Today's project

I took this really hideous dress ... which I've had sitting around for two years (it didn't look so bad on line, but draped on my fat rolls in a very bad way, obviously not really made for a plus sized woman, but it was on clearance so I was stuck).

added some sunflower fabric, and made this.

I'll be making a skirt with the bottom part of the dress, and perhaps a matching dress for kiddo with the scraps of the dress and the rest of the sunflower fabric.

Blast from the Past

Huh. I was skinny once. I didn't even have a double chin. (DisGrace says I didn't have one in high school either -- weird, I can barely remember that, but she remembers when I was thin). And I thought I was fat. My how the years and pounds change your perspective ...

I'm on the left, obviously. I loved that sweatshirt. Not sure if you can tell what it says, but ... "I think I'm having stress!" and the zebra's stripes are falling off. Pretty much sums up my teenage years.

The other folks in the pic were partners for a project and our teacher. The person behind the camera was another partner, and she's the one who posted this to FB this week. Wild.

thanks for the birthday wishes.

Here's a present back.

Friday Fave Five!

Today's friday fave five is in honor of ... my birthday!

1. Kaje took me to lunch last week. Soooooooo good. Love that chicken green chile salad from Bajio (of course, now we're wondering if there's something in the salad that caused baby's hives ... hahahaha). She also gave me a yummy smelling bath scrub ... I've only used it once (Monday) and my skin is still softer than normal from it. LOVE it.

2. Kiddo woke me up this morning with a present: An aluminum foil box she'd made the perfect length for pens for my desk, with two origami creations inside. She's so funny.

3. Mom sent money. I got new nursing bras. Hallelujah! The girls (and my back) are so much happier.

4. DisGrace bought me some yarn. I'm in a "use up your stash and don't buy more stuff" game with my online sewing forum gals until mid-May, so everything I've created lately has come from my fabric and yarn stash at home. Her gift doesn't count against me (fortunately) and it will be used in projects that are ongoing. Plus we're going to lunch Monday, can't wait.

5. Hubby took us to dinner at Winger's, which is where we went on our very first date. Then we drove up past the temple where we took our girls right after he'd proposed the first time (I hadn't said yes yet) and later got married.

And that's that. Yay for birthdays! hehe.

p.s. I'm old. I'm 33 and found more wrinkles. Must remember to apply wrinkle cream every night before bed. And floss my teeth. oy.

Cloth diapers

I have a confession, to those of you who know I'd intended to cloth diaper our son.

I haven't.

I've been buying disposables, even though I hated it, for various reasons (which I'm not going to get into right now).

But because of various things, I finally have enough made/gifted that he can get through a whole day in cloth. So, today was our first full day with cloth diapering.

Before you think prefolds and pins and plastic pants, let me say that's NOT what cloth diapers are about anymore. I do use prefolds but just snap a cute cover over it.

Or velcro a diaper on that has the absorbent stuff inside it. I don't have a pic of those.

I didn't get the stash made before the baby came (a month early), and I just never did it. But we were gifted two dipes he can finally wear (from some online sewing friends), and I *did* stock up on prefolds and made some covers when those prefolds came in, so with the one pocket I made myself finish last night ... we had enough to get through the day.

I'd tried doing part days and half days and one here and there when we were out of sposies, but hubby sort of mocked them. "He looks like he's uncomfortable because that is a HUGE diaper!" Oy. Cloth isn't going to be as trim as disposables. Period. So, since it didn't slow down the baby's crawling any, I'm just going to tell him to stuff it if he brings it up again. lol

P.S. We had zero leaks and I'm really impressed with the stuff we do have ... looking forward to many more cloth diapering days ... and saving the money I'd've spent on sposies since I already have everything to make tons of dipes. lol. Plus, I like them better for knowing when he's wet; the cloth doesn't change character, but sposies do; the gel swells and looks horrible, and I can't imagine it feels very good either.

Hive free ...

*Knock on wood*

Baby has been hive free since late Saturday afternoon. I did talk with the on-call pediatrician that night because he broke out again about 2 hours after I'd dose him, but everything seems fine. He hasn't had any trouble breathing, etc. He's good.

Took hubby to the doc today, too -- trying new drugs for him. Wahoo.

Gotta go get kiddo from her play date. yay!

Holy HIVES Batman

So, I put the baby to bed early last night because he was sooooooo tired. Crawling must use a lot of energy or something, because the day before he had a 4 hour nap, getting up at 6 p.m., and still went to bed by 9. Wild.

Anyway.

Last night, he woke up screaming an hour later. I noticed his forehead and cheeks were a little red, figured he was a little overheated, and took him in to my husband to watch while I finished up the report I was typing. Finished that, went to the bathroom, blah bla blah ... Got back in with the baby and the husband and hubby said, "He has a rash on his cheeks." "He what?" So I start inspecting baby.

Covered.In.Hives.

I told hubby, and we took him to the ER. They gave him Benadryl (an antihistamine) and Decadron (an antiinflammatory), watched him for about an hour, and sent us home with instructions to get some Benadryl and give it to him every 6 hours if there is a rash/hives, but to bring him back in immediately if he started having trouble breathing or something. And to let his pediatrician know about it.

Not a problem, right? Except apparently, according to new label warnings, Benadryl isn't supposed to be used in children under two anymore (or to make them sleepy, but that's another subject).

After hemming and hawing about it all night (and checking on him every 30 minutes for rashes/breathing/cyanosis), I gave him some more when more hives erupted this morning, 12 hours after the first episode, because really ... controlling the allergic reaction and making sure he doesn't DIE, following the ER's orders, is more important. Plus, my nephew Bubba had taken it when he was tiny and he's still alive, so I figure he's safe enough.

I'll call the doctor on Monday.

I'm just glad it happened *before* hubby left for work with our only car, and that his boss and mine were understanding about why we didn't work last night.