My youngest son turned twelve last week. When he was in the NICU, one of my online knitting friends sent us this tiny sweater. It came with instructions to alter it for a teddy bear after it was outgrown, but there was no way I was going to change anything about this perfect little knit.
It fit him for about thirty-seven seconds after he came home from the hospital and has been hanging on my sewing room wall ever since as a reminder of my thoughtful friend. I don't look back fondly on our NICU days, but this little sweater always makes me smile.
Babies grow fast. That's what we're all told. Make something they'll be able to wear as a toddler. Something that will fit them for years to come. Everyone else is going to give the parents to be tiny little things, so you shouldn't.
Every time I hear that advice, it bugs me. My daughter was full term and the not-so-little outfit her paternal grandmother sewed for her was miles to big. By the time it would have fit her, it would have been a completely inappropriate choice. Not all babies grow out of newborn sizes in the blink of an eye. And even if they do, what's wrong with having something like this little sweater that fit for an instant but can be cherished for years to come?
I totally agree with you. I still have things that my mother saved from when I was a baby and now it amazes me that I was ever that small. They meant something special to her and she kept them all those years (she died 20 years ago), and they are special to me now because they meant so much to her -- and they are a part of my past too. That little sweater is adorable.
ReplyDeleteI agree - I still have the sweater and bonnet that I came home from the hospital in - my oldest daughter wore it as well!
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