I realize we are just getting started helping our children and family as a whole unit live and succeed with chronic disease. We have definitely had more experiences in the hospital and at the doctors than an average family, but know there are other families that absolutely have had more experience than us. Watching each of our infants experience at some point an extended hospitalization left us feeling confused, afraid, lost, guilty, and often very angry. In the beginning I remember a toe to toe nose to nose discussion with one pulmonologist on call one day in the hospital with my 7 month old son (who heart breakingingly screamed bloody murder through every IV). The pulmonologist told me to “get used to this mom, you have to get used to this, you have children with a chronic disease you need to expect weeks in the hospital.” I was furious. I told her I refused to accept the hospital as normal and I refused to quit asking to go home as soon as we could as often as I could. She never came back to our room, and I never saw her again. She asked another pulmonologist to handle us (lets be honest me). I think I would like to let her know now that I apologize and I understand. I’m not happy about it, and it still feel angry about it a lot of the time but I understand that being intermittently hospitalized is part of my children’s life. We also understand that our emotions are second to helping our kids do their best to prevail with positivity and hope. Our attitude will be mirrored and magnified in them especially if it’s a negative one.

Monday, March 23, 2015

A Quieter Hobby : The 2015 t-shirt design CF Is Not Forever

My first job was my dream job. I worked in a small family owned fabric store as soon as I turned 16. It was a slow store, but really a wonderland of specialty fabrics and amazing prints. Having shopped for fabric with my Mom since I was an infant, and her letting me pick out my own fabric for dresses I learned to love the hunt for my favorites and had them all over the store. Even after this job ended I still can spend hours walking around in front of the cotton prints at any fabric store, for inspiration - and the inevitable joy that comes from the color and creativity of the prints.

But it turns out that my kids didn't appreciate my hobby of sewing because it was really loud. I would sew during their afternoon movie and wouldn't let them turn it up as loud as they wanted.

I have painted the main walls of my front room enough times over the past 8 years that one of Frank's friends who has been over enough to see all of the different paint said, "Hey I think you guys will be safe if there is a nuclear bomb dropped near your place, with all the of layers of paint you have surrounding you." So to sum up, I ran out of wall space to paint.

I needed a quieter hobby and started drawing and hand lettering more. It was really fun and Frank said I am always in a good mood when I have taken the time to work on my hand lettering projects throughout the day.

The design for the CF Is Not Forever t-shirt will be the same as the one below in the grid, only a purple outline of the design on a white shirt, available at the April 11th event. It will be a very cute shirt and I will post pictures when the order comes in the mail. 

I finished this week a Young Women Value's poster and have re-done a My Gospel Standards poster that I had another version of last year. This one is way better. We will be selling these for the fundraiser as well.

2 comments:

  1. Oh I totally envy your lettering talent!! I don't know how the gospel standards could be any better! I'm sending my mom to the fundraiser to pick me up LOTS of the goods! I need to make a list... T-shirt, doll, robot, cards, poster, ... ;)

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  2. Oh I totally envy your lettering talent!! I don't know how the gospel standards could be any better! I'm sending my mom to the fundraiser to pick me up LOTS of the goods! I need to make a list... T-shirt, doll, robot, cards, poster, ... ;)

    ReplyDelete