white apples . a blog

O-Bear

This guy. This goofball. He's ten months old. My baby.

It's too easy to constantly compare siblings, no matter how often we are cautioned against it. Growth and perferences and personality. Development and skills and accomplishments. But as much as I compare Juniper and Owen in my head all day long, I know that being his mama is a wholly and suprisingly unique experience, entirely different from mothering my fearless, independent June Bug.

He is thoughtful and sensitive and lovingly sweet. He is cautious and curious and loves to dance. He smiles his big toothy smile a thousand times a day (eight whole teeth!). He gives me big hugs and pats my back with his little hands. He is solid and strong and constantly moving - climbing over and on top of anything in his way. He chats and sings and babbles. He has the best laugh, a joyful, infectious, breathless laugh.

Whenever his sister is in the room, his eyes follow her every move, his expression alternating between adoration and trepidation. She scares him with her screaming and she knocks him over constantly, but he loves nothing more than being included in her games. Even if those games involve watermelon hats.

a Nashville weekend

It was her first time on a airplane in about a year. She had her own seat. And her own little backpack. As the plane sped down the runway, she yelled, "Wheeee!! We're going fast! We're going fast!" Throughout the flight, she kept up a running commentary on the clouds and the color of the airplane (blue) and the tops of the trees. She learned all about the airplane "rules" - buckle your seat belt, turn off your electronic devices during takeoff and landing, don't kick the seat in front of you. Upon landing, she shouted, "That was a close one!" I certainly hope not.

While the plane ride was fun, I think Juni had the most fun playing with Hayden - going to the park and farmer's market, playing in the baby pool and having a snack picnic, generally running amok in Craig and Gina's lovely house. There was the typical amount of elbowing and toy snatching, but there were also so many sweet hugs and toddler games and just gobs of little kid excitement. 

As for Charlie and me, we got to catch up with old friends, discover a new city, eat incredible food, and watch our kids enjoy the last bits of summer together.

snippets from a rainy weekend

:: vanilla-scented purple sparkle dough

:: indoor picnics

:: peanut butter pie

babies are kind of a big deal

Oh, babies. I get so very warm and fuzzy when my friends have babies. I remember those first few hours, those early days, the bubbly, dizzy, disoriented, sleep-deprived, crazy-in-love feelings. I can't help but smile and hug my little ones even tighter.

This year, I've been sending out handmade baby gifts as much as possible, inspired by a very close friend of mine who passed away from leukemia in January (thinking of it still knocks the breath out of me). She was a firm believer in thoughtful, personalized, beautifully presented gift-giving. During my first pregnancy, she sent Juniper hand-dyed, personalized onesies that spoke of not only how much she cared about my baby girl but also of how well she knew my own little quirks.

Shortly after her funeral, her family retrieved her belongings from the hospital. Among them were the gifts that she had meant to send after Owen's birth - a cross-stitched dinosaur next to the name "Owen" and an unfinished hummingbird next to the name "Juniper". Surely any handmade gift is meaningful, but now that my friend is gone, these little things, they comfort, they remind me that she loved my babies even though she was half a world away and bearing burdens that I cannot begin to imagine.

Wow, this post has gotten away from me. This was all just to say that it is nice to make and receive sweet little things for new babies. And fun. I know that every new mama needs and welcomes all those practical gizmos that are standard registry fare. But sometimes, it is also nice to receive something that was made just for your little one.

I've made a handful of Liberty Baby Bibs that I sent without photographing (I love thinking about lucky little babies who get to spit up on gorgeous Liberty of London tana lawn fabric), but I did manage to snap a few photos of this quilt I made for Baby Quinn. Quinn's mama was my friend back when we were college students living in Boston, idling our days away as only the young and childless can do.

I wanted a bright, boyish, outdoorsy design for this sure-to-be-nature-loving little man. The pattern was loosely based on this one (I orginally included the outer sashing but thought it looked a bit too modern and stark and un-baby-like). For fabric choices, I started with the Monaluna Circa 60 Beach Mod collection and added some undersea prints (including some precious Heather Ross - I love those seahorses!), some Kona solids, and a few Robert Kaufman geometric prints. I lightly quilted it with random diagonals to keep it nice and soft.

I also used some of the fabric scraps to make this lovey-sized snuggle blankie, backed with supersoft minkee (no batting) and quilted with little birdie footprints.

My sewing assistant: