Hello November! I've been waiting for you

Can you believe it's November, I have been waiting for quite some time for this month to arrive and with it some cooler weather, I hope.

Things have been moving along on the health front and I don't need to have my gallbladder out, the latest test has shown my gallbladder is no longer at 1% , it has increased to 40% and anything over 35 is consider normal.  I'm relieved that I don't have to have surgery and also worried what next.  On the upside while fasting for the last two test I noticed that my stomach wasn't in pain as it normally was I couldn't take anything by mouth so I had to wait a few hours before I could take my daily medications, but as soon as I took the one medication, the pain was back and the nausea increased on the day of the first test, a few days later when I once again had to wait I decided to only take my blood pressure medication, the pill that was to cut the stomach acids stayed in the bottle, I have been pain free ever since.  I dis a little reading and found the pill was only t be taken 2-3 weeks, I had been taking it for over 6 months.  I have a new doctor and soon I hope to have more answers, but for now to be pain free after 8 months of misery is a good thing.

On the Slow Stitching side of life I have been able to do more hand embroidery and sitting up longer with each passing day.  I finished the Give Thanks piece, it needs to be pressed, I think I will use it for a table topper.

I started another autumn piece a free pattern from EGA  https://egausa.org/free-pumpkin-embroidery-project-stitch-floral/  I was slow to start but yesterday I made quite a bit of progress shown in these photos.

I am doing my project differently from the original, I am not doing all of the satin stitching as shown in 

the photo. As beautiful as it is my skill with my needle while I have been ill has left me quite apprehensive, I was going to stitch it as a Redwork piece using either brown or orange floss but then decided I wanted Fall colors.  I will be linking my post to Kathy's Quilts today right here:

https://kathysquilts.blogspot.com/2020/11/slow-sunday-stitching.html check out what other talented bloggers are slow stitching today.

I have always loved the November of my youth back home in New Jersey the air was crisp and clear most days, the leaves still on the trees were colorful and the ones on the ground were curled and the sound of them crunching beneath my feet sounded magical.  I explored the woods for hours picking up acorns and pinecones, a few colorful leaves and brought them home, many times pressing the leaves with a hot iron between pieces of waxed paper.  When I first moved to Florida a dear late friend would send me a box of fall leaves each autumn and when I opened that box all those childhood memories came rushing back and for a few moments I did not feel so homesick for the seasonal change.

At 65, I still miss each turn of the season when the autumn comes around and perhaps it's the reason I love stitching autumn designs so I can surround myself with those rich warm colors of a Fall I know isn't visible here in Florida.

This week I am happy to say my appetite has increased and my taste for foods have once again awakened, for the first time I made Butternut squash, I came across a recipe for a tart made from it but avoiding a sweet dish I opted to roast it in the over, oh my goodness it tasted so good.  Now I have had butternut squash from the frozen food section of the grocery store, but I have never cooked it fresh all I can say is what a difference.  I bought another one to make later in the week.  Yesterday I cooked or should I say roasted rutabaga, as I child I remember them gracing our Thanksgiving table every year, my mother loved them, to me they were ok, right along with brussel sprouts, both vegetables I love today.  My mother always mashed the rutabaga just like she mashed potatoes and when I cooked them as an adult it's how I made them until yesterday when I decided to roast them, they were quite good and mild in flavor, not the bitter taste when they were mashed.  Who knew at age 65 I would find a new food and a new way to prepare it. Life is good.