baby stuff

When we came to visit the farm, I arrived bearing gifts. Most of them were made by me. Here is the baby quilt - tada! I put eggs on it because they are a symbol of new life, plus my daughter and her husband said they would be getting chicks for eventual egg-laying. And they're here, as you can see in my previous post! I embroidered a few chicks and a chicken on it. It was fun to do, and gender neutral because the baby is still being coy.

Here's a detail of the embroidery.

Here's a peek at the back. It's actually vintage fabric, given to me by my friend Annie. She found it in a thrift shop, and since my daughter is totally into recycling, it's perfect!

I also made a diaper bag and filled it with things I had either made or embellished. The diaper bag is in the back. I just loved embroidering on the onesies and little matching caps! The dachsund is appropriate because my daughter has one, named Ginger. The cat was inspired by a calico who lives in the barn across the street from my daughter's farm. She gave her the nickname Toots, because the cat seems to have a lot of gas. ;-) This design was stenciled and then embroidered.

In this photo, there is a rolled up portable changing pad, a baby bath towel, and a onesie with cap that I dyed and then stenciled. It was a fun challenge thinking up designs that fit for either a boy or a girl. The diaper bag, changing pad and towel (plus burp cloths and wash cloths which you don't see) were all sewn according to instructions from Lotta Jansdotter's baby sewing book. I made a few changes, like ties instead of velcro, but it's a great book.

While we were at the farmhouse, I helped my daughter get the nursery ready for painting. The men moved the furniture out, and we spackled, sanded, taped edges, and applied a shellac/primer. What a busy day! Too bad I forgot to take a "before" photo of the old wallpaper. The next day, my daughter picked out a yummy pale green paint. I imagine she's painting today, because it's been raining.



Here are some of the seedlings Jack planted, mostly heirloom tomatoes seen here. They will go into the ground after threat of frost has past. They're sitting on the counter of the mud room; you can see the old water pump in back. It actually still works, although they've made it automatic, so all you have to do is turn a small handle in back. They have delicious water from their own artesian well, and of course they can get their water out of regular taps elsewhere in the house, too!