What I do when I'm not Blogging - Day One

Over the past few weeks--if you were a fly on my wall--you would observe me spending a lot of time curled up on the couch with thread and needle in hand.  And that is because I am sewing a baby blanket for Baby #2...and the blanket is big...and my time before his/her arrival is running short! 

Although I purchased said blanket months ago, I didn't actually start working on it until we were on vacation last week.  {Yikes!}  It is primarily a cross-stitch blanket--with a bit of satin stitching and detail stitching.  {I made one with the same technique for Augustine before he was born.  Except his was completely finished before his 20 week ultrasound--except for the little angel because I wanted to wait and stitch it in blue for a boy and pink for a girl). 

Augustine's baby blanket.

Because of all the background color, Baby #2's blanket requires a lot more stitching than Augustine's, and as you can see, I have a LONG way to go!  It is amazing how long it takes to make those little x's appear.

Um yeah, all I have finished is the border...

and a little bit in the upper left corner.

You may wonder why I am making my baby a blanket.  After all, everyone knows that babies receive more blankets than they know what to do with when they are born.  Augustine, for example, received a beautiful, home-made quilt from my Mom's cousin, a couple of crocheted blankets, and countless other blankets of various sizes and finishes.

So why add to the collection??

The answer is easy: I want my babies to always have a special blanket made for them by their Mama.

You see, when I was born, my Mom cross-stitched a blanket for me, as she did with the all of my siblings.  For the first seven years of my life, I didn't take much notice of it.  I suppose I saw it hanging on the wall of my bedroom everyday of my life, but it was mostly just there for decorative purposes.

When my Mom passed away, however, my blanket took on a whole new meaning.  My Dad took it down from my wall and had a backing put on it so I could sleep with it.  And sleep with it I did!  It quickly became my most valuable possession.  It spent each night with me for the next 10+ years.  Initially, I even took it away to college with me, but within a month I brought it back home, fearful that it would somehow get misplaced or walk away from my dorm with the constant influx of people in and out of my room.

As children, my sisters and I were terrified that a robber would come into our house at night and steal our blankets.  Our fear was so great that it inspired us to lie in bed at night and engage in rehearsed conversations--conversations that applied a most juvenile reverse psychology to any burglars who may be hiding in our closets listening to us.  They went something like this:

My Sister:  "If a robber comes to our house tonight, I hope they steal our blankets."
Me:  "Yeah, me too.  They are worthless.  I hope they are the first thing he takes.  Who would ever want these stinky blankets?"

We were convinced, of course, that our conversations would have the opposite effect and ensure that no robber would ever take our beloved blankets.       

I love my Mom's tradition of making blankets for her babies--and I love that all my sisters have continued that tradition.  My sister, Ellen, has sewn blankets for both of her kiddos, and my sister, Sarah, has sewn blankets not only for her four children but also for my sister, Caitlin's baby and baby-on-the-way {Caitlin isn't into sewing}. 

I hope one day my wee ones love their blankies as much as I love mine.

So there you go--when I could be blogging, I am often baby-blanket-making instead.  What can I say, it's a great pregnancy activity that I can do anytime I am just sitting and relaxing...and it requires a lot less thought than blogging!  You should try it sometime if you haven't.  It's time consuming but very rewarding to see each little completed section come together to make a beautiful blanket in the end.   

Whew, I barely got this posted before the day ended...but a little someone I know decided not to take a nap today, so I had a less time than planned.  See you tomorrow.