Beautiful Pill Box Giveaway (Choose Your Favorite)!

After I had such a great response to my last giveaway, I wanted to start making it a regular thing. Since I take about 15 pills a day, I always have my pill case with me. I started searching on Etsy.com for pill boxes that caught my eye and - sure enough - I found these beautiful boxes from The Dailey Dose of Quilts! While my pill container is made of drab, green, plastic, these boxes are covered in beautiful and fun fabrics chosen by the artist Cindy Criswell Dailey. They're not just meant for pills either; these boxes can hold jewelry or any small trinket. 

I asked Cindy if she'd be interested in participating in a giveaway and she was immediately on board! Not only that, but she is offering not one - but THREE - of her boxes to give away to three lucky readers!  Click here to see all of the boxes you can choose from if you win. 

The 3 winners will be chosen at random on Saturday, April 9th (2 weeks from today). You have the opportunity to enter twice...here's how:

For Entry #1:

Head over to the Daily Dose of Quilts on Etsy.com. Take a look around the shop and then leave a comment on this post answering the question: "What is your favorite item in the shop and why?" Then please copy and paste a link to that item so that other readers can check it out too.

For Entry #2, please do 1 of the following 3 things:

1) Head over to Dailey Dose Of Quilts on Facebook and "like" this page.

2) "Follow" Cindy's blog (there is an option to do this on the top left corner of the webpage).

3) Visit Cindy's blog and leave a comment for her on your favorite post.

(Don't forget to comment on this blog entry and tell me what you've done! If I don't know, I can't count your well-deserved entry)

Aside from creating her beautiful artwork and being a wonderful wife and mother of three successful boys, Cindy also suffers from Osteoarthritis. Here is today's spotlight on Cindy Dailey - the generous artist behind today's giveaway...

What is the year you were first diagnosed?

I think I was diagnosed with Osteoarthritis about 15 years ago. I would have been 35.

What would you tell someone who has been newly diagnosed with your condition and/or a chronic illness in general?

With any diagnosis, not just Osteoarthritis, I recommend you learn as much as possible about your condition. Settle in your mind how you will adjust and live your life. If you are terribly distraught over the information you have received, you may find a support group very helpful. I have a "glass half full" personality. I could think of so many things that could have been so much worse. Due to family members being diagnosed (my brother and my mom), I was diagnosed in the very early stages.

Please explain a bit about how your condition affects you. 

Osteoarthritis in my case affects me by limiting my hip, knee, and shoulder mobility.

Osteoarthritis is a type of arthritis that is caused by the breakdown and eventual loss of the cartilage of one or more joints. Cartilage is a protein substance that is a cushion between the bones of the joints. Osteoarthritis is also know as degenerative arthritis. There are over 100 different types of arthritis conditions and osteoarthritis is the most common, affecting somewhere in the neighborhood of 22 million people in the United States. Normally Osteoarthritis occurs more frequently as we age. Before age 45 Osteoarthritis occurs more frequently in males. After 55, it occurs more often in females. Race does not seem to factor in the disease one way or the other.

The cause of Osteoarthritis is mostly related to aging. With aging, the water content of the cartilage increases and the protein that makes up cartilage degenerates to the point of flaking or forming tiny crevasses. Often with aging there is a total loss of the cartilage cushion between the bones of the joints. Repetitive use of these worn joints over time can irritate and inflame the cartilage which causes joint pain and swelling. Loss of this cartilage cushion causes rubbing between the bones, leading to pain and limiting joint mobility. You will often see Osteoarthritis in multiple members of the same family, which could indicate a genetic basis for this condition. That is how I found mine early. My brother who is 7 years younger than I am was diagnosed at 28 with a pretty severe case of Osteoarthritis. His physician asked about his siblings and recommended that I be checked. Because this disease normally runs on the female side of the family and because my mom had been diagnosed, they felt I should see if I had the disease too. I had aches and pains but did not think a lot about it. I keep pretty busy so just went along with getting a check up. That's how I found out I had it. Since then I try to pay attention. I am short (all of 4'11''), so even though I am not skin and bones, it is important not to be way over weight. 

