Happy Easter

The weather was great here on Easter - perfect for pictures. The girls were rocking their new dresses that I made, and I even got some smiles from Colin.

Cora is a great age right now. She really got a kick out of all egg hunt, and really plays now. so cute :)

Elise's Taggie Crinkle Toy

Elsie is always sucking on the tags of anything she can get her hands on. So, I figured I would make her a quick taggie toy.

I used whatever ribbon I had I had in the house, and used a potato chip bag for the "crinkle". I did not use a pattern/tutorial since it is just a square with ribbon attached. But - if you are looking for one - I just googled "crinkle tag blanket" and got tons of hits.

I did add a plastic ring to one on the ribbons. To be honest - I just cut it off a toy that we don't use anymore. I figured she could either chew on it, or we can use the ring to attach it other (open) rings and then to the stroller, etc.

And, the best thing is it took about 5 minutes. yay.

Finished the Easter Dresses

I decided a while ago that I would make the Easter Dresses for the girls, I blogged about it in my last post. Well, I finished Elsie's dress today (did Cora's last week). I like that they are different, but still have the same trim fabric. It was not a hard pattern - came from The Cottage Home I can't wait to see them on the girls :)

Sew Sew Sew

I have done tons of sewing the past few days. The 30 minute skirt got me really motivated :) The following day I made 5 more skirts. Some for my girls, some for my niece, and some for a friend. I can't wait for the weather to be super spring just so Cora could wear her new stuff. I am probably going to pair them with basic tees, make it easy.

Then today, I finally started Cora's Easter dress. I am making the dresses for both girls and bought the fabric a while ago, and knew I was going to us "The Party Dress" tutorial from The Cottage Home The tutorial was really easy to follow. I did make some mistakes - mostly with the sash. But, in the end - I think it looks just fine.

The tutorial used "fancier" fabric, and I just used a cotton - so I think her dress looks more dressy, and mine looks more casual. But, I am totally fine with that. It is not like I am using it as a flower girl dress or anything.

I will be making one for Elsie as well. Her main fabric is different, but the bottom/sash are the same as Cora's. I will share Elise's as soon as it is finished.

A cute 30 minute skirt

I have seen a couple of simple skirts, and since the weather is getting warmer; and because Cora really have no spring/summer clothes, I figured I would whip up on of these cute skirts. I knew I could just use "scraps" since the length of of the skirt is only about 12 inches.

From start to finish, it was less than 30 minutes. And, that is everything - picking fabric, cutting, pressing, sewing, etc. I really think I am going to make several of these for her spring wardrobe. I just added 2 yo-yo flowers to the shirt. But, I really did not attach them too well to the shirt, since it was not going to be "the" shirt. I realized that I have not one short sleeve shirt, so long just had to do for now lol

It really is just a gathered tube...I will try to do a pic tutorial for the next one that I make. But, it might be a while, since I have not even started their Easter dresses.

So, I learned 3 things today:
1 - Cora NEEDS new clothes for spring
2 - She also needs some spring shoes
3 - We REALLY need to seed our lawn

Mastocytosis

A few weeks ago, Elsie had a giant welt on her chest. We went to the docs, and he said it was *probably* a giant hive. Yes, just one. But, when it did not go away and kept getting irratated, the ped said he is pretty sure it is a mastocytoma.  But, to go to a derm to be sure.

We went to the derm, and it is in fact mastocytoma. She actually has 3 spots. He said it is not "rare" but is uncommon. And, then followed that by saying, "thanks for bringing her in, kinda neat to see something like that - we never get something like that"

What is MASTOCYTOSIS????

Mastocytosis (pronounced "mass-toe-sigh-toe-sis") is the abnormal growth of mast cells in the body (usually the skin). Mast cells are part of the immune system. The most common form of mastocytosis is when mast cells accumulate on the skin, causing reddish brown spots or bumps. In rare cases, mastocytosis can affect other parts of the body, such as the stomach, the intestines and the bone marrow. This disease is considered an 'orphan disease' because it's causes are unknown and it's believed to effect less than 200,000 individuals. It is typically pretty harmless, and in kids it is almost always completely gone by the time they hit puberty. Symptoms can include spots like a rash or hives, diarrhea, and stomach pains.   Taken from another blogger, Muffin Cake - she is a great writer, her son also has Mastocytosis.

And, here is a link about Mastocytosis

I am getting different opinions based on who you ask.  Both my Ped and the Derm both say things like "not really a big deal.  Just be careful with her.  Will go away on its own".  etc.  But, then I read about real people, and get VERY different opinions. 

Currently, she has one giant spot on her chest, and then a few smaller ones.  At this time, the spot get a reaction when touched.  And, when I say touched I mean just that.  Not rubbed hard, not scratched, not bumped.  Touched.  And, it is in such a spot that when you pick her up, you are almost guaranteed to touch it.  It swells up and get a yellowish raised thing.  It is like many many teeny tiny blisters forming one hive like welt.  Lucky for us, it has not broken the skin at all and does go down after a couple of hours.

I have included some pictures.  The first two are when a reaction is happening.  You should have seen my face when I saw it the first time, and yes it was that big the very first time is showed up.  The last pic is what is looks like without a reaction.  You can see that it is a brownish pinkish.  I guess I would say it looks like a birthmark.  Strangely, she did not have it at all at birth or at all until her first reaction.

I am hoping to learn more about this, which is hard since it is not too common (from what I have read).  But, I will of course blog about things I learn about