I Knit this Bunting...Sort of...

I was so excited to find this bunting on etsy. The story behind it goes back many a few years to the summer I was 16. I attended an all girls Catholic school for high school and that summer I worked there as a receptionist/secretary. At the time, the nuns who taught there also lived in the convent in the big, old building. The first three stories were the school and the fourth floor was the convent. I always wanted to sneak up there for a peek, but I never had the nerve!

Anyway, my brother lived in Texas with his wife and they were expecting a baby (my first niece) in December. Living in New England, I thought that even a Texas baby needed something warm in December. I had seen this gorgeous Aran bunting on the baby I baby-sat for and his Mom copied the pattern for me. I was never afraid to take on a big project, so that summer, I decided to knit the bunting for my niece. I bought some soft creamy wool and brought the project to work every day. Between phone calls and stuffing envelopes, I would knit in my free time. 
Let me put in an aside here and say, the nuns loved me. They didn't have a lot of 16 year old girls who were into knitting baby things. One of them, Sister Margaret, liked to knit too and gifted me a little knitting booklet owned by an older nun. (I still have it!) My English teacher, upon hearing that I hoped to have several children, told me that she was disappointed, because she always hoped I might "have a vocation" (become a nun). I was horrified!
Okay, back to the bunting. I knit that whole summer and finally finished it. It was gorgeous, but looked a little, well, big. I was knitting to gauge, but the yarn I used must have been stretchy or something. I was so excited to give it to my brother and sister in law.
This story doesn't have such a happy ending, though. Sister in law didn't appreciate it and it was too big, so it was apparently given away or yard saled. WAAAHHH. When I had children of my own, I asked if I could borrow it, but it was already gone. I still have the old black and white copy of the pattern and fully intended to make another one for my children. Five children later, I never did find time to make it again. I recently dug out the pattern and tried to find which book it came from. It says "Bernat Handicrafter" on the pattern and if any of you know which book it's from, I'd love to know! Then I found this one on etsy and I had to buy it! I'd like to think that it's the one I made so many years ago. Now, I'll put it in my hope chest for my grandchildren. Maybe I can squeeze Andy into the top for a picture?
I hope you enjoyed this memory and seeing this lovely bunting. I've been very busy stitching gifts, but I'm afraid to post photos since my girls and my Mom do read my blog once in awhile! Thank you to my new followers. I'm happy you joined! Back soon!!