Bridger's finished cross-stitch

In March 2005, I received news that devastated my Type-AAA personality. I was sentenced to strict bedrest for the remainder of my pregnancy, which was scheduled to last until June 1. I remember breaking into tears as I told people the news. How on earth was I going to sit in bed for up to 2 months with nothing to do? I'm the person who has to have something to do every single minute of the day, or I go stark-raving mad.

Well, I learned a few things about myself during the (what ultimately turned out to be) 6-week bedrest process. Most importantly, that there was something much more important than me and my wants - that little baby growing inside of me. My doctor told me that every day I survived on bedrest could possibly keep the baby out of the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) for 2 days. So, I was very lucky to survive on bedrest as long as I did because, although she was still born 4 weeks early, Elizabeth didn't have to spend a single night in NICU. And, according to his equation, if Elizabeth had succeeded in arriving when my pre-term labor started, she could have been in the hospital for several weeks, or even months.

The day after my initial devastation, I started to get industrious. I wasn't allowed to move, but there was no way I was going to waste away in absolute boredom for several weeks. I don't watch TV - especially brain-sucking daytime TV - unless, of course, UK basketball (or the Olympics, as I've been watching this week) is on, so I needed other options. Fortunately, I could do a lot of my work from home, so the weekdays went by relatively quickly. But, to combat boredom, I also decided to pick up a long-lost hobby - cross-stitching. I chose something to cross-stitch for my baby, and for good measure, also offered to make one for my newborn niece as well.

Fortunately, I haven't been restricted to bed for some time. But, I've continued with the cross-stitching, since I've found it keeps my mind and hands busy while I sit and watch TV with David in the evenings. Since my work schedule gets so hectic, I don't have a lot of time to devote to it, but slowly I've been able to continue. This past year, I've been working on a piece for Bridger, my nephew who was born last September. It was very elaborate, but I was determined to get it finished by his first birthday. Here's the final product, which we gave to Erin and Brad as an early Christmas present this past weekend:



The verse from Psalms is the life verse they chose for him at his baby dedication. It's very appropriate, since the heritage of his name can be traced to the mountaineer, Jim Bridger, who spent a lot of time in the "hills."

Now, I'm on to my next project - another baby cross-stitch for Amy's baby boy, due in November!