Hats and Orange Peel etsy shop

I might be slightly obsessed with having a hat that fits Joy and doesn't make her look like she has a large mushroom head. I also wanted one that fit her snugly so when we string a ribbon through it and tie it on her that it won't bunch and look funny. Really the only way to do that is to have different kinds and different sizes. My aunt Suzanne made some beautiful knitted hats that I showed earlier and we will have the hats at the hospital and I thought I could try to crochet some. That way hopefully one will work. :) 

I bought a very cute pattern from the etsy shop Crochet My Love. She has beautiful patterns and so many to choose from. She is also very nice and wonderful to work with. I had only crocheted potholders and rags before and really had little experience and knew I would need a skein for practice. So I bought a grey skein of cheap yarn and went to town trying different hook sizes and trying to figure out the patterns. Needless to say the first five hats were scary to say the least :) The last one I got in turned out pretty good and I was out of that yarn. (Jenston may have needed some yarn so that is where the rest went)  

My dear friend Abby approached me the other day and asked if I would be ok if she reopened her beautiful shop on etsy for a month and donated all the proceeds to our family. I am still overwhelmed by the love that she is showing our family. She closed her shop after the birth of her fourth child so she could have more time with her family (and she got called as the Primary President :)) so I know how much of a sacrifice this is for her. She will reopen her shop this Monday, August 13th if anyone is interested in cute baby gifts and other fun things :) She has a blog if you would like to go and see what awesome goodies she makes and also read the post she wrote about our Joy. Even if you are not interested in purchasing anything it would be great if people would go and tell her what a great friend she is for sacrificing so much to try to help our family. I cannot express how much we appreciate it! In an effort to try to do just that I am donating this hat to her shop. She will decide all the details of it's departure but it is a size newborn 0-3 month and the color in the picture is almost spot on. It is the same hat that I will be making for Joy except that Joys will be shorter. The flower is removable and the boys suggested I make a white one also so that the person could use either one.

And as a huge bonus for me I found an awesome model for Joy. His head circumference it a little larger than I am sure hers will be but the hats are really stretchy so I can put it on him and at least get a vision of what it might look like. I am sure you can tell by the way the hat is laying that he has a flat head just above his eyes. He is an awesome bank that my grandparents gave me when I was little. My kids have always loved him and he still loves to eat money and it is very fun to watch. I was very excited when I figured he would be a great model. 

The days are starting to get busier and going by so fast. I know she will be here and gone before I know it and each day closer gets a little bit harder. Things like picking out a head stone, burial plot and casket are starting to become a necessity instead of "something I will put off until I can't anymore". I am so excited for her and the chance I get to be able to hold and love such a special daughter. Just sad I have to let her go for a little while. I imagine sending my boys on missions will be a lot like letting her go. It is hard to let her go, though I know she has an important mission to fulfill for our Heavenly Father. She is going where she needs to be and I will see her again.