Tonight we received our first piece of baby furniture. Even though it looks brand new, it’s actually nearly 31 years old.

My Grandpa Hromada was an excellent carpenter…not by trade but by retirement! He made many pieces of furniture for his three children. But he made one special thing for me: a cradle.

Here he is “christening” the cradle just before my birth.

We can either use the cradle’s rockers on the floor…

…or put it on the stand. On the stand, the cradle can rock or stay stationary.

As if it isn’t special enough to have my cradle for our baby, Grandpa left a little piece of him, too.

I asked my parents to find the cradle and dust it off for me some time before February. But I wasn’t expecting them to give it to us so soon! It’s making this baby thing a little more real to see a cradle in our house! :o)

The Hromada “hrocking” cradle