One Puppy, Two Puppies, Three Puppies, Four!

My Little Liam and his Puppy inspired by this quilt at Red Pepper Quilts! I am submitting this quilt in the Fall 2011 Bloggers Quilt Festival, check it out!

When I was a little girl my fabulous mother made me a blankie, as she did with my younger brothers William and Christopher. Since I was the first child, mine was obviously the best and most unique and intricate as compared with my brothers' later models. This is/was my Puppy!

For obvious reasons Puppy was the "pet" name (no punn intended) that I gave my childhood quilt. It is the perfect size, made of cool feeling fabric and missing a lot of the original pieces (he is well loved). I say this "is" my Puppy because he still serves a very active role in my life (i.e. I still let him keep residence in my bed)!

I attribute a lot of my personality and individuality to my Puppy. He has been there in good times and in bad, through sleepless nights and home sick days, a tissue when I cried at 4 and when I cried at 24, in every place I sleep including cars, hotels, planes and even on vacation to Mexico and Hawaii (you should see the stumped look on TSAs' faces as they notice Puppy hanging out in my carry-on luggage).

Puppy has taught me that...

Some things never change, they just get older.
Home is where the heart is.
A mother's love is unconditional.
It's ok to cry or fall apart sometimes.
Everyone has something or someone they can't live without.

I always joked (although I was quite serious) that if there was a fire; Puppy was the first thing going out that window!

Since I'm quite positive my brothers always envied my Puppy and his steadfast love, they also chose to call their blankies "Puppy" as well; despite their total lack of any dog-like qualities what-so-ever!

This is William's (it went nicely with his boy doll, Dapper Dan; he loved that doll! My mother has since tried to find one for Liam to no avail):

And this one belongs to Christopher:

Liam has been very blessed to recieve a variety of blankets from all our family and friends. This one is from Jill; the mother of one of my very close friends.

Jill is also an amazing quilter and a fabulous person to be around (Liam just loved her)!

This quilt was fabric my grandmother picked up and I chose to bind in different orange fabric, I think it is very adorable!

This afghan was made by a family friend and wonderful person, Mary.

And lastly, this afghan was made by Liam's Great Grandmother, she makes truly beautiful blankets!

Although all of these blankets are more than adorable, none of them contained those, oh so necessary "Puppy" qualities... so I set to work!

My mother enjoys pointing out that ALL of the blankies she made were completed BEFORE the child was born. Now, as I enter this exciting and beautiful chapter of my life I have decided to follow in her footsteps. (Although I will tell you that Liam's blanket was not finished before he was born. I blame it mostly on him being born four weeks early, but let's be honest; I could barely put on shoes at 7 and 8 months pregnant let alone attempt to baste a quilt!)

This is what Liam's crib looks like so I tried to make his blankie along the same theme. I love the fishies and whales, blue and green go with everything baby!

The back and center pieces of the blocks are fabric from an old Pottery Barn sheet that was given to me by Liam's Aunt Kristine.

The rest of this quilt was made using mostly scrap peices and some stash.

I love using recycled fabric and scrap pieces, it makes me feel so thrify and resourceful! I feel it also helps to tell a story and stitches meaning into the seams.

I did an overall stipple pattern on the quilt and only deviated for one brief moment in this square.

Here, I put a heart to serve as a constant reminder to both Liam and myself of my love for him. He is incredibly special to me and I hope he loves his Puppy (or Fishie?) as much as I have loved and continue to love mine! Sometimes, he and I cuddle up with Puppy and I'm reminded of just how special he is and how lucky I am to be so blessed.

Even as I write this post, a tear sneaks out the corner of my eye, not unnoticed. I have learned that despite the heartache we sometimes go through in life, the love of family and friends will always surpass any obstacle, overpower all negative thoughts, break down those confining walls, and serve as a reminder that we are never truly alone and we are always loved.