Shower Me with Your Love

The baby shower for our daughter-in-law was last Saturday. The week before, Jim road his motorcycle to St. Louis so he and a friend could take a trip together. I decided to go up to Cincinnati last week, and then the two of us would meet in Indiana for the shower. While I was in the city of my birth, I was able to have lunch with relatives on both sides of my family. I haven't been to Cincinnati in over three years, so it had definitely been awhile since I had seen folks. 

Grandma Shower

My cousin Mary Ann was kind enough to let me stay with her, and she had a small grandma shower for me, which was super sweet. They gave a couple books, toys and a picture frame for the baby's photo - items for me to keep at our house for Baby Dub. They also each had a gift for me to take to the kids for the shower. But Debbie wanted me to open hers up. I first lifted out a little yellow crocheted cap. I immediately said there had to be a family story attached to it. She quickly acknowledged that there was. I next brought a little yellow sweater out of the bag, and it included a label. The label read "Made with love by Catherine Kubler" - my mother, who died in 1989. Mom had crocheted the set for Debbie's first-born, Nate, in 1985. Debbie had held onto it all these years, hoping that I would have a grandchild so she could pass it on. She wanted my grandbaby to be wrapped in her great-grandmother's love. Needless to say, we all broke down in tears at the sentiment. What an incredibly thoughtful gesture!

sweater set

On Friday I drove to Jasper, Indiana to meet up with Jim. We picked up a trailer for his motorcycle so we could ride together on the way back. Then we checked into our hotel in Jasper. We were able to park the trailer and bike at Megan's parent's house so we didn't have to haul them around. Megan's brothers and their families arrived at the house a little after us, as did Andy and Megan, so we were all able to have dinner together. I had them open the gift from Debbie, which was a good call as I teared up again as I relayed the story of the outfit's history.

Saturday morning we set up everything for the shower, with the guys lugging the tables and chairs around. They took off for a pub to eat wings and watch football while we attended the shower at the house. Everything looked great as the guests began to arrive at noon. We had sandwiches with sides, cupcakes and adorable cookies. We then played a game before Megan opened the gifts. As there were 30 people in attendance, this took quite a bit of time. They received some wonderful presents, and got a good start on outfitting the baby as well as the nursery. It was a wonderful, happy occasion to be sure.

Baby Dub shower

After checking out of our hotel Sunday morning, we stopped by the house to pick up the trailer and say goodbye. We had a long drive ahead of us, so we did not dally for too long. The drive home was fairly uneventful, despite the fact that this was the first time we had ever towed anything behind the new car. It took us 10 hours, which is kind of what we expected.

The kids will remain pretty close to home from now until the baby's birth. We may try to run up and see them once more before the Baby Dub makes her appearance. We are in the home stretch now!

A New Branch on the Wolterman Family Tree

Back in May I had the best Mother's Day ever. You might think that it was because we hosted two pickleball pros at our house for several days. Or that by volunteering for the PPA pickleball tournament in Charlotte I was able to see in person many of the professional pickleball players that I watch on t.v. and YouTube. But it was something way more exciting and long-lasting that occurred that Sunday afternoon. Our son and daughter-in-law called to tell us that we are going to be grandparents. This will be our first grandchild, so to say that we are over the moon is a vast understatement.

We were asked not to say anything about the baby for a bit. Like many couples, they wanted to get through the first trimester before making any big announcements. As they are a little bit older, there were also some additional tests that needed to be run.

All the big hurdles have been passed, and our granddaughter should make her debut around the end of November. We do not know her name yet, so we have been calling her Baby Dub. A baby shower is planned for September 24th in Indiana. I volunteered to make a couple of diaper cakes to adorn the food and gift tables. I had never made one before, but there are so many great ideas on the internet. The biggest surprise was the cost of diapers. Oh my!

I've got the cakes made and wrapped in plastic for the transport north in my car. (I should mention that I was asked to use a minimal amount of pink.) In addition to the diapers I have decorated the "cakes" with items the baby/parents can use, such as baby wipes and wash, Desitin, washcloths and towels, pacifies and holders, a baby book, etc. Even the cake plates are covered with swaddle wraps. I'm pretty excited about how they turned out, and it's nice to know that the centerpieces are made of practical items.

Baby Dub's diaper cakes

In addition to the cakes, I have made the baby a gift. I won't mention what it is until after the shower. I don't think the kids read my blog, but there's no reason to spoil the surprise in case they do. In a few weeks we will see the expectant mother for the first time. That will make the pregnancy more real for us. We are still pinching ourselves over the news.

And in late November or early December, the Wolterman family tree will have a new branch. I just wish our parents were here to celebrate the occasion.