Today we celebrated the first birthday of my niece Autumn. I made her a birthday crown, an appliqued tee, and this doll quilt. She's a lover of purple (rather, my sister is a lover of purple), which I had no idea that I had so little of in my stash until I went to put this gift together - I used every scrap of purple anything that I had. I must say that the doll quilt was such a treat to work on in spite of all that purple, and it got me all twitchy for quilting. Soon, soon...
Being the oldest in my family, and starting my family young myself, I never anticipated that my babes would have cousins close in age. So it's been a very pleasant treat indeed, to have Autumn in our lives. Just two months younger than Adelaide, they already have such a sweet relationship - though, I must say that Autumn is often at the receiving end of the, um, assertiveness with which this youngest child of three operates. You'll notice in the photo that Adelaide has already removed Autumn's crown from her head for herself, and is about to make off with her new stuffed toy too. That's kind of the way older cousins work, right? It's love.
It's also been a special treat to witness my little sister on her own journey in this first year of her mothering. Michelle's deep and patient love for her babe is a very beautiful thing. And for that, Autumn is one very lucky little girl. Happy Birthday, sweet one!
