Losing and Gaining

My youngest cousin and his wife will soon be having a baby.  And so – predictably – I'm knitting a baby sweater.  I did the same for his brother's first baby, and have knit one for the arrival of each of my nieces and nephews, so it's really a familiar practice.

Finishing...

There is something a little different about this though.  This is the first time we're welcoming a new member of our family without the presence of either grandparent.  This sweet girl will be the first of her generation to miss the opportunity to be held by our epically kind and baby-loving grandfather or our grandmother who was strong and so proud of her family.  And I'm not just a little melancholy about that.

I love the color palette of
Nature Spun wool

But the silver lining of this family loss is that I feel now that there is a renewed bond between us – the grandkids.  I had a lightbulb moment where I realized that we're all old enough to maintain our family bonds independently, and maintain our own relationships, and maybe take some ownership of some new family traditions.  And I think that's a good thing.

So this new girl will be welcomed by all of us. And maybe we can flood her with enough love that she won't sense an absence at all.  There's nothing like a sweet new person to remind us of the wonderful cyclicality of life.

Anyone want to come over and weave in
some ends?

So I knit on... and can't wait to gift this warm and stripey pullover to some new family.

The sweater is the Nils pullover designed by the Swedish brand Millamia and the ravelry details are here.