Symptoms of Osteoarthritis is pain to the affected joints which will usually get worse as the day goes by. Pain and stiffness of the joints can occur after long periods of inactivity. Examples for me that I have to be mindful of: sitting at my sewing machine for long periods, I traveled for work in the past and sitting while traveling would become uncomfortable. I would periodically take breaks to walk around and stretch out.Since my diagnosis i have owned and rode horses and a variety of other activities that I enjoy.
In severe Osteoarthritis, once the cartilage cushion is gone, the rubbing between bones will cause pain at rest or pain with limited motion. Symptoms of osteoarthritis vary greatly from patient to patient. Some people can be debilitated by their symptoms while others show very few symptoms in spite of dramatic degeneration of the joints. Symptoms can also be intermittent. I have been taking Celebrex 200 mg two times a day for several years and this has kept my pain in check. I have gone through several periods where I would need an injection of cortisone in either my hips or shoulders. Then I go for a year or so without problems. I found that a few missed doses of my celebrex would cause me to need the shots. Recently I have had a change with my insurance and I have had to make some changes. The insurance company I use requires that a generic medication be used. I tried Naprosyn, then I switched to Meloxicam (Mobic). Neither of these medications have done as well as the Celebrex, but I am hopeful that the Meloxicam will work, I've only used it few a few weeks now.

Did your diagnosis have an impact on your artwork and your decision to start your business?

I have crafted in one way or another for years. My crafting intensified after a bad period of working for a large company who treated some of our Department pretty badly over  workers compensation claims that were handled by the insurance company badly. They messed up the claims by following the wrong states Workers Compensation rules. They did this with a couple of employees. These [Workers Compensation] rules are set in stone and it was really frustrating to go through this rough patch. I can laugh about it now because it's in the past and perseverance within our group finally got things worked out. I use to laugh after a rough day of arguing and documenting these issues, and I would come home and quilt for hours. I would shove a King/Queen size quilt through a standard sewing machine to quilt it. I needed the stress relief that badly. Now I quilt at a much more relaxed pace. I do have to say some of my best work came during that period. A really difficult day at work required some creative work at home. It was like I had to be good at something during that time. Crafting was it.

What are 3 things you couldn't live without?

First my family, my books (any and all), I love to read, and my music.

Where do you get your strength?

My strength is my God and my family. Most of us have a medical background. I am both a nurse (LPN) as well as an Emergency Medical Technician Intermediate level. My husband is An Emergency Medical Technician Intermediate as well as the Coroner for our county. Our older 2 sons are Firemen / Emergency Medical Technicians. Our youngest son in a freshman in college and wants no part of any medical related field. Right now he is in Engineering. With our backgrounds, my Osteoarthritis is pretty low on the chart of worse case scenarios.

Crafting has also been a great stress reliever for me. I make quilts, pill boxes, key fobs, business card cases, trinket boxes, and a variety of other items that I embroidery on. For me on a really busy day when I feel that I have not accomplished much, crafting is a time for me to sit create and feel good about myself. Each year I give away 1-2 quilts for some type charity event. In years past I've sent quilts to the victims of Katrina, Cancer Children, Battered Women's organizations, premature babies, and children who have lost their homes to fires.

What are you most proud of? 

I am most proud of my children. All three boys have attended good schools and have all gone to college. They are all such individuals. They each have picked the college of their choice and excelled in what they wanted to do

If you could send one message to medical professionals around the world, what would it be?

If I could sent one message to medical professionals around the world it is, "Listen to your patients". So many times in the busy physician's offices, the doctor and the staff are so busy looking at the next thing on the list and how quickly they can get out of the office today. I see it so often: the person in the office with them has scheduled time and would like to talk more freely about what is going on and what help they might can offer, but the physician just goes in and out and doesn't really listen to fears that are real for the patient.

Thank you Cindy! Your work is so lovely (just like your spirit).

Love,

Maya