A PKU Update (and a small pity party)

The past month has been somewhat tougher than normal. Hadley's phe levels and tyrosine levels have both been low. In the past, her phe levels have been low when she is going through a growth spurt. I have noticed that when her levels are low, she tends to sleep more, but that could just be a natural effect of a growth spurt. Her tyrosine levels have been borderline low for a while, so her doctor finally decided she needed to be put on a tyrosine supplement. At first I was resistant to the idea because I like to keep things as simple as possible regarding her formula, and I knew it would be one more thing to have to fight with insurance about. However, we were able to order what we needed from Amazon and a bottle is only about $11. She will get 1/8 teaspoon of the tyrosine powder in her formula every day so the bottle we got will last us for a good while. 

A couple of weeks ago, Hadley went through an 18-hour period when she would NOT drink her formula. Let me tell you, those 18 hours were absolute emotional torture for me. Yes, eating all of her food is important for maintaining her phe levels, but the most important thing is her formula! I basically was a mess and cried non-stop practically begging her to drink her formula. Seeing Mommy upset made her upset, which made me feel worse. I still am unsure why she decided not to drink it, but thankfully it was short lived, and her phe levels still came back within normal range that week.

We have had a lot of issues with her cold/frozen food orders arriving hot. These companies need to get it together. If you know a cold package is coming to Alabama in the middle of July, you need to put more than 2 ice packs in the cooler. Fortunately, they have been good to work with us about resending the order or reimbursing us, but it still doesn't solve the problem of Hadley not having her food. Her variety is very limited when she is only able to eat things that I can find at a local store. 

Speaking of finding food in stores, it is a wild goose chase that never ends. I was able to find her cheese and a couple of flavors of her yogurt so I am excited to get those for her and not have to pay ridiculous shipping costs. It's times like that though that I really wish I could just go to ANY store and buy ANY brand and ANY flavor of yogurt. Life would be easier. 

Throughout all of this, I am finding it harder to stay positive about Hadley's PKU. It concerns me that things are only going to get more difficult as she gets older. I find myself becoming angry that we have to deal with this and even more angry that people just don't understand. Other parents can go to a store and see something that looks good and buy it for their child. It's just that simple. For us, it is so much more complicated. 

I just try to remind myself that we are incredibly lucky to live in the time that we do and that we are able to give Hadley what she needs, but that doesn't always make things easier. The last thing I want is for people to feel sorry for us, so I generally don't talk about the negative aspects of it, but writing it out sometimes helps me deal with it. If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading. 

Master Bathroom Makeover

I'm happy to say that my master bathroom is now finished! It's been a work in progress for a few months now and it feels so good to be done. There were no major renovations (like knocking down walls), but it feels like a totally different room. I'm going to share a list of what was done and some before and after pictures for all you before-and-after-photo junkies (oh, is that just me?). 

Bathroom "Renovations":
new flooring (hallelujah!)
paint (walls, trim, doors, cabinets)
new shower curtain and rugs
mirror frame
roman shade
misc. decorative touches

Here is the sink/cabinet area before...

And after...

The tub/toilet area before...

It was bath night :)

And after...

Random back corner of the bathroom before...

And after...

The before pictures don't do the floor justice. It was truly horrendous. Now it is much lighter and brighter and makes me happy. 

Framing A Mirror

This is a project that I have seen all over Pinterest and I really wanted to try it. The mirror in the master bathroom is just your plain builder grade mirror and it has some chipping at the bottom which makes it look awful. 

Ugly chipped mirror (which is also in need of cleaning).

The most intimidating part of the whole project was cutting angles. Anything involving math or geometry makes my head hurt. It ended up not being that hard though. So without further ado...here is my mirror framing tutorial.


You'll need:
mitre box (you can find these for less than $5 at Lowe's)
small hand saw
tape measure
level
pencil
paint
trim
Liquid Nails made especially for mirrors and glass
painter's tape
paintable caulk or spackle

First measure the perimeter of your mirror to see how much trim you will need. I needed 9 feet. Lowe's sells pieces of trim in 7 or 10 foot lengths. I got two 7 foot pieces so a) they would fit in the back of the truck better, and b) I'd have plenty of extra if I messed up.

I drew sketches of the mirror so I could remember the lengths I needed to cut. I also drew out how the angles would go so I could have a visual when cutting and checked them off as I cut them.

You will measure your first length and cut at a 45 degree angle. Do this for all 4 sides. Don't worry if your cuts are completely clean. That's what the caulk is for!

After you have cut all your trim, it's time to paint. Paint BOTH the back and the front of the trim because you will see the reflection of the back in the mirror. 

OK, I lied. The most intimidating part is not cutting the angles. The most intimidating part is putting that first piece up with Liquid Nails and knowing there is no turning back! 

The first piece to go up will be the bottom of the frame. You will want to make sure this piece is level and let it dry overnight before gluing the other pieces. Hold it secure with painter's tape.

When putting the Liquid Nails on the back of the frame, make sure you don't put it on too thick or too close to the edge that will be reflected in the mirror. That way it won't squish out when you put it up and be visible in the reflection. Here's a look at my Liquid Nails application.

