My niece, Kelly, lives in San Antonio, Texas and asked me to make a blanket for her son, Nathan, when he was approaching his 10th birthday! She sent me 30 shirts from family travels, day care and elementary school, movie themes and amusement parks. They provide a record of his varied interests and tell the story that he was always a child who embraced life. Adored by his dad, Joey, and his Mom, two special T-shirts record "World's Greatest Dad!" and "I Heart Mom." He is 10 now, but he won't be for long.
When kids are in their teens, struggling to break away and define themselves, determined that they aren't loved enough or understood at all, it is good to have something concrete to remind them that these feelings are momentary. A blanket that recounts the early years takes them back to a time before now. A time when someone had bought them their first rainbow cotton candy, had screamed with them on their first roller coaster ride, had read them bedtime stories and left the light on, even when there was no reason to be scared. It's a reminder of the parents who have been their biggest fans since the beginning. Those memories get cloudy when you are 16, but the blanket helps them remember. They loved you once a lot. They still do.
