Handmade Milestones

So my babe B took his first real steps yesterday. 12 of them. Then he took some more today and I snapped this photo. You can tell from the skewed background that he is still in the very early phase of barely-walking-mostly-falling, but in this house we're calling him a toddler already.

When I looked at this photo after all the kids were in bed I realized that my little man was wearing pants that I made him when he took some of his first steps. Curious, I looked through other photos and found Mr. B climbing a park bench in mamma made pants here:

and crawling in these mamma mades here.

I have photos of my older son doing the very same things in the very same pants, and this makes me smile. Not only because wide legged pants are completely on trend (ha!), but because for me, making these pants was another way to love my boys. Like all people invested in handmade, I used my hands and my heart when sewing these tiny garments, and I know that part of me was with Mr. B when he reached the milestones documented above. I feel similarly when I tuck my children under handmade quilts at night. It's as if even after I leave the room I know that there is a piece of me left behind to dream along with them.