September 7, 2009

Continuing a Tradition

Joel's parents came down to visit yesterday and brought with them a bassinet that they had lovingly restored and finished. The bassinet has been passed down to numerous family members. The tradition is that each child's name is written on the base of the bassinet to indicate that they have used it.

Joel's parents both spent quite a bit of time refinishing and staining the bassinet to perfection. As you can see, it's perfectly restored. I've also received some beautiful heirlooms from my parents including hand knitted sweaters that my mom had worn and a beautiful quilt in which each of my aunts embroidered a square for me when I was born. It's so amazing to have all of these family heirlooms. I'm so grateful that these have been saved to be passed on to us.


The baby room is still a work in progress. It took Joel a few days to paint the baby room. He re-painted the ceiling, the walls and finished the trim. The room looks great. I have yet to put back together the crib or get anything else together but it's in the closet when I'm ready.
We are meeting K and J tomorrow for coffee. I've had a lot going on in my life this last week, including, unfortunately, a death in the family, so I haven't really thought about this much. If anyone is on the other side of adoption and has any recommendations of things to discuss that I might not think of, please leave me a comment. My mind is not in the best place at the moment.

7 comments:

  1. What a beautiful cradle!

    And I'm sorry about the death in your family.

    As for the conversation, you might simply ask how K & J see your relationship developing over the years. What is their vision?

    If that feels good to you, of course.

    Enjoy your time together!

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  2. How great is that!! Sorry about the death in your family:(

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  3. I'm so sorry about your loss. It must be so bittersweet for you...getting ready for baby and dealing with a death in the family at the same time.

    What a great tradition with the cradle. It looks beautiful and I'm sure the nursery will too when it's all finished.

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  4. I'm so sorry to hear that you're having a rough time, I'll be praying for you! *big hugs*

    And what a neat thing to have all of the baby names on the bottom of the cradle!

    My cradle is similar to that one and has been a hand-me down from friend to friend over the last 5 ish years, I love thinking about the wonderful babies that have slept there!

    I'm wishing you the very best of everything!

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  5. I'm sorry for your loss.

    I hope coffee with K and J goes well tomorrow and the bassinet is beautiful!

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  6. I'm sorry for your loss. The nice thing about coffee is that it is flexible. If you are still feeling grief and stress, it can be a shorter visit (and maybe they can do a lot of the talking about how the baby is developing or their progress on the scrapbook they are so awesome to make), but if you end up having a lot to say it can accommodate that as well. The cradle is a great tradition and looks great too!

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  7. I love the cradle and the baby names are such a beautiful tradition for your family. I am so happy you can add your bambino's name.

    I am sorry for your loss. My thoughts are with you and your family.

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