New Year Wish

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

One year

One year.  So much can happen in just one short year.  A sweet precious newborn grows and learns.  One day they are sleeping most of the day and love to snuggle up against your chest and the next day they are walking and saying "mama" and it melts your heart.  The year is full of firsts!  First car ride home, first bath, first time meeting family, first full night of sleep, first time eating , first time rolling over, first smile, first laugh, first tooth, first time sitting up, first vacation, first word, and on and on.  It is truly amazing to watch your baby grow and thrive that first year.
Lila a few hours old

Brendan and Lila on our way home
Giving Lila kisses (one of my favorite pictures)
Lila just waking up on her 1st birthday!
Lila being silly!
Getting a ride in her birthday sled!

We feel so blessed that Lila was born full-term and we were able to bring her home the next day from the hospital.  I remember saying more than once, "A newborn is totally different than a 4 week old preemie."  It was perfect and I wouldn't trade it for anything.  I feel so blessed to have gone through both experiences with my babies and was so much more grateful for Lila arriving right on her due date.


Happy Birthday sweet Lila!  You are a joy and bring so much happiness to everyone you know.  We all love you so very much.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

January Custom Orders

After my break for the holidays the month of January has been busy, busy with custom orders.  First up I made the Organ Awareness pins for several lovely ladies.  This pin is so fun I have to show it just one more time.


Next up I made a couple of the Birthday Hat flower clips.  One for my fun niece and one for my cousin's friend's daughter.  I love the bright colors and glittery embellishment.  Here it is one more time.



My cousin also asked me to make something a 6 year old would like that was cute and fun.  I recently bought lots of roses to restock and had to make her a white rose with a purple heart gem.  It will be perfect for Valentine's Day and year round because it is so subtle.

Next up my dear cousin wanted to buy some flower clips for her sweet little students.  She is an amazing teacher to these young girls!  I was even treated to a sneak peek of the girls modeling their clips.  Adorable.

My next order was also for a cousin (do I have the most supportive family or what!) and she was placing two orders!  Her first order was for her friend's daughter and her second order was for an auction basket at her daughter's school.
The yellow polka dot flower with sparkle button has to be my new favorite!  So cute for spring and summer.


The remainder of the month I am going to be working on some Shamrock flowers, ballet-inspired flower, and preparing for a Mom2Mom sale in March!  Thank you to everyone who has ordered and continuing to support Button Blossoms!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Paying It Forward 2011

Recently a old friend from grade school had a Facebook status about Paying it Forward in 2011.  The concept was the first 5 people that commented would be given something handmade by the poster and in turn they posted it as their status.  I fell in love with this simple idea and thought how happy it would make someone to receive an unexpected handmade gift sometime during the year.  It got me thinking how nice it would be to do little things throughout the year for people in my life and the first was to make a flower clip for a sweet baby girl to go with a matching onesie I found at Target.






Just picture the above on a sweet teeny tiny 5 week old baby girl.  Paying it forward was so easy and I encourage others to try this simple act in 2011.  Right after I made this and left to go pick my son up at preschool and kind man was driving a snow plow down our road and clearing all the build-up off the end of driveways.  I went to thank him and he said, "No problem.  The road was kind of messy and my mom lives down the street.  Just trying to help everyone out."  Paying It Forward.

How have you witnessed Paying It Forward?  I would love to hear your stories!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Happy Birthday Flower Clip

This was a custom order that I was able to make for two sweet girls.  What a fun accessory to wear for your birthday!  This flower is two large layers of hot pink gerbera daisy with a mini ivory and mini hot pink daisy layer.  The happy birthday party hat embellishment is a glittery accent to this fun clip.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Organ Donation Awareness Pin

This is my take on an awareness pin.  The colors for organ donation are hunter green so I paired it with a zebra layer and white daisy layer.  I think it gives it a funky look.  Not your "typical" awareness pin. 

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

The story of my mom

My mom is the strongest woman I have ever known. She has the most faith, the kindest heart, and the best outlook on life. Ten years ago she was exposed to mold at work and her lungs were damaged. She sought the help of a pulmonary doctor and was told to stay away from it and she would be fine. She has struggled to breathe ever since.

Fast forward till present day and she is listed for a double lung or right lung transplant at the University of Michigan hospital. Her disease progressively worsened over the last three years and this past winter she was put on full-time oxygen. This past summer she was told a lung transplant might be her only option for survival and this past fall in November she was listed. Her disease is known as Pulmonary Fibrosis. Some people get this disease and they have no idea why.

We have met many individuals over the last few months from attending support group meetings. I was skeptical at first. Would it be sad and depressing? Terrible stories about people with unfortunate diseases who didn't make it to transplant? These meetings are so uplifting and positive we always leave in tears. Not because we are filled with grief but because we see the end result of people who have lived to share their stories of transplant. They have since traveled, competed in the Transplant Olympics, walked up a flight of stairs without gasping for air, slept comfortably at night, and do not depend on oxygen anymore. They can go about their lives and not think about every single breath they have to take and struggle for. It was awesome to say the least.

Now we are in a waiting period. We wait for that ever elusive phone call telling my mom to get to the hospital. This call can come anytime, day or night. We pray for the call and we pray for the donor and the donor's family. We will thank them everyday for the rest of our lives for that one selfless act of organ donation. Once we get the call we have four hours to get to the hospital. Luckily we are only an hour away (less with no traffic). Once the lungs are taken from the donor they need to be transplanted in about 4 hours. The shelf life as they call. 4 hours. That is why lungs are so precious and there are so few done.

I have a list a mile long to call when it is "Go Time" our nickname for the transplant. We have themed shirts to wear depicting maize lungs on a navy shirt. My mom hopes we are not kicked out of the hospital during transplant. We will laugh, cry, joke, and pray. That is how we are in any situation. We must laugh and we must cry. That is us.

 Here is a little something I will be working on this year. Organ donation awareness flower pins. We need to raise awareness to help save lives. One person can save/help up to 50 people!
(etsy)
(halo heaven)

Green ribbon charm and hunter green daisies attached to pin. This pin will proudly be placed on my coat in the hopes of educating others about organ donation.

Sign up here to be an organ donor in Michigan and for more info on organ donation.