Missed It By THAT Much.

I suspect the title of this post will reflect my age and the fact that Maxwell Smart was one of my Dad's favourite TV shows. It's also perfect for the snippet of family life I am going to share with you.

Having set the context, let me tell you about my crafting 'miss'. It has become something of a family tradition to have receive a new 'Birthday Suit' to wear on the big day. Of recent years, this is often a request for a new Cute as Buttons design or some sort of Bespoke item. This year, Paddy's plans started out well:

• A red shirt with a desert and a bilby burrowing in a hole.

It moved to this:

• It's night time in the desert, the moon is shining in the sky, there is an owl flying over the hill and the bilby is sitting on the hill nibbling the grass that has grown there because it has just rained.

I was having some concerns about pulling that one off. However, at some point in the negotiations the plans scaled back dramatically to:

• anything you like with wheels and army fabric.

I am not sure if there was some intervention by Mr Button or Nanny or, if my wise little boy just took pity on me and decided I may have bitten off more than I could chew but, I must admit I was relieved not to be coming up with the desert scenario. I decided that a motorbike would do the trick and proceeded to work on it. I eventually produced the Vespa like design in the photo and ignored Mr Button's sniggering everytime I mentioned the Motorbike applique. I really wanted to use some more of the chenille pieces Miriam had given me so I cut the handles and wheels out of a mottled grey chenille which I thought worked well with the army fabric. Sewed, pressed and wrapped, I awaited his reaction.

The morning of the birthday arrived, one of his first selections was the present with the shirt inside. As the paper revealed the gift, a quizzical look appeared on his little face as he smiled and said, "Hmmmm."

Mr Button, sniggering again, asked if he knew what it was. Nanny, always the peacemaker, jumped in and said, "Of course he does Dad. It's a bike, isn't it Paddy?"

Relief all over his face, Paddy ended the conversation by saying, "Yes. It's great, Mum. Just not like any bike I've ever seen in real life."

So, the Vespa hasn't made the Cute as Buttons line up but I am proud to say my boy knows how to react politely when given a present he's not too sure about. He did wear it on the weekend and you can see it in his photo on the previous post. I had a couple of emails about the new design so thought I should explain. Seven weeks after the event I can now talk about the 'miss'. Mr Button, be warned, if I hear anymore sniggering I may not be so evolved.