I started this while in the last days of pregnancy. Baby turned 3 months old this past Tuesday. So, this is what 20 minutes of sewing a day will get you;
I was stumped on what the binding should be for a while but ran across this lovely polka dot satin at the Joann’s and made half a yard into just the right amount of binding.
I added a stripe on the back in the dead center. The minkee came up just a smidge short and this is how I made up the 3 inches I needed to match the front.
In full disclosure I should tell you I did not use any batting in this quilt. Strange, right? Well, it was very intentional. I noticed that we had not been using the baby quilts I had for miss d. but instead using the store bought minkee blankets, and I realized the reason was the quilts I had made, even with thin cotton batting, were just too bulky to use. So, this is just fabric and minkee and it feels like just the right weight, better for traveling from room to room and snuggling with at naptime.
Along with working full time, regular housework, a 2 month old baby and a general lack of sleep I have gone above and beyond and managed to make a whopping 5 stuffed blocks in the last 2 weeks. I never thought this modest sewing would be such an accomplishment but boy, I feel lucky to have found the time to do them. I dove into my scrap squares this time, having exhausted most of my scrap stripes recently. I loved finding the 6 squares that would make one block. Making each into a little color family. I stole some of the jingle bell cat toys from the cats and nestled them in the middle of the poly-fil batting in some of the blocks. I had intentions of filling a film canister with a few beans to make a shaker for one, but film canisters are practically extinct and I’ll be damned if I can find one in my house. There is a baby shower later this month and while I would normally make a baby quilt I think I can admit that there isn’t a snowballs chance in Hades that I will find time for that and I will be making some more of these.
I have had long internal debates trying to decide just how personal to make my blog. Some of my favorite blogs are all about moms and their daily experiences with their kids; Julia and Suburban Bliss. And the other extreme, the craft blogs that speak nothing of day to day life are just as lovely to read; handmade by Alissa and pretty little things. As much as I enjoy Julia’s writing, I don’t have the same talent so I blurt out personal things from time to time but I find it tough to spill out all the details of my life. It will be a little more personal now that I have a little girl to sew for. I hope the gratuitous pictures of her don’t lead to her being embarrassed (dear god, or exploited) someday, but she is just so perfect- I want to share her. She turns 2 months old this week but I will spare you too many photos of the gorgeous little thing.
I am still working on the paintbox quilt, but I wanted to do some little projects that I could get done while the baby napped. I tried 3 different times to sew a baby sling that I liked but royally failed each time, so I am sticking to the baby bjorn and she is fine with that.
Anyway, I revisited an earlier idea, t shirt dresses. I dived into the boxes of clothes that are piling up. Seriously, if I didn’t buy another stitch for this little darling she would be well clothed until kindergarten! I have been pulling out the plain shirts to re-work. Both of these dresses will probably fit this winter even though they are 12 to 18 month size… Did I mention that she is already wearing 6 month clothes?
I am cruising ebay hoping to find my own treasure chest of rick rack on the cheap. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. People are selling stacks of it and I am happy to make much of it my own.
And yesterday I fell in love with this book;
I tried to get it through my local quilt shop but she didn’t have it and now I am getting it through Amazon which told me it would be 1 to 3 MONTHS (?!?!). Seriously?? Well, I bit the bullet and ordered it, I fell in love with the images on the flickr group and decided that owning it is crucial to my survival. Sewing the raincoat to be worn 2 or 3 years from now isn’t crazy? Is it?
It is late at night and I should be catching some sleep but here I am thinking about one month ago at this time of night. I was staring somewhat sleeplessly at the ceiling scared at what the doctor would say at my baby-flipping visit the next morning. Not knowing if a c-section was something I wanted to fight for or fight against… Well, history tells us the doctor could not flip the baby, for she was too big or too sideways or too something, honestly all I really remember was the part where he said “go check-in on the maternity floor, c section in 2 hours”, and all I could think was- “oh no, we didn’t bring the packed-two-months -in-advanced- very- important- hospital-overnight-bag”. I don’t think I used anything but pajamas out of that bag, but my panic of not having the bag was something I didn’t even confess to my husband at the time.
My sis-in-law captured this beauty a few weeks ago, I think it might be my most favorite picture of her so far. It shows her funny little faces and her perfect little lips, oh wait, I am gushing… sorry ! Okay, not that sorry- here is some more pics from the same photo session.
My sewing machine has been collecting dust since her arrival. But maybe during nap time one of these days I will work on the paintbox squares I started before she arrived.
Our sweet baby girl is 2 weeks old today. I spent most of the first week either in the hospital bed or my bed popping the pain pills and nursing the baby whenever she was brought to me. The second week I really got to meet our baby girl. And what a fantastic lady she is; smiley, charming and sweet.
We have been lucky enough to have one of the grandma’s here for the last 2 weeks and it has made a huge difference. Hubby has been going to work, I have been mothering the little one and the household has been running seamlessly. There will be a changing of the guard later this week when another set of grandparents arrive to take over. The day I have to make my own meals again is on the horizon. I am not looking forward to it.
Here she is, in one of my all time favorite creations. Oh, how I wish I had ordered more of this fabric before it disappeared. At least I hung on to this one! (Don’t worry Liz, I have one for your soon-to-be baby girl too!)
A million years ago when we talked about starting a family, I thought it would be nice to have a spring baby. My birthday is late summer which flows nicely into the holiday season which includes my hubby’s birthday and our wedding anniversary and then, by February we are totally done with holidays and events and it is a long haul until August again when we can find an excuse to go out to a nice dinner. I wanted baby to have a birthday that didn’t get buried with all the other holidays. Not to say everything went exactly to plan, our sweet baby came a few years later than we thought. But, the added bonus has been getting to be home to see spring arrive. What a joy it is to open the doors and windows and watch the tulips and apple trees bloom with baby in my arms.
