lifestyle

Sewing: Sharing Talents Your Kids Will Appreciate

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Not being the crafty type, I never realized how much I would come to appreciate sewing. But all things DIY remind me of my mom and her resourceful, creative spirit. She is truly magical—a Mary Poppins type of a mom and seems to be able to create things out of nowhere. Her handmade skills got me thinking: "What talents do we, as moms, have that our kids appreciate and learn from even when we don't notice?"

For my mom, sewing is just part of who she is. My grandmother taught her to sew when she was little and my mom kept it up, making everything from our clothes when we were little to our curtains, table clothes, and all of my sister's prom dresses.

She started getting paid for her talent a few years ago when she started sewing for the local theater. And not just sewing, but figuring out exactly how to make costumes the come to life on the stage complete with era-appropriate attire.

During a practice for one of her latest plays, The Civil War, we sat together watching the cast learn their parts while she explained to me the challenges with each piece.

"The lead is 7 months pregnant, she shared, "so her dress would have to be longer in front than in back. And the girl next to her had a boob job and was really skinny." According to my mom, this was more problematic for a seamstress than you'd think. The list went on and on. I sat there amazed at both her excitement and knowledge of costuming.

The older I get, the more I see themes in my mom's behavior, many centered in her personality and the things she is passionate about, including her talents. Those themes thread through our family and are a legacy she is weaving for us. And I am sure, it is these very things that we will miss most and remember with smiles about her when she's gone (which, I hope, will be a very long time from now).

What talents does or did your mom possess? How did those talents benefit your family? And what traits or skills did they help you develop?

 

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An active part of the Mom It Forward team, Jyl primarily writes about parenting, social good, and all things travel related. In a past life, Jyl was an award-winning copywriter and designer of corporate training programs for Fortune 100 companies. Offline, Jyl is married to @TroyPattee; a mom to two teen boys and a beagle named #Hashtag; loves large amounts of cheese, dancing, and traveling; and lives in the beautiful Rocky Mountains. Topping her bucket list is the goal to visit 50 countries by the time she's 50.

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