M can only be one thing for me

M-O-T-H-E-R

"M" is for the million things she gave me,
"O" means only that she's growing old,

"T" is for the tears she shed to save me,

"H" is for her heart of purest gold;

"E" is for her eyes, with love-light shining,

"R" means right, and right she'll always be,

Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER,"A word that means the world to me.

--Howard Johnson (c. 1915)

I really love being a mom although I will admit that can be really hard work. I’m always wondering if I am doing the right things and there are many times when I wish I could ask my own mom how she did things when I was young. One thing I have learned is to go with my gut feeling - even if others are doing it, if it doesn't feel right to me, it probably isn't ok for us.

I've learned that I need a lot of patience and there are times when I am definitely better at practicing it than others. Sometimes I find myself being drawn into the world of an 8 year old and reverting back to that age myself. Then when we start arguing with each other, I need to remember to step back and ask myself – who is in charge here anyway!

I love making things for new moms. I think I enjoy baby sweaters because they take so much less time than adult sized sweaters. I just finished this for my neighbors’ soon to be granddaughter. It's a pattern from Monkeysuits and knit from Cascade 220 Superwash.

I've also finally finished putting the buttons on these two baby sweaters. I wonder why it takes me forever to do those last bit of finishing details - it seems that I'd rather start knitting something new. The sweater on the left is the Rocketry Baby Cardigan in Manos wool and the one on the right is made from Zealana wool/delaka blend (possum wool - cool, huh!) and is a great free pattern.

I’ll even do some baking for a soon to be mom. My daughter’s teacher was out on maternity leave this past year and the woman who came in to take her place was also pregnant. When she was leaving, the class threw her a shower and this was one of my contributions. Cupcakes from the book Hello Cupcake.

I had to make over 40 regular cupcakes and then the same number of small cupcakes. Every detail is edible - the little bottles are a mini marshmallow and a tiny chocolate candy coated kiss. Then you can add a little Teddy Graham for the baby's teddy bear. So cute and they were a big hit.