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Happy Wednesday! Time is flying by, yet each day seems to drag on endlessly. Odd how that always seems to be the case.

Ashlyn goes to the oncologist in 3 weeks. Three long, dragging weeks. I also know that we aren't going to get any answers at this visit, but at least we should shortly after. She's eating better, but now she just does nothing else but lie in bed. She comes straight home from school and actually falls asleep which is new. We don't even have to struggle to put her to bed. She's always been a night owl, but now I can put her to bed at 8PM and she doesn't fight it. She still looks horrible, is still cranky as heck, but at least she's eating enough to make me relax a bit, even though it's not even half of what she should be. I wake up each morning and the first thing I do is check on her and hope that she's OK. When she wakes up I do a body check to make sure there is nothing that I am missing that might have popped up, like a rash or a bruise or swelling. It's a real struggle to not over-check her, so I only do it once and try to remain indifferent about it. I still tell her to make her bed and do her chores and to get outside and play, even though I know she can't, not because she doesn't want to; one can clearly look at her and see that she's not well. She seems to lose her spirit more and more each day. She even thinks that her friends do not like her anymore because she doesn't want to play with them at recess. This breaks my heart. I ask her what she does do, and she says that she just sits on the ground and waits for the bell to ring. I hate sending her to school knowing that she struggles and suffers through the day, but she also knows that she can call me any time and I will be right there to get her. I am impressed that she stays. She just doesn't want any extra attention drawn to her and when she is absent, everyone asks where she has been and she doesn't like that. She is shy and the less attention she has the better she is.

Onto happier things. :) Yesterday morning I made this banner for the mid-month challenge on the Artz de Scrap blog. It turned out so pretty, much prettier than I would have imagined and I was so happy about it! I sat there for a minute and just absorbed the details and thought to myself about how just a few hours prior this was a bunch of plain chipboard pieces, several sheets of paper, some lace stuffed in the bottom of a container, some paint and stickles sitting on a shelf, and some bling and pearls sitting in a drawer. I had no idea how this would turn out, but I knew that I would take these things and try to make something that I would be happy with. I just love the creative process. How once idea sets off another and how when things work, everything just falls into place. That is such a great feeling to me and exactly why I do it. There is a satisfaction that is so filling and really makes my heart light and happy. Everyday problems disappear for a short time and I can feel the stresses just melt away.

I painted each letter and then embossed it with clear embossing powder. I did something similar with the butterflies, except I covered them with paper and then clear embossed them. I used Stickles in the two end pieces with the butterfly prints. They have a nice sublte sparkle and shimmer to them and adds some dimension without being overbearing. The girls each want it, so I think I am going to just hang it somewhere downstairs so we can all enjoy it. :)

I hope your week is going well! Our weather is finally going to be warm and beautiful, so I am going to start getting out in the yard and cleaning up. It needs a lot of work, but things will look better soon.