A Wee Welcome

Some dear friends of ours recently adopted their first baby -- it has been a long journey, but now they hold a precious little one in their arms!

They're in our Bible study group, so a little celebration was in order. I volunteered for the cake (Italian Creme Cake -- oh goodness, do I love that cake!), and thought a little decoration was needed. After viewing some ideas on the web, I went for a modified cake bunting. I used scrapbook paper instead of fabric, since I don't much like the frayed look of most of the fabric cake buntings I saw. Forgive the blurred name -- I have neither permission nor the desire to reveal this little baby's identity!

I didn't think my slender bamboo kitchen skewers would quite do the job for this one, so I enlisted a pair of bamboo knitting needles to serve as my "posts." A few strands pulled from a scrap of burlap for ribbon, and the bunting was ready to go.

A wee (though very hearty) welcome seemed very fitting for such a wee (though quickly growing) baby!

A Little Change of Plans...

I've been thinking. And reading. And thinking some more. 

While looking for something totally different, I came across a blog article about Pinterest. As it happens, I joined Pinterest recently after holding out for a  while, and I love it! We've had to reboot our computer several times in the past year, and each time I would lose my favorites. With Pinterest, I can access my "favorites" on any computer, and it's even visual. Score!

However, one blogger's article got me thinking. She has a blog that gets a lot of traffic (think millions of hits), because she also has a business. She posts pictures of her children on her blog, and is uncomfortable with the idea of her kids' pictures being Pinned -- it's such a very public venue, after all. 

I don't have a great deal of traffic on my blog, and most of the people who visit are you, my dear faithful readers. But since my blog is public, anyone can stop by. I'm okay with that, and have taken certain steps (not posting our last names, exact residence, or even the first name of our baby) to protect our privacy. Until recently, my husband and I were also comfortable posting pictures of our son.

But everything I read got me thinking -- I don't have the ability to ask Little Man if he minds having his picture plastered on the Internet (even if it's just my little bloggy corner), and I desire to respect his privacy. When he's 10, or 18, or 36, he may not appreciate having his childhood available for all and sundry to observe. 

So from now on, I don't plan to post pictures of Little Man, or any of his future siblings. I'm not sure if that will be a total nix, or if we'll decide that "nondescript" snapshots (hands, feet, from behind -- basically, pictures that could be anybody's kid) are okay. I plan to leave up the pictures of Little Man I've already posted, perhaps with captions requesting that they not be Pinned. And I don't intend to stop posting pictures of myself, since I'm an adult and can decide what I'm personally comfortable with the whole world seeing.

I hope you'll understand that this decision in no way reflects distrust of you, my faithful readers. But I can't control who visits my blog, and not every random visitor may be as thoughtful as you are!

I'm a bit disappointed to end up at this conclusion, since Little Man is by far my favorite photographic subject! *wink* But for the sake of our family's privacy, I think it's the right choice for us.

In other news, Summer has already arrived here in Florida, life with a toddler is delightful and challenging all-at-the-same-time, and tonight is pizza night. Oh yes, life is good! Time to get back to work on some sewing projects for a sweet new baby in our church...