Saturday 17 October 2015

Bigger


Every so often, you have a sudden realisation that your kids are growing up. This week has been one of those moments. It's never anything earth shattering, maybe just overhearing their conversation about their day while in the bath, or that they get through their morning chores without cajoling, or they can start to help out with quilt photos, rather that me needing to work creatively around them. But somewhere in there you look at them and think, "Listen to you! Look at you! You're bigger!"


I'm not the kind of person to mourn this change. I love grown up conversation, help with the washing, wee in the toilet. This is the stage I've been waiting for. The one where we know we are done having more, and we just sit back (in a figurative sense) and enjoy the ride. No more cesareans, no more morning sickness, no more stopping every 2 hours in car trips to pull over and breastfeed.
I have friends with teenagers and I know there's still some stuff ahead of me, but right now, I have a big boy that I can still beat in a wrestle, and a little girl who I can still beat trying to escape under the front gate, and one in between who doesn't like to wrestle or escape (yet). Right now it's nice.


This quilt was pulled from my Works in Progress box already sewn into quarter-square triangles. I cut those up diagonally and sewed them back together without too much thought or design. I think it's good to do that with WIPs sometimes. I thought a little about how to make it bigger, or add some white or grey for interest, and in the end, I had two spare blocks, and could have cut some more to make an extra row, but I just kept making that decision to keep it simple. I sewed the finished blocks together, spray basted, quilted and bound it in a long afternoon. I have other quilts I want to throw my creativity and thoughtfulness at. I could just let this one be a happy, scrappy gift for a friend.


I started this blog almost 5 years ago because things weren't all that nice. Because I wanted to take photos and tell stories that processed what was hard, but mostly recognised what was good. Today, taking photos of these sweet kids, and a quilt I didn't have to fight to finish, it felt good to stop and say, "Hey, look where we are! How good is this?" Life is chaotic and interrupted and full and it's easy to find things I want to change, to think, I can't wait till we're nappy-free or till Tim finishes his Masters, or the kids are old enough to leave for an evening. But right now, in this moment, I am surrounded by beauty. I have much to be thankful for.

12 comments:

  1. That is a very cool, colourful quilt! I love the way the circles pop up amongst the triangles - makes me not sure where to look but it so interesting. Enjoy your time with your kids, they do grow up super fast - mine was only five it seems yesterday and now he is 14, yikes!

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  2. Beautiful kids, beautiful thoughts and beautiful quilt! It's good to stop thinking now and then to remember the good things and not to hurry every moment. Thank you for sharing inspiration! x Teje

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  3. Fabulous quilt and I totally understand your feel about the great stages that kids go through. With two teenage boys, I miss the in-between ages.... But my youngest has been my little buddy and now my best friend for about the last 13 years, so I can't complain.

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  4. Oh my favourite quilt of yours so far, and that is saying something! My boys are 8 and 12 and I am just loving this stage - I think once they were past the baby stage I have just enjoyed them more and more! And husbands doing Masters - feeling your pain completely!

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  5. Fabulous content. ...about your children. Your kids are fortunate to have you as their mom, and be surrounded by beautiful colors and creativity.

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  6. Awesome quilt & love the back! Beautiful children!

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  7. Beautifully made, and beautifully expressed, and wonderful shots of the children! :)

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  8. Your quilt is beautiful! But your post was even more so! Having kids certainly isn't easy! When you reach that moment...it's magical and I'm glad you are there!

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  9. Here's to new quilts and kids growing up! My DS1 just turned 20 last week. Wait!! What?? Don't blink.

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  10. I wanted to say how much I enjoyed reading this, and find it very relatable, especially the bit about being grateful to be able to wrestle, catch, or contain your kids still. I too love seeing my kids grow and gain independence, while enjoying this current stage with them. Though I am in that pull over and nurse every two hours stage, I'm very grateful that my third child is much less colicky.

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  11. Great Quilt! That said, congrats on being a Mom who doesn't have to mourn every single stage. I was also that mom and there is a freedom that comes from being able to say goodbye to one stage gracefully while another one begins. With 3 kiddos, 22, 21 and 16 I find that while I love them to bits I am also excited to have my life/space/time back to myself a bit. When the first one left home I had a good cry and was a bit sad for a few days and then I moved on and enjoyed watching her explore the world as an adult. I think the moms who cling to the stages too desperately are the ones who are devastated by the empty nest. I am glad not to have experienced it that way. I have reached or am reaching that stage that we became parents for. When we release them to the world with all the lessons and advice we instilled and see who and what kind of person they ultimately become. It is the final exam of parenting and it lasts forever.

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I so love your comments! I read all of them and reply when I can. If you don't hear back, I'm lost under a mound of scraps or outside jumping on the trampoline with the kids. Jodi. xx