Purl and Seam

handmade in Lancashire

13

January 12, 2021

I haven’t done a birthday post for quite some time. But today Summer turns 13 and I cannot fail to mark such a special day.

They say that the days are long and the years are short, and until you have children you really don’t appreciate the truth of it. It seems barely a moment since the day we tentatively pushed open the door of the foster carers sitting room. Our hearts were in our mouths as we savoured the moment of seeing our daughter for the very first time.

Our journey to adoption wasn’t littered with pain and heartbreak as it is for so many. I was nearly 40 when I met Dave and both of us had remained childless for so long, it was odds on that we would have fertility issues.

It turned out to be a blessing rather than a curse, because it brought this amazing girl, and her darling brother, into our lives. I say that they were always ours, they were just delivered to the wrong address!

Time stopped at our first meeting. I remember how Summer’s face lit up when she saw us. How during that first hour she called me Mama for the first time (the foster carer had worked hard with a little book of photos so she’d know who we were when we met). How she fell asleep in Dave’s arms, peaceful and safe.

Bridging ( the process of getting her accustomed to us) was supposed to take 2 weeks, but she was having none of it, and was home with us within 7 days.

And our world changed for the better.

It’s not been an easy ride. We have had to fight hard to get her diagnoses and the accompanying support. She calls me her Battle Bear. I carry that with more pride than I can articulate.

But she is the warrior. She has fought back from a terrible start in life, and challenges that would floor grown men, to become a most beautiful person.

She is kind and funny. Smart as a whip and able to find the loophole in any argument. Fierce in her defence of justice, and intuitively gentle with animals. She is beloved by her friends and intolerant of bullies.

Equally happy to wield power tools to help Dave with DIY, or a food mixer to make bread or buns, she is fabulously practical. I love having her helping in the sewing room and at the weekend she was helping me caulk gaps in the ensuite ready for decorating.

She is, in short, our joy. Her name is not one we would have even considered, it was her gift from her birth mother. We couldn’t have chosen better for her. As a little school friend wisely said, aged 5, “Summer has the most perfect name because she lights up the world”.

Happy birthday, darling girl. Every day you surprise and amaze me (and get on my very last nerve). Keep being the wonderful girl you are. I cannot wait to see the woman you’ll become. I know she’ll be strong, wise, kind and gentle. You are wonderful and we all love you more than we have words to say.

Related

CATEGORIES // Family Life

« DIY Hello Kitty Patchwork and Embroidery Quilt
DIY Upcycled Tops »

RELATED POSTS

  • Eight
  • Summertime
  • Mothering Sunday
  • Best laid plans and all that!

Comments

  1. Kristin says

    January 12, 2021 at 6:38 pm

    OMG – totally crying over this!! What a beautiful post. What a wonderful story. And you and Dave look SO adorably 2007!! 🙂

    • Evie says

      January 13, 2021 at 1:48 pm

      We look so young!

  2. Tialys says

    January 13, 2021 at 1:44 pm

    A lovely birthday tribute to your precious daughter. Thank you for sharing it.

    • Evie says

      January 13, 2021 at 1:47 pm

      Thank you!

Evie

Looking for something?

Never miss a post!

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts in your inbox.

Topics

blackwood cardigan books craft projects dressmaking embroidery fabric finished objects 2010 finished projects 2011 finished projects 2012 finished projects 2013 finished projects 2014 finished projects 2015 finished projects 2016 finished projects 2017 finished projects 2018 finished projects 2019 finished projects 2020 finished projects 2021 fitting giveaways hand knitting helens_closet house and garden in the sewing room kcw - spring 2013 knitting knitting for men knitting my stash life in a Northern town made by ma! my family and other animals patterns quilting sewing for girls sewing goals 2019 sewinggoals2020 sewing my own clothes sewing my stash sewing with knits sewover50 stash goals 2019 stash stories that bloody wedding! travelling yarn

Recent Posts

  • Best laid plans and all that!
  • DIY Oversized Shirt – Vogue
  • DIY Shell Tops – Cashmerette Springfield Top
  • DIY Alabama Chanin x Blackwood Cardigan
  • DIY Men’s Henley T-shirt – Patterns for Pirates review

Disclosure Policy

Occasionally I’ll include affiliate links in my posts.   If you click through and make a  purchase, I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you!  As you’d expect, I only recommend goods or services that I think are awesome and worth sharing.

THEME BY ECLAIR DESIGNS