To Finish Well...

I'll try not to get too sentimental in this post, despite what I feel in my heart :)

This business isn't just a venture that I started out with business-minded or financial-gain intentions. No...it actually started the day I finished making my kids' christmas presents out of a mens XXL wool sweater, and posting pictures of them and how they worked in a young mothers yahoo group of mine.

Many mamas were like me...dealing with bedwetting. Waking to soaked bedding, and frustrated that NOTHING worked anymore. Not cloth, not disposables...these children were super soakers! They were all so excited about the potential relief that wool covers might bring them, that I immedately had 5 orders, and had to run out and buy some wool from my local thrift store! After they were finished, I got 3 more orders from THEIR friends, and then began the trickle of emails requesting wool longies and soakers. I was excited to share my newfound love of wool, and morning after morning of my kids' bone-dry bedding made me a firm believer in this "wool miracle"!

I did a poll for my family and friends to pick my busniess name (Baby Snickerdoodles won narrowly by 2 votes...), and I created my etsy shop!

I love looking back at all the purchases on Etsy...both custom and instock. I remember every one of them. In fact, years later I was able to inform a mama selling one of my covers as a nameless "WAHM" cover, that it was mine because I immedately remembered it! I put time, sweat, tears, and love into every cover I made. 

As time went on, I got more adventurous and began doing appliques, changed my longies designs, created my own sizing charts according to my fans' feedback on their babies sizes, and created my own soaker pattern to meet the needs of the "fitted diaper" world.

Then came Etsy's fumble. Yes, it was very frustrating, but I found peace in the decision to leave Etsy and move to Hyena Cart. Wool being imported from other countries at an extremely cheap rate, was being allowed in shops within the Etsy community, and who can beat those prices? Etsy was no longer "handmade", and even now can easily be "Handmade and imported" as long as 3 clicks away you make a mention of it in your policy footnotes. It was time for Baby Snickerdoodles to find its home with other TRULY handmade items...so the jump was made. I purchased my domain name, and switched to Hyena Cart.

A few weeks later, still more adventurous, a dear friend recommended I get some wool interlock, and use it for trim. She even sent me a bag full of wool dyes she had used and didn't need any more! Now I was VERY excited! It was a bigger hit than I could have ever imagined...and I LOVED combining the two worlds of "interlock" and "upcycled" to make a perfect medium: an affordable, one-of-a-kind wool cover, with extraordinary fit, durability, and may I say visually adorable?? ;) It was one of the best decision I made at Baby Snickerdoodles.
 

Time goes on...our babies started growing up, and before we knew it, we had a houseful of crazy, fun, silly, adorable children, and were expecting another baby.

 This time around, I knew it would be different. I knew my creative time would become more limited, as the need for my affection and time with my children increased. My little "Rose" was born after a difficult labor, and immediately struggled with breathing issues. A persistent rattle in her chest for the first 5 months of her life, and permanent cold-like symptoms, saw me up so many times nightly, its pointless to count...and daily my other children needed their mommy. I would sew during naps, but naps were short as she would wake in coughing fits, or be unable to breathe well.

(She has improved GREATLY, and I am so thankful for that! She is such a sweet baby, and we will be celebrating her first birthday in 2 days!)

Homeschooling begins, life never slows down. All my boys are now at my kitchen table for 3-5 hours a day, and my sweet girls play and laugh with each other while I teach. I cook meals between lessons, and change diapers with kisses and snuggles.

I am so incredibly sad, to the point of tears, to think about closing my beloved business. A creative outlet, a blessing to other mothers, a source of income for my family...and so, so much more than this! But, the time has come, and I am determined to do what is best for me and my sweet family. I love them so much, and we had always known they would come first.

My sweet oldest once replied when asked if he minded me sewing all the time, "No, I kinda like it. You make cute pants for other people's babies, and so its good. I want you to keep doing it." My heart melted! This was for them, and if the blessings of it began to be outweighed by the sacrifices...it would be time to stop...and I would know it.

So here we are. 5 years after my first order. 5 years after my first pairs of woolies for my kids. 5 years after my first shopping trip with a basket full of sweaters. 5 years after "Baby Snickerdoodles" was born...I am saying goodbye.

Thank you all so much. I cannot describe the joy you have brought me, or the support you have given me through your comments, messages, purchases, and photos. You truly will never know  how much it has meant to me and my family. I wish ALL the best to you, your little families, and your sweet babies! Blessings, and much love from us here!

Love,
 Heather Hawkins
 Owner and Seamstress @ Baby Snickerdoodles