Memories

I am horrible about keeping things unless it can go in a scrapbook(which really only leaves paper things to be kept). So mostly that means I don't keep clothes. I frequently go through my closet and get rid of things I haven't worn in a few months. Sometimes a few weeks later I think about wearing the shirt and remember I got rid of it.

As Jake has grown out of his clothes I have been getting rid of some, keeping ones I really liked or had some type of sentimental value, and then most of them went back to my sister. Given that over half of Jake's clothes come from my nephew who is 4 months older then Jake.

The things I wanted to keep of Jake's are put away into a rubbermaid container. Then every time a new season comes around I open up the container and put new clothes to keep in. But of course each time I open the container I have to look at all the sweet little things I have saved and am reminded of how much he has grown.

Do you remember I said I am horrible about keeping things?

This means that each time I go through these containers there are things I realize I don't need to save and I get rid of them.

This past month as I was going through his closet and getting some stuff together for consignment I decided to really take a look at what I was keeping. Most of the stuff was pretty cheap stuff when we bought it to begin with so I didn't need to keep it now. Then there was the thinking that all though the outfit was really cute would I really use it for another baby. Chances are another baby would be born in a different season or be a different size and I would have saved the clothes for nothing. Someone else could get much better use out of the clothes taking up space in Jake's closet.

Then there were the things that were just too sweet and precious to give up. Like the outfit he wore for his first Christmas, his pumpkin hat he wore in the hospital on Halloween day, his tiny little white hospital shirt he wore, things that have his monogram on them, and several other things I just couldn't get rid of.

But then there was that whole...I am horrible at keeping things!!!  And obviously things monogrammed with JNR or that said 1st birthday would never be worn by another baby.

So I did what any girl would do & came up with a crazy idea to turn these clothes into a blanket. And then I turned to my mother-in-law to see if she could make a blanket out of Jake's clothes. (after all I don't know how to sew...it is 1 of my 12 new things for April)

And my wonderful mother-in-law didn't let me down. I now have the sweetest blanket with all of my favorite and memorable pieces of Jake's clothes sewed on it.

My only request of my mother-in-law was that the blanket be finished by the time Jake was 18 and heading to college so that I could curl up with it every night while he was gone. Of course she way out did herself and had the blanket finished in a week.  I love this blanket and want to snuggle with it now...it brings tears to my eyes every time I look at it & remember when Jake wore a piece on the blanket. I also love it so much I want to frame it and hang it on my wall for everyone to see.

For now it is laying over the back of the chair in Jake's room. Where he & I talk about each piece every time we go in there.

Thank you so much Linda for the wonderful blanket of memories you have given me!!!