showered with joy

Posted on Posted in book reviews/events, projects

this weekend was whirlwind of travel and meeting new people as a large group of friends and relatives gathered in kalamazoo to throw a shower for erica and baby knitspot.

after a busy day on thursday, i packed the car and as i pulled out the driveway, i saw a happy sendoff—our poppies were all in bloom, a full bed of them.

i got to erica’s house in record time, we had dinner and a short day of work on friday, then set out in the afternoon for her parent’s home in kalamozoo for the weekend’s festivities.

we shared a nice meal and an evening of chatting and getting to know erica’s family and then saturday morning, bright and early, the house began to prepare for the party.

candy masterminded all the kitchen activity, pulling together a week’s worth of preparation to produce, as if by magic, an entire buffet of delicious yummies.

erica was assigned the task of creating the appetizer tower from a colorful array of cheeses, veggies, and fruits—mmm, pretty!

buddy served as her assistant, keeping the rug clean and generally making sure we all had something to do. i just did whatever anyone needed me to do and snuck around taking pictures when i wasn’t busy.

even before any guests arrived, there was a big pile of gifts

and boxes that came in the mail.

even with all the planning, we still experienced a flurry of excitement when the guests arrived and the camera was forgotten for a short time.

then the fun began, everyone lining up to sample the goodies on the buffet and find a spot to eat and socialize.

it was a beautiful lunch—the baby was kicking with approval

it was truly a happy, special day and everyone felt the love.

next it was time to open gifts; there were a few children helping to celebrate, so they volunteered to traffic presents from the gift table to erica to be opened.

once again buddy was at the ready to help—patrick was fascinated from afar and very much wanted to pet the dog. candy introduced them

the ball got rolling with gifts from the little ones, who were beside themselves with excitement to watch erica open presents

it was obvious form the contents of their packages that their moms had consulted them on what to give—many of their own favorites were among the treasures.

they were very excited to explain the significance of each one. once their gifts were unwrapped and passed around, they went off to throw toys down the laundry chute and play with erica’s dad.

then the parade of gifts got serious—erica has a large number of aunts and cousins, many of whom were present or sent gifts, many, many of them handmade.

this very special hankie bonnet from aunt kathleen was a gift that erica herself wore to her christening, then carried through her wedding, and now has been re-sewn for the new baby to wear.

of course we all cried a bit over that one.

from afar, a dear friend who couldn’t be there sent a gorgeous peter rabbit quilt to go with the theme of the nursery.

our good friend carrie, who couldn’t be there either, sent some sweet hand knit caps, as well as little soft clothing and toys to go with them.

and just look at this adorable fella—a completely hand-sewn, lop-eared rabbit, deliciously soft, in a custom-tailored jacket.

there were funny cute gifts too—this one was a particular have.

then it was time for grandma’s gift and we passed the kleenex box around

candy knit a stunning sky ladder baby blanket from her first bareneaked club kit

not only that . . .

she knit the matching wrap for mama to wear to the christening . . . AND a tiny matching hat for baby baron—aawwww!

my present came next—no one had any idea what i was planning but it sorta goes along with candy’s; can you guess what it might be??

a little christening jacket, one of my recent secret projects. i knit it during our visit with kim in california a couple of weeks back. it was a LOT of fun to plan and knit behind her back, lemme tell you.

and then, just to be sure she had something nice to pack those lovely handmaids into, david and i are giving erica a custom made diaper bag, made by our friend sherina, who owns sweet baby funk.

all in all it was a lovely party and it was so much fun for me to be welcomed into erica’s family and take part in such an important even in her life. i feel so honored to have been asked to take part.

before we left the next day, erica’s dad took some nice photos of the three of us together with our gifts.

then we loaded the car up and headed back to detroit

buddy was ready.

there was much more knitting but i’m going to hold off and show you that another day—already it’s 9:30 on monday morning and i need to get on the road home myself, so that i’m all settled in time for class today.

see ya next time!

16 thoughts on “showered with joy

  1. Thanks for sharing such a special day with us! The knitted gifts are gorgeous and your baby knit is precious. All will become true heirlooms.

  2. What a beautiful celebration for a lovely young woman and an equally lovely group of friends and family!

  3. What a lovely party! Erica looks radiant and those handknit/handmade gifts were all so sweet.

  4. What a wonderful party. Baby knitspot is going to be the best dressed baby around. I especially love all the handmade gifts, those are so special.

  5. awww, thanks for sharing great pictures of this lovely event! I loved the kids giving presents – how fun! All the sky ladders – how beautiful – blanket, matching wrap, and sweater – wow! the little bonnet is so sweet and that quilt is fabulous!

  6. I think the true measure of a great blogger is to make you feel like the fly on the wall in the lives of wonderful people. So Anne- I feel like I was at Erica’s shower, at least in spirit!! And what beautiful gifts:) Baby Knitspot (if I can give him/her a nickname already) is wrapped in love already!!!

    Best wishes Erica.

  7. Anne, What a beautiful job of sharing Erica’s shower on your blog. Your wonderful photos and all of your captions perfectly reflect the day. Many wonderful gifts were given, but what you and Candy had created are truly keepsakes. It was a pleasure to have you at our home, engage in great conversation and have a some laughs. You’re a wonderful person and a gifted artist. Erica is blessed in so many ways, including being a part of the Knitspot organization.

  8. This post just made my morning! Wonderful party with beautiful gifts! Erica looks adorable.

  9. Such a special day for such a special Mommy to be! The pictures truly reflect all the love and happiness! So very happy for you!

  10. What a lovely baby shower! I love the snack tower. The food looked so decorative even punch. The knitting was divine.

  11. the shower looks amazing – what gorgeous gifts! and i had to giggle – the “red plate” that Erica is eating off of – we had that plate growing up and it was the special plate for birthdays! 🙂

  12. Thank you for sharing the day with us Anne. Almost felt like I was there! Goodness, the handmade love in this post…I LOVE the baby sweater you knit for baby knitspot, as well as Candy’s blanket and shawl. Give big hugs to Candy and Erica for me this weekend!!

  13. What a wonderful shower it was and how fun to reflect back with the lovely story and teriffic pictures of the days festivities, thank you so much for sharing it with us!!

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