A Gift to Remember

This Christmas was unlike any other I've had before. The weeks leading up to this wonderful time of year left me feeling not so wonderful. There's no quick fix, no "it'll be okay".....just an empty pit in the bottom of my stomach that never seems to go away. These feelings just kept creeping up the more I tried to push them down. I know that my dad and sister were feeling the same way. That is precisely why I was so very excited to gift them a very special and meaningful gift this Christmas. It all started back in August. My mother-in-law is a guru at whipping out t-shirt quilts and had suggested that I collect some of mom's clothes and she would make memory quilts for my dad and sister. I was very excited about the idea but for some reason just could not force myself to sort through her closet. Just another thing reminding me that she's gone. But finally in October I mustered up enough courage to tackle her closet and I left my dad's house with two bags full of shirts and dresses. They sat in a pile in our garage for a little over a month until Kathy inquired about them. If it hadn't been for her they would definitely still be sitting right where I left them. My initial plan was to have Kathy make them in time for Christmas. Around Thanksgiving time she asked me if I would like to make them with some help and guidance from her. I was all for this idea. It's been about four years since I last put my novice quilting skills to use so I definitely needed a step by step guide. With much encouragement from her I got to work and sewed my little heart out.......

 .....and finished my sister's quilt the day before Thanksgiving. My dad's came a couple weeks later when I borrowed Kathy's sewing machine to work on it at my house without supervision. Lol! That made for an interesting experience. Turns out I work a lot better with someone over my shoulder to keep me from messing up. Just a simple fix needed in the end and my dad's was complete. They were packaged and wrapped and waiting under the tree. The anticipation of waiting was killing me. I handed them their boxes and had them open their quilts at the same time. My dad was so surprised when he opened his on Christmas Eve....

Bailey's face in this picture says it all.....

It was a perfect moment watching them look at each piece of the quilt. Each piece means so much...

Wrapped in love!

It took some convincing of my dad, but by the end of the night I finally had him believing that I really had made them myself.

What's more comforting than curling up in your favorite blanket? I can't think of many things more peaceful. I hope they find comfort in these quilts. Thanks to Kathy, I have one of my own to treasure....

When you have no choice but to go on with life, it's nice to have memories to take along the journey.

Merry Christmas momma.