happy times

Hi guys!  I've missed this place!  I'll fill you in on where I've been and what I've been doing at the end of the post.  Right now, though, let's get right to the business at hand...the crafty stuff!  My first card today is very simple, but thanks to some chipboard pieces from Crate Paper's Oh, Darling collection, it's colorful and flowery, and really cheerful--something that I've been desperately needing lately.

I made both of these cards weeks ago, I think back when I was making my little sets of confetti cards.  My most favorite thing about Oh, Darling is how vibrant and saturated the colors are.  The pinks, yellows, and blues are deep and bright which makes the work so nice for photographing.

After taking a look through my stash of cards, I realized I had kind of stopped making birthday cards in favor of friendly greetings ("Hello!") and cards for any occasion.  I figured I'd better get a few more made so this is one of them.

This card, too, is pretty simple--these days, that's about all I have time for.  That's why larger, colorful pieces of chipboard are so great to work with--they provide a lot of details without tons of effort or work.  And when you add some bits of texture, like the lace swatch and the doily, it offers depth and interest with ease, again.

Things at home have changed a whole lot in the past month and a half...I mentioned in one of my last posts that my mother-in-law had a heart attack, followed by quadruple bypass surgery.  It has been a long road to recovery for her and since my in-laws live with us, it has meant a lifestyle change for the entire family as well.  The first couple of weeks after she came home from the hospital were the craziest and most difficult--there were so many people in and out of the house every day--relatives, healthcare workers, therapists...it was non-stop some days.  My f-i-l does what he can but he's 85 so tires out fairly quickly and he's not used to doing things like laundry or cleaning.

We've also had to change our eating habits--which is not a bad thing at all, but for someone like me who doesn't know how to cook that well, it's a bit overwhelming.  Lola--as the kids call her--now has some strict dietary restrictions:  She can eat no more than 1500mg of sodium per day, must watch her sugar intake as she is now diabetic, and can only consume 48 ounces of liquid per day--this includes yogurt, ice cream, milk she adds to her coffee, water added to oatmeal, etc.  On top of all of that, she is quite a picky eater!  She rarely eats fruits or vegetables--with the claim that she can't digest most of them--and loves white starchy foods--crackers, breads, and white rice.  They are Filipino so it's been somewhat of a struggle to convert Lola and Lolo from their normal eating habits--substituting brown rice for white rice, whole grain bread instead of white dinner rolls, and absolutely NO Costco bagels!!  Those things are terrible!  Oh, and Chinese food--they LOVE Chinese food but are unfortunately oblivious to the insane amounts of sodium in most (takeout) Chinese dishes.  Neither one of them read labels on food packages, or even think about those things if they are ordering out.  If something doesn't taste salty, they don't think it has much sodium.  If something doesn't taste sugary, then it must not have much sugar in it.  I am constantly looking at food labels now and googling anything that isn't labeled, so I feel like a dictator when I tell them that beef and broccoli is a no-no.  But it has broccoli in it--it must be healthy!  Yes, but it's made with soy sauce which is scandalously high in sodium!  Oh, ok.  But we're not going to eat brown rice because it has gluten in it. ???  But Lola doesn't have an issue with gluten.  Ay-yay-yay!

I think we are, for the most part, on the downhill part of our adjustment period.  She's getting stronger and I'm learning to rearrange my days to fit in all of the household stuff and meal-planning that needs to get done.  Lola was an incredible help to me with Gus and Nemy before this so I'm happy to help her out now.  I don't have too much time for crafting at the moment, but that will change as I learn to make the most of my "personal" time.  Getting up earlier (long before the kids) and watching less TV helps!    

We are doing much better than we were 4 weeks ago, that's for sure.  Today, Mr. Bagubian said:  "Lola is a little bit sick, but still smiles everyday."  Honestly, those were his words.  Hoss and I were so proud of our 3 1/2 year old's spot on observation.  If Mr. B and Lola can stay positive during this time, then I can, too, I guess!  Thanks for stopping by today--and if you have any recipes for low-sodium, low-sugar, easy-to-prepare entrees, PLEASE SHARE!