A special sweater tradition...........

When Lia was born in 2006, my sister-in-law Thoralee knitted her a wonderful sweater.  Everyone raved about this adorable homemade sweater!  What an amazing gift this sweet sweater was for Lia.  Then along came Ellie in 2009 and once again, a hand crafted sweater arrived for her.

Having these two special keepsake sweaters for the girls is such a special thing.  And then when Zeke was born in 2011, once again, Thoralee created an sweater for him.

Imagine Gwen's surprise and delight today when this special sweater arrived in the mail from Thoralee - made especially for Annaleigh.

Needless to say, when Anna is big enough to wear this sweet sweater, there will be a photo of her, just like her sisters and brother, proudly wearing this sweater!

There really are not words to describe the feeling I have when I look at these pictures.  The thoughtfulness, the care and the effort to create something so beautiful, that will be saved and cherished by my grandchildren in the future is simply amazing.  As I was thinking about this tonight I remembered a story that I bet Thoralee doesn't remember.  One time, quite unexpectedly, I received a package in the mail.  I was about 8 or 9 years old.  Thoralee was a couple of years older than me.  She and her mom had made me some Barbie clothes and sent a box of them to me.  This was not for a special occasion - not my birthday - not Christmas.  I can still remember how excited and delighted I was to get a box in the mail and then to see the special clothes it contained.  Gwen still has my original Barbie doll from 1962 and all of the clothes.  And among those are the ones I received that day.  There were several dresses and then my favorite thing, a coat!  None of my friends had a coat for their Barbies.   What a loving and thoughtful gesture that gift was.  And these sweaters come from that same heart.  We are blessed!

You know, I was just blogging about feeling kind of disconnected from my siblings.  And then today, I have this reminder that even though there may be distance between us, we are still very much connected.  What a powerful reminder for all of us, that it is possible to bless someone with a simple gesture.  This has me thinking of all of the times that I felt a nudge to send a card or small gift to someone, but then I ignored the thought.  The lesson I have learned today is the importance of following those promptings of the Holy Spirit.  

Jesus, thank you for Thoralee and this wonderful, thoughtful gift.  Bless her and Jerry with peace and joy.  Holy Spirit, thank you for the reminder of that special gift, years ago.  Help us all to ACT when we are prompted to bless someone else.  Give us all creative ways to extend your love to others.  Thank you for family and connections and warm cuddly sweaters.  Amen