Year in Review: The Original Baby

The last post was about Bliss' newborn twins and the impact that had on me.

And this post is a continuation of that post. But it is about Bliss' 16- year-old daughter.

We can pretty much stop right there. Bliss has a teenage daughter AND she was busy preparing for twins.

That's a lot going on.

And you know how we were when we were teenagers. Teen angst galore.

And I wondered how this teenage girl was feeling during this time?

I myself once was a teenage girl.

Yes, that sounds silly. But let me rephrase and put it into context: I was once a 17-year-old teenage girl whose mother was expecting a baby, my brother Milk and Cookies.

And I thought back to how I felt around that time. And I asked Bliss if I could send her daughter a card and write her a letter about how I felt about it all. Bliss gave me a slight text "side-eye", expressing that I didn't need to reveal any tricks. LOL. Of course I wouldn't. I just told her that it would be positive and helpful.

I wrote about who I was and what I was doing around that time. I am sure it was a little different from her situation. I was 17 at the time, and I was beginning my sophmore year of college (I started college when I was 16). I was in school full time and I had a full time job. And I was running behind my boyfriend.

So I had a LOT going on. (My goodness, I wish I had half the energy I had back then. Wow.)

Anyway, my mother told me she was having a baby. I didn't really believe her. (She had a tumor or fibroid or something. They took a ultrasound, and lo and behold, there was a baby behind the tumor).

So my circumstances were way different (I didn't detail all that in the letter). I wasn't pissed about it, but it was all a lot going on. I had a lot going on myself so I just did my thing.

But I detailed in the letter that her little sisters would be in such awe of their big sister. I know because my baby brother was in such awe of me. The reason for that is that by the time these little ones become old enough to talk and walk, their big sister would be an adult.

(Now I also have a sister who is 11 years younger than me. We didn't get along well in our younger years. My sister saw me get in just as much trouble as she did, so she put two and two together. I was a mere child, just like her.)

But my brother has ALWAYS been wide-eyed when I came around. Even to this very day. And when I see him now, even some 25 years later, he still looks to me just like that little baby laying in his crib looking up at me. And that is how she will remember her baby sisters, even as adults.

She will be a superstar to her sisters, and with that comes great responsibility. Like I did with my brother, she will be able to break things down to her baby sisters much better than their parents... and she will have ALL the personal stories to back it up. She will have them saying amongst themselves, "Our big sister knows everything!"

I wrote about how it was such an important assignment from God, this being a much older big sister.  She will sow so much into their lives. And later on in life, they will sow so much into hers.  I wrote about how my brother has a special kind of wisdom from his experiences fighting in the wars overseas. He has seen things that I have not, nor will I ever see. And her little sisters will have life experiences that will benefit her life, also.

And that's a wonderful thing.

My three page letter to her was one of encouragement during a time where it may seem like much attention may be given to the newborns, and not so much to her. I don't think that is the case, but you know how babies are: everythingn is about them. Everything. And rightfully so. We were all babies once, and had to be taken care of 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

I wanted her to have something that she could go back and read from time to time, if need be. Or maybe it is something she can tuck away with her other keepsakes. It was something just for her.

You know what felt nice? Writing a handwritten letter. How often do we do that these days? I thought about typing it out (mostly for her mother to proofread and approve first). But I decided to just put pen to paper. And I liked that. We live in such an email and text age. Writing a letter like I often did as a child was a good feeling.

And you know me. I also made a card.

It is a little simpler than I like... But It conveys what I wanted it to convey...

Now, you know I am LadyLee. LadyLee is not only my blog name, it is also my street grafitti tag name. So I also put the card in a package that I tagged with some of my world class grafitti art!

Looka there, man! That makes me want to go climb a building with a can of spray paint, and...

Nevermind. I am too old for that. Might fall and bust my tail. And we don't need that.

Why don't I just write on paper...

I sent something else too...

A scarf.....

 A nice pretty scarf!!

Uh no... It's not a scarf.

Not a scarf at all.

No, no, no. It's something better:

It's a blanket!

Now... how on EARTH would I make the newborn twins four baby blankets..

And NOT make a blanket for the "Original Baby"?

Even though she is 16 years old, she is still her mother Bliss' baby.

She will always be her baby.

Always.

And I wrote that in the letter.

I name all my big blankets. This blanket is the "Honeydew and Cream Dream".   I have a ton of Honeydew yarn, as it is my best friend LadyTee's favorite color. I have a bit more than I need and I didn't know what I was going to do with it. So I made this blanket. I am gearing up to make another one just like it for LadyTee.

And the Original Baby needed something of her own, something to remember this time by.

I am sure she got so much more from so many family and friends during this time. And this blanket is something else she can add to her collection to commemorate becoming a big sister.

It was my favorite gift to give in 2013, as I kept it a secret from Bliss also. I wanted it to arrive out of the blue. And that it did.

So, the birthday sweepstakes continues. Make sure you get in on it!

And have a good weekend... On purpose!