am glad that I have been trying hard to keep my exercise up. Imagine what it would have been if I hadn't been!

Thursday Thoughts - Remembering Geoff

Fixit Guy and I are in Adelaide for a few days. We are staying with a very old friend. Back in 1987 L and her husband G moved to the country town where we were living and G became our new minister. We only had one child then, Fangirl, who was 2 and G and L had only been married a year. L and I became good friends - well all 4 of us became very close. They were amongst our first visitors to the hospital when our second child was born later that year and the following year I was able to support L when she became a new mum. We would have dinner parties together, they came to our kids birthday parties, we shared Christmas Day together, we planned church services together and supported each other as two little families a long way from the rest of our extended family. We became family.

In mid 1989 we moved towns and then a year after that G and L moved to South Australia to take up ministry there. We would write and email, send gifts when new children were born although over time it dwindled down to just our yearly Christmas letters. We did catch up in person a few times when they came back to Queensland to visit G's family in Brisbane and once when FG and I flew to Perth and back and had a 12 hour layover in Adelaide. Reconnecting was easy - our friendship was such that time would fall away and we would chat madly for whatever time we could have together. It would be as though we had never been apart.

Sadly, 6 years ago, G collapsed and died very suddenly aged 49. What an awful thing. I wasn't able to get to Adelaide for his memorial service or even to Brisbane for the second one they had there a little later. I did write a piece that was read out at the Queensland service.

I made L a promise at the time that I would come for a visit and finally a year later I made it. I flew in and had a week with her and her 3 teenaged children. We talked non stop, shared, cried and talked some more. It was a good week for both of us (well it was for me and I hope it was for her) although I think she ended up a bit sleep deprived as we would talk till midnight and then she would have to get up and go to work the next day... I could sleep in a bit.

This is the first time I have been back since that visit- although I do catch up on Facebook with her and it is the first time that FG has been to visit her since G's death. This visit there has been lots and lots of talking and sharing and lots of remembering G. Today she took us out to the church he was serving in when he died and we saw the seat that they have erected as a memorial in the garden there as a remembrance of him... such a special lovely man.

FG lived up to his nickname whilst we have been here spending several hours getting L's watering system going again. He enjoys fiddling about with things and solving problems. He also show his love for people in doing things for them

It has been good to spend time with our dear friend and to have the chance to reminisce about a friend who has gone before us.

L and I, Granite Island, Victor Harbour

WIP Wednesday

Tea Shop Quilt
I completed a lot of hand stitching this week. Visiting with my cousin over the weekend we sat in the lounge at her place most evenings and I would stitch whilst we chatted. In the car driving from Warracknabeal to Adelaide I finished off the last few bits of the last few blocks I was working on. This means all the blocks I had prepped are cone. There are a few more blocks that I need to decide what I am going to do on them and then prepare them so I can do the applique. I have the background fabric, patterns and other fabrics that I can use as well as the iron on stuff. However I am also thinking about incorporating some stitcheries and the patterns for those are still at home so I may have to leave it till we return home at the end of next week. I am still thinking about it!

In the car driving from Warracknabeal to Adelaide I completed the last few bits on some of these applique

One little cup hadn't been ironed down but I was able to stitch it down by holding it carefully and stitching

I bought some new Christmas patterns at Warracknabeal that incorporates some stitcheries. I bought the background fabric to do them on as well so I could prep those and work on them as my hand project instead.

Mending
Whilst staying with my cousin I offered to do some mending for her. Her children bought out a number of stuffed toys that needed stitching on my first night there and then the next day Jo gave me (at my request) a pile of things that needed mending. I set up my sewing machine on my table in the loungeroom and happily sewed the day away... fixing seams, taking up hems, sewing on buttons. My cousin's husband had a pile of trousers that needed to be shortened. This is a job I am used to as my husband, Fixit Guy's pants always need to be shortened. Not the most exciting sewing but very satisfying and I was happy to help my cousin where I could. Whilst I was stitching Fixit Guy was also busy. He fixed the toaster, glued together some toy furniture and played lots of games with the 4 kids.

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Fitness Friday on Monday

I'm running very late with my post this week... fitness friday on monday! Oops. A weekend with limited internet access is going to be my excuse.


Busy week with lots of steps this week. As I have said in other posts since I have been on holidays... I am not worrying about what I am eating.


I am trying hard to keep my steps up and this week I have managed it.

Friday

Saturday We drove from Apollo Bay to Lorne and on the way we went on a number of walks as well as a lovely long walk along the pier at Lorne Steps 10 273

Carrisbrook Falls

Sheoak Falls

Lorne

Lorne Pier

Sunday We didn't go far from our little cottage for a lot of the day but we did walk down to the shops to buy something and later for a long walk along the beach and around Apollo Bay Steps 12 858

Monday We packed up and moved to a new camping spot at Princetown. Along the way we went for afew walks to see various sights. We went up to the see The Twelve Apostles... twice and also Loch Ard Gorge - also twice. (we had gone about 1.30 and it was so crowded with 8 busloads of tourists there at the same time so we went back at sunset and it was much much quieter) We also walked around Port Campbell Steps 16 492

First of the Twelve Apostles from the beach at Gibson's Steps

Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Road

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Thunder Cave, Loch Ard Gorge, Great Ocean Road Victoria

Twelve Apostles in the Afternoon light

The Two Twelve Apostles on the other side of the lookout

Razorback

Tuesday We went to Otway Fly - a great day out where we walked around giant Myrtle Beech and Mountain Ash trees. We went on the Zipline Tour - flying through the air... not a lot of steps but heaps of fun. Later we did the tree top walk - fabulous to walk up in the tops of the trees. We also went to another National Park and had a walk again through giant trees. We walked beside the Young Creek and saw the Triplet Falls. Back at Princetown we went down a sand 4WD only track and walked beside the beach but we couldn't get down to it because there was no track down to it. Steps 16 132

Cloudstation, Zipline Tour, Otway Fly

Rainforest Walk, Otway Fly

Fixit Guy and me on the cantilever on the Treetops walk at Otway Fly

From the top of the tower on the Tree tops walk looking down at the walkway

a bug on the wattle blossom

Wednesday We had a huge day - touring the site of the Otway Lighthouse - exploring all the different buildings in the precinct. Later we drove to 3 different  beaches of historical significance to the Light house. Two of them had relics from some of the 100 plus wrecks in the area over the years. One of them was the site where the provisions for the light house were landed and where rock for buildings was taken from. Steps 22 209 (I admit to doing some extra running on the spot as I was determined to catch up to FG's steps. He is always ahead of me... I say its because he's shorter than me so takes more steps)

Twelve Apostles in the morning light

anchor from the "Fiji" on Wreck Beach

Cape Otway Lighthouse

Thursday We packed up our camp site at Princetown and were going to camp at Port Fairy but it was threatening rain so we ended up coming on to Hamilton and staying in a unit. Heavy rain was forecast but of course having made the decision... it didn't rain. We did get to visit the remaining iconic formations along the coast on our way.... The Arch, London Bridge, The Bay of Islands, The Bay of Martyrs, and The Grotto. Steps 10684

boat ramp Bay of Martyrs

The Grotto, Great Ocean Road

Bay of Islands, Great Ocean Road

The Grotto

London Bridge, Great Ocean Road

Friday we drove across to Warracknabeal to stay with my cousin. On the way we explored a couple of waterfalls. We went into town with my cousin to pick up the kids from school and explored the town for a while and then had fish and chips in the park before heading back out to the farm Steps 10 404

So how have you gone this week with your exercise and health goals?