baby brother's baby blanket

ICYMI: I'm going to be an aunt! Again! My baby sister is once again expecting, and so of course, I am making baby boy #2 his own little ripple. His big brother got this one, wherein I alternated colors (lime green, aqua, and rust orange) between stripes of white.

I want baby brother to have a matching blanket, but also for it to have its own vibe. Again I'm doing light stripes interspersed with three different colors. But this time I'm using an ivory yarn instead of a brighter white, which really changes the appearance so much. And because he is due in October, I wanted it to have autumnal feel... but without it being Halloween-y. So for the colors, I am using a darker red, a milk chocolate brown, and a lighter red that is called "terra cotta." I really like the color scheme, actually!

This has been really soothing to pick up and work on, lately. It's nice to do something other than band (which is an endless hamster wheel for me). And I get peaceful vibes working on something for an anticipated family member. I try to weave in my intentions, so to speak -- my love and my hopes for this little boy. I think about baby brother lying on this ripple for baby pictures, or getting covered up with it while he's in his car seat. I think about him being a younger sibling who is probably going to come into a lot of hand-me-downs. I hope in the future he'll know I made him his very own blanket so he won't have to share it with anyone, or have something that was someone else's first. It's something his auntie made for him especially!

Of course it's a gift for him, but it's a gift for me too, because I really like to make ripple blankets.

It's exciting to think that come Christmas, baby brother will be topside; we'll know his name; we'll have a really good idea of his personality; my parents will have another grandchild to dote on. My nephews are a bright spot amidst the chaos of the world.