This Spring my husband and I are going to start the process of domestic infant adoption :D I'm very excited, and I really would like to start on a baby quilt project that will journey me through the sometimes long and stressful adoption process. I think a quilt will keep me focused on the end goal and give me faith that there will be a baby here, no matter how difficult this road gets.

Ok, so, that said. I'd like to do a Sunshine and Shadow pattern because they're so beautiful, I love the tradition of them, and because -this is deep- shadows prove that there are actually sun rays. Even though we don't actually physically SEE sunshine, we trust that it's there because of the shadows. It gives us hope that the sun is actually shining, even in the dark places. I'll need that hope as we go through this process.

We don't have any idea if it will be a boy or a girl, so I'm trying to decide on colors that could work either way. I prefer pastel colors to bolder ones. Any suggestions would be great.

Thanks!
Kat

How about traditional pastels: pink, blue, yellow, mint green, lavendar, You could do those as your lights and then a rose, deeper blue, gold, sage green, purple as your darks....just a thought. By the way, God bless you for pursuing adoption. I was adopted as an infant over 50 years ago and I thank God for my adoptive parents and my birth mother who was strong enough to make a hard choice for her baby. Praying for you through your journey.

Kat, that's wonderful!! Your attitude is very realistic too.
I also love sunshine and shadow.
Not sure what kinds of fabrics you have in mind but pastels in cute animal/novelty prints would be cute for a boy or a girl.
Keep us posted! :D

Perhaps you could use the colours of the rainbow....there's supposed to be a pot of gold at the end of each one...perhaps your rainbow will have a basket with a baby.

All the best.

that is such a great idea hope all goes well and quickly

Keep us posted as you go. We took this journey 31 years ago and then again 28 years ago. When we're all together - like sitting on the church pew for holidays - I look down the row at my blessings and smile just a bit knowing the only biological connections are between my children and their children, but oh the ties that bind!

I like the pastels with the darker versions for a Sunshine/Shadow quilt.

What an amazing gift for both of you!

Thanks for the encouragement! I LOVE hearing from those who've adopted and those who were adopted. We have one biological son, but we'll be adopting all future kiddos. I'm so excited.

Also, thank you for all of the great suggestions. I was trying not to make it too girly in case the baby is a boy, but then looking at my fabrics, I had too much baby blue and chocolate brown (which look great together), and it made it a little too masculine. I love the rainbow ideas. And to whomever suggested including mint green: GREAT idea! That's my favorite.
Thanks!
Kat

Like JanTx, we also did this same journey 24 years (exactly-today is his birthday) and 20 years ago...we always felt so blessed to have been able to adopt 2 sons. We were on a waiting list for 10 years before we adopted our first, and then we were in a 'lottery" drawing for our second (they chose 8 couples out of about 80 to be studied that year)...I give the young birth moms lots of credit for making the decision they did..and am so thankful for the joy the boys have added to our lives.
There are so many colors you could use that would work for either a boy or girl...as long as you are happy with the colors it will be the perfect quilt!
It is a long process...but worth every minute of it...best of luck to you!