Practice, Practice, Practice

So with the kids off from school this week, I've had some time for catching up on some decorating projects. Or shall I say that I've tried to squeeze in time in between the kids nap/sleep time! But before I get into the projects that I've been working on I wanted to share how great I've been feeling lately.Looking back to when I had my meltdown, I was really in a place where I felt like I would never be normal again, but here I am about 2 months later feeling great! So for the first time when I surrendered instead of fighting like I usually do, things turned out awesome! Maybe all of this fighting isn't necessary? I've done a lot of it for some time now. When I write 'fight', I really mean just struggling through life to overcome what it throws at you. Boy can it get exhausting! It feels great to surrender and for once to become the one that needs to be nurtured. What i'm trying to say is that I am the one who really needed to take care of myself. I don't feel selfish at all either. You see I use to feel that way whenever I would put myself before my kids and hubby, but not so much anymore because what results is a happy me.I still remember the feeling of defeat that i got when i read the prescription as my Psychiatrist handed to me. "Prozac" it read and I thought to myself, "hold on I'm not crazy!" I guess she read my facial expression because she quickly reassured me that all will be okay and so I put my pride aside and simply just let go.I know that depression can be a taboo topic. Something that probably only gets discussed at medical conferences, but never amongst everyday people. Well to shed some light on the subject, it is alive and apparent although many would think it isn't or that it doesn't occur to everyday people like me. I truly thought that my struggles in life were pretty normal. That being stressed out to the point where I couldn't sleep, the migranes, the irritability, no appetite, smiling the fake smile, no longer having interest in things that I enjoyed, not being able to think straight or even formulate a sentence, it felt so frustrating, but I thought that it was just a phase that would soon be over, but it wasn't. I remember growing up and seeing my mom experience the same things. That is probably why I thought that it was normal. It's what I knew, it was all too familiar to me. I know so many that talk about the same symptoms that I've experienced and they too think it's just a part of life, but it isn't. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that we need to be mindful of how we navigate through life and that we should all know that we have a right to a happy life. Although the struggle does make us stronger, it shouldn't define our strength because sometimes the gutsiest ones are the ones who relinquish control and just surrender....So now onto my projects: (I promise to post pics once I can fix the glitch with uploading them)-project 1Pillow case for throw pillowsI wanted to add some more color to my living room without spending a lot (boy can I stretch the unemployment $!) so I decided on making throw pillow covers by hand (nope can't afford a sewing machine now so I'll take it back to the old school)Materials needed: fabric, needle, matching thread and pins, oh yeah and my phone for watching a tutorial video on u tube from 'Crafty Gemini'------she is awesome by the way.Oh yeah and lots and lots of patience...this project really made me want to go to Walmart and give into buying a sewing machine with my credit card! Lol but I did not give into temptation!-project 2Create a focal wall in our bedroom with a handmade stencil (can't afford wallpaper at the moment, so with plenty of time on my hands...for this project, patience is a virtue, I hand sketched my design of choice). Time consuming, but the end result is well worth it and very therapeutic as well. I feel very at peace when I work on my design projects. My husband nags cuz he says that when I'm in my zone all else takes the back seat. Designing is healing for me, which is why I work on projects often.I should also be done with my Unit 3 design project by the end of this week. Woohooo!One more thing, I've gotten such thoughtful feedback from people via email and text, but please don't be shy to post a comment (i'll let you in on a trick-you can post anonymously if you don't want to share your name). At the end of each post you'll find either a "post a comment" link just by simply clicking on the link to add a comment. It's that simple or better yet if you want to follow my blog by getting email alerts of new posts, you can click on the "follow me by email" link located at right hand side of my page.