The right side is the side that is reflected in the mirror. I kept the glue away from that edge.

Don't worry if your corners don't match up exactly when you put all the pieces of your frame up. You'll fill those in with caulk or spackle.

I chose to use spackle in my corners just because I prefer it over caulk. You'll let it dry then sand and you're ready to touch up paint in the corners.

Another little issue I had with my mirror is the fact that you could see the side of it behind the frame. Other tutorials I've seen have added an extra piece of very thin trim around the outside edges to hide this, but it wouldn't have worked well in my case. Plus, it's only the one side that you can see so I wasn't too worried about it. I just ran some caulk down the side and then painted it white so it blended in more. 

I absolutely LOVE my "new" mirror! It makes such a statement in the room and is a huge upgrade for very little money. I think I spent maybe $15-20 total? I did have a lot of the needed materials on hand already though. Here's the before...

Before

And the much improved after...

After

Reupholstering 101

This was my first experience with reupholstering. I was nervous, but also super excited to transform one of my antique finds into something that would look great in my house. This particular chair is for my desk. I found it for just over $20. 

Before

The first thing I did was flip the chair over and unscrew the 4 screws that were holding the seat on. The seat came right off. 

I took some pictures, especially detailed pictures of the corners so I could remember how the fabric was stapled onto the seat. That way, I could staple the new fabric the same way so that the seat would fit back onto the chair. 

The staples were easy to remove by prying them off with a flat head screwdriver. Turns out, this was not the original reupholstery. This was:

Um, gross. 

Next it was off to Hobby Lobby for some fabric and a staple gun! I chose a fabric that didn't have to be perfectly straight on the chair (like stripes). I wanted a pattern that would be forgiving if it got a little wonky while stapling. I ironed my fabric and laid the old piece of upholstery fabric on top and traced it so I could cut the exact size I needed.

Somebody was playing "soccer" while I was working. :)

Cut out and ready to be stapled!

Then I got to work! This was also my first experience with a staple gun. Those things are no joke. Seriously, watch your fingers. I stapled the center of one side, then the center of the opposite side, pulling the fabric taut as I went. 

Then it was time to do the corners (cue scary intimidating music). I referred back to the detailed pictures I took of how the fabric was originally stapled on there. I was definitely thanking myself for taking those pictures! One thing I made sure of is that I didn't staple over the holes where the screws would go when I put the seat back on the chair. 

Done with the stapling!

Then came the moment of truth...it fit back on the chair! I may have done a little happy dance.  I got some wood cleaner and went to work on the chair itself. Overall I am extremely happy with my first upholstering project. 

Yep, that's a toy car in the background. No fancy staged pictures here. Just keepin'  it real. 

Antique Finds

I have found a new addiction hobby! I had been wanting to go thrifting/antiquing for a while, but just never found the time. One afternoon while Adam was home to watch Hadley I finally ventured out to see what I could find. I had some pretty specific things in mind (thanks to Pinterest inspiration) which usually means I end up finding nothing, so I was very pleasantly surprised when I found exactly what I was looking for! Since that day, I've been twice more and I have definitely found my favorite spots to shop. Here's a look at my finds.

Two antique chairs that I had originally planned on painting. The one on the left is such gorgeous wood that I don't think I will. The one on the right will definitely be reupholstered. (No, I did not make my bed this morning. Don't judge.)

Antique books! We have sort of an obsession with old books. I would fill my entire bookcase with them if I could. One of these books dates back to 1903!

My favorite of all my finds is my antique scale. I have to weigh all of Hadley's food with a scale so I feel that this kind of pays homage to our lifestyle. The mason jar complements it well and the blue matches my kitchen. You are also seeing my dirty little secret of how I keep it propped up above my kitchen cabinets. Books! Not good books, cheap Walmart books, so it doesn't matter if they get dusty. 

And finally, old windows! I have big plans for these beauties. Big plans. I got a great deal on them too. 

I love taking something old and giving it new life so I'm excited to see what I can find in the future. Stay tuned for before and after pictures!

Fourth Festivities

I am going to go ahead and be the party pooper for this particular holiday. It's definitely my least favorite since having a child. Why? Hadley goes to bed at 8. Fireworks don't even start until at least 9. You do the math. Regardless, I still tried to do some festivities during the day. 

Cambrooke has a sugar cookie dough that comes in a tub. This was my first attempt at making them and I thought it would be fun for Hadley to help. 

Putting on the red and blue sprinkles!

The cookies are only 2mg of phe each! They turned out really well. So well, in fact, that I decided to break my general "no treats right before lunch" rule and let her have one right out of the oven. I definitely scored some cool-mom points. 

Tell me these don't look delicious!

As a mom of a child with PKU, these little moments are not something I take for granted. Watching Hadley eat devour her cookie brought tears to my eyes. Not only was she able to eat something that other kids typically eat, but we made some great memories in the process. 

Later in the afternoon, my parents came to keep Hadley while we went to pick up this beauty. 

Some sweet people gave us this swing and I can't wait to get it stained/sealed and hung up! I see lots of relaxing and reading happening here. 

Happy 4th everyone!