A memory of a quilt

This is one of the first baby quilts that I made for a friend a few years ago. They, like us, struggle with fertility and they had decided to adopt a beautiful boy from Guatemala. It was very exciting to be part of their journey from home inspections, to placement, to knowing they were finally picking him up, and then being there with balloons in hand at the airport when they all arrived home. I was bawling like a baby (and at least one other person was too!) and so thrilled for them. Just yesterday, this little boy, now 4, was excited to see me and show me how well he could ride his bike.

Being that it was one of the first quilts that I gave away, I hadn’t begun to properly document what I’d made. So I asked Joseph’s mother to take some pictures of the quilt for me and I just recently got them.

I designed this myself and I wanted to make a stars and stripes quilt to represent his new country and welcome him to his new home. I was even able to use her mom’s embroidery machine to put his name on the quilt.

I chose the fabrics to be kind of timeless…a little bit country but in an East coast kind of way. I love the ticking stripe for the back and throughout the quilt. I didn’t want it to be super fussy so I decided to use star fabrics instead of piecing or appliqueing stars.

I’ve done a lot of things since I made this quilt just a few years ago. My technique has improved. I’ve gotten a better machine that machine quilts much easier. But I haven’t made one for a much sweeter reason. Celebrating families growing in any way is always an honor and I was so happy to be part of this one.

I’ve just finished another quilt that just may be for this same mom (hope she’s not reading this! LOL). They, like we did last year, are having a miracle baby girl due one year and a day exactly after our girl was due. It’s amazing and we’re so happy to be celebrating with them once again as their family grows.