Nursing Cover Project and Farewell to a Friend

One of my dearest friends departs today with her family to travel across the country for a few weeks and then, God willing, to leave for long-term missions overseas. I am both very excited for her to finally be going to the country and people her heart longs to reach for the Gospel of Jesus, and very sad to be losing a dear friend whom I won't see again for many years.

Kellie has been a friend of mine from the birth of her first child 5 years ago through the birth of her most recent (4th!) little one, whose birth I had the privilege of attending! She was a support for me when Matthias died and has been a comfort in the years since. She never shies away from mentioning Matthias by name, remembering him and listening when I need to talk. I love her so much for that!

Kellie cooks the most incredible Indian cuisine. There have actually been fights over the leftovers at our Small Group. I will definitely miss her Chicken Biryani!

I have loved seeing Kellie's heart for the "T" people in Asia where she and her family will be going. These are a basically unreached people, with no healthy, reproducing church, less than .05% known Christians, and only one Christian there who knows the language well enough to present the Gospel! They are truly lost, and Kellie passionately wants to share the truth of the Good News of Christ with them.

I am really going to miss Kellie. I'm thankful for technology like email and Skype that will let us stay in touch, but more comforting than that is knowing that (as C.S. Lewis said), "Christians never really say goodbye."

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As a parting gift for Kellie, I made her a reversible nursing cover from an online tutorial at Shannon Makes Stuff.

I was looking for orange because I know she loves that color. The multicolor print is from Amy Butler's Belle collection and I bought it at Crafty Planet in Minneapolis. The solid orange was something I found in the quilting section at Joann's.

I really like this pattern. The boning at the top is slightly longer than most tutorials call for and I think that helps it not flop down onto your chest. Also, this is the only pattern I've found that uses a loop and tie for the neck strap instead of D-rings and I like that way more! The neck strap is also wider, which I think is more comfortable. I made Kellie's a little bit bigger than what this tutorial called for, because I know she's like me and would appreciate having any side and tummy rolls covered! Even with a squirmy baby, I think this one will do the trick.

Being reversible makes it a tad bit heavier, but it didn't seem like it would be too hot when I tested it.

I actually liked this style so much that I took apart my nursing cover I made months ago and remade it like this one! I love it.




Kellie, think of me when you nurse your babe! I love you and will miss you!