Give the gift of love this year

I know Irish Jig's birthday is well behind us, but I can't resist one more blog post with birthday content. This one's about some of her sweet gifts. I am mentioning these simply because they touched my heart.

About four days prior to her birthday, Mr. Neoclassic and I realized we really didn't have a specific gift just for her. Those of you with multiple children will understand when I say that there was really nothing left appropriate for her age that our family didn't already have. Memory Card game - check! Mr. Potato Heads - check! Puzzles - check, check! Books - check, infinity!  Little People - check! Etc...

I decided to sew a simple pillow case, with fun birthday cupcakes and her favorite purple accent. I found the perfect flannels at JoAnn's and used this tutorial, along with french seams. Easy, fun, and completed in less time than it took to wash and dry the fabric.

When Jazz saw the extra fabric, she asked to make something for her sister. While my heart sang with joy that she was choosing to be generous with her time and talent, my brain screamed something akin to, "WHAT! It's the afternoon of her birthday!!! When do you think I have time to help you??"

Then I remembered the ace up my sleeve - Nana was in town! I backed the cupcake flannel with a remnant of white fleece, drew a stitch line along the edges, and pinned the pieces together. I turned Jazz over to Nana's calm tutoring and raced away to decorate a spider cake. Under Nana's careful, encouraging eye, Jazz followed her stitching lines with perfection and created a simple blanket to match the pillowcase. My only regret is not catching that moment in time on film.

Lastly, you'll notice a Raggedy Ann doll in that picture.  My dad decided Irish Jig needed a Raggedy Ann doll and couldn't believe I'd never had one.  He found a sweet, perfectly sized version -the giant ones creep me out - and it even has "Happy Birthday" embroidered on her apron.

But WAIT!  There's MORE!

Each year, my dad creates a Christmas ornament for each of his grandchildren.  In the early years, he stuck to traditional symbols - angels, elves, reindeer, snowmen, gifts, etc.  The past few years, he's been matching the ornament to the child.  This year was a stellar representation of their interests, proving he takes the time to know them well.

Irish Jig's Raggedy Ann

Jazz's Girl Scouts Emblem 

Classic Rock's Sail Boat (to commemorate his summer cruise)

Zydeco's Toad 

Each one has the child's name painted onto the front.  I've retouched the photos to remove that part.  I do try to respect their privacy.

I promise the next post will be about sewing or baking or faith formation - not birthdays.

Today's post title from Gift of Love by Ashes Remain