easter dress

I might have a new favorite make: Mae's Easter dress!

When shopping for her dress a few months ago, I didn't spot anything I really loved, and I also didn't feel like spending lots of money on something she will only wear a few times. I finally decided to sew her a dress. So, instead of an hour of shopping and $20 on a store-bought dress, I invested weeks of sewing time and probably $30 in fabric and supplies. Makes sense, no? Oh well, it was the perfect project to christen my new serger and craft area, and I love the result! I also have the cutest little model.

The pattern is the Caroline Party Dress by Mouse House Creations in the 12 month size. This was my first time working with a PDF pattern, and I'm excited to try more! This pattern goes up to a girls size 12, so I see more Caroline dresses in Mae's future.

The fabric is a cotton sateen from the Gertie Collection at Joann Fabrics, and it's fully lined with a crisp Kona cotton. I omitted the tulle underskirt so my little crawler wouldn't get too tangled up in it. She never wears fluffy dresses, so she was very amused by the poofy skirt and kept playing with it.

I made the bodice twice, since I wasn't thrilled with the collar on the first attempt. Other than that, everything came together smoothly. The step-by-step photos were easy to follow. I had no issues with the invisible zipper installation. Surprisingly, I haven't really sewn from a pattern since my mom helped me make a lady-bug print outfit many years ago!

I also made a little matching headband using the smallest size of the bow tie pattern from Made for Mermaids. I was shocked that Mae kept it on for more than 30 seconds... She must have forgotten it was there!

I am excited to start sewing some more clothing items and getting more practice with my serger!

eleven months of mae

Eleven months already!

This month has been all about standing and cruising for Mae! She pulls up on everything and has gotten more stable on her feet every day. She frequently uses just one hand for balance, and is able to lower herself very slowly to the floor instead of plopping down on her bottom. She leaned how to clap at the end of March and often claps for herself when she successfully dismounts a standing position. I think she does this since I would clap to distract her after she fell so she wouldn't cry. At least it worked!

She really loves pulling up on Charlie's table and sticking her fingers in the bird cage. Usually if I walk near the cage he comes over and clings to the cage bars as close to me as possible, but when Mae is around it's a totally different story. He stays right in the middle of the cage and looks warily at her with some serious side-eye action. I don't blame you, Charlie... she's a wild thing!

Mae's diet now consists mostly of the 3 B's: bottles, bread, and blueberries. We offer her an assortment of food from our plates during each meal, but she's still a little picky. This weekend, she shoveled down a ton of ham and breaded fish. Either she's getting better at self-feeding... or Grandma is a better chef than I am.

She cut her first molar this month. That was a rough week. She has another one starting to poke through, but it hasn't broken the surface yet. Hoping that one doesn't cause too much pain, but I'm sure it will. She hates having her teeth brushed, but loves brushing her hair. I love her look in this photo... it says, "Aren't I so pretty?"

She loves dancing to all types of music: radio, church organ, baby xylophone, her beat-bo toy, and our singing. While taking her photos she started rocking side to side and shaking her head (her signature dance move) and accidentally bonked the side of her face on the crib bars. This resulted in a full-on meltdown.

Luckily Dada was there to make it all better.

Mae has also learned to record her favorite shows on the DVR this month. Not sure how, but she managed to set a series recording for "Teen Titans Go" while I was letting her play with the remote once. I barely even know how to set recordings. She's clearly gifted.

You are one silly little girl, miss Mae! Looking forward to your first birthday next month!

happy easter

Happy Easter! We had lots of quality family time at my parents' house this weekend, including lots of cousin time for Mae and Oliver.

We took hundreds of photos this weekend, but it was impossible to get both babies looking at the camera and smiling at the same time. It was almost comical flipping through the photos and watching one smile exactly as the other one looked away from the camera. Without fail! Fortunately, we still got a bunch of great ones.

Saturday, we took advantage of the beautiful weather as Mae and Oliver enjoyed taking turns in the baby swing. They also had tons of fun playing with (and in) Grandma's basket of play food. There were plastic hamburger fixin's scattered everywhere!

Sunday, we went to church, took tons of baby photos, and stuffed ourselves full of ham and candy. Mae didn't get a chance to meet the Easter bunny this year, but he brought her a well-stocked basket full of her favorite finger foods!

I can't get over how cute Mae looked in her Easter dress and bow. More photos soon!