Riley Blake Called to Serve

This year is a year of milestones for my little family.  My husband and I will celebrate 20 years of marriage in September.  My kids will turn 18, 16, 13, 11, and 8 and so many of those birthdays will bring big celebrations and important events.  There will be a high school graduation and an elementary school graduation as well.  I’ll gain a new teenager and officially have an adult child.  Just typing that all out has me teary-eyed!  How did I get so lucky and where have all the years gone!

When I saw Riley Blake’s new Called to Serve line I knew it’d be perfect for this upcoming year of mine.  My oldest has already started preparing to serve a two-year mission for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  He’s attending extra classes on Sunday, doing the necessary medical forms, and is getting excited to serve the Lord.  As much as this breaks my mama heart to send him away that long, there isn’t another thing in the world I’d rather him do.

When thinking about what I could tuck into his suitcase, I knew a simple pillowcase would be perfect.  It folds up small, will wash up great, and will be a nightly reminder of how much his mom loves him.  Each night as his exhausted head hits his pillow, he will be reminded of why he’s there and how much he’s loved at home.  I love all of the uplifting sayings on this print and the message that he’s there to serve.  The classic simple designs are so universal and not too juvenile.  It’s just too good!

I used the Free Roll-up Pillowcase tutorial on the Riley Blake website.  I love that the inside is full of clean finishes so I can be confident that this will hold up throughout his mission.  It was a simple project that I think I will have to use in the future too!  I think it’s a great beginners project and one my kids would enjoy sewing themselves.

My youngest will be getting baptized this year and has just really begun to study the scriptures on his own.  He likes to read them at bedtime or sometimes listens to them on his devices too.  I sewed up a pocket pillow that’s perfect for holding his books or Kindle and will be a great reminder each night to do his reading.

Since he shares a room with his big sister she also got a pillow too.  I let them pick out which colorway they wanted in the temple print and which coordinates too.

This temple print is gorgeous!  The Angel Moroni statues are all metallic gold which I think adds such a pretty touch.  It’ll be fun for them to learn about the temples and identify which ones are on this print.    As we travel around the country, we always try to stop by and visit each temple so they’ll get a kick out of seeing the ones we’ve seen in person.

For this pillow I roughly followed a tutorial in Melissa Mortenson’s book Project Teen.  Her tutorial used a full size pillow but I wanted to adapt it to a small throw pillow size since my kids beds are full of all of their favorite stuffed animals.  This smaller size (12X17) was a great size to hold their book or their device and headphones too.  I loved that the pocket didn’t go across the full front of the pillow and I was able to customize their pillows with a little Cricut vinyl.  This was a great place for my kids to have some input too.  They picked the vinyl color and fonts.  I really try to let them have a little ownership over our projects in hopes that they love it all the more.

As we embark on this exciting year, I’m up for any and all advice you all have!  Do you have your own missionary?  Any tips as we prepare?  What helped you as a mom prepare?  I have a feeling I’ll be sewing my emotions away!

Make sure you check out this new line at your local quilt shops.  I keep thinking of all the great gifts it could be used for- scripture totes, quilts, church bags, or temple bags.  They’re good for newlyweds, missionaries, new converts, and more.  I feel so lucky to have been able to do a project that merged so much of what makes me ‘me’- my family, my hobby, and my religion.  Wish me luck this year!