HOBBIES

So Stacey and I have been getting into a few things recently. Stacey has really enjoyed reconnecting with her knitting. She started knitting in college (I don't think she started before that), and she has really been working hard to try new projects. She knit her mother and sister scarves for Christmas gifts, and she has since been working on socks. She has a few other projects in her mind (and notebook), so I am excited to see where she goes next.

In addition to her knitting, Stacey got a sewing machine for Christmas. She has made us a few clothe bags to store our grains in--this is the best way to store them long term so they can breath. Additionally she made her first pincushion, and other little test samples, too. She is really excited about making a quilt, and the patterns she has shown me look beautiful. I hope she will teach me how to use her sewing machine, because I would enjoying making a few things with it, too. I'll update her project list, so look for posts with "sewing" and "knitting" as labels.

Stacey and I are always cooking new things, and we have lots of great kitchen tools (many wonderful gifts from our wedding). Our stand mixer is a favorite, as it has the pasta attachments and an ice cream attachment, too! We are really into making soups these days, but I am excited about making some more pizzas! Look for posts with the label "cooking" for updates on our cooking adventure. Otherwise, see if we have any posts at our cooking blogs--Stacey's Where's the Meat and my Where's the Grill? We try to cook as many veg*an (Vegetarian or Vegan) meals as possible. So, they're good sites for that. Mine favors more from the grill, though.

My recent hobbies include reading and running. Reading was NOT something I enjoyed until the past couple years. Growing up I was way more math-orientated and didn't really appreciate literature. I didn't give school assignment their due, and I seldom made time to read another other than Sports Illustrated and Backpacker magazines. In college I didn't really make time for it, and I wasn't reading for classes, as I was an engineering major. Now I have a long commute (30-60 minutes) to work, and I often read on the bus or listen on my bike or running. It has brought me a lot more pleasure than I previous thought a book possibly could.

Lastly, running has really become an important part of my lifestyle. I commute to work via running a lot these days. Biking is much quicker, but it's too cold in the winter, so I run more. I really picked it up when I got the Nike+ system. First it was just part of my iPod Touch, then I got a pair of shoes, too. It really makes it that much more fun to enjoy my stats and goals. I wish I could say I've lost 20 pounds, but last I checked it's more like 5 pounds. Hopefully in the next months, I will see more pounds come off (I'm shooting for 2 a month).

Our hobbies are really fulfilling us and giving us more do than watch TV, which we love a little to much. Check back for more updates on these hobbies and the new ones we find along the way!

Peace

-S-