happy birthday, cora!

Baby Cora had her first birthday on Sunday!  It's hard to believe a year has already passed since she was born ... honestly, it's been such a blur, I'm just glad we've all survived.

We've been keeping birthdays really simple this year with celebratory family dinners and whatever handmade gifts I can squeeze in.   Since Cora's birthday was on a Sunday and we'd spend half the day in church, she got a new dress and a necklace to match.  That might seem like a strange gift for a one year old, but this kid loves to accessorize.   I painted wooden beads from the craft store to match the polka dots on my fabric, added some glitter and sealed them with polyurethane varnish before stringing them on a skinny shoelace.  She wore those beads all day long (and everyday since).

I made her dress by altering the 12-18 month Flashback Skinny Tee pattern.  I shortened the bodice to an empire waist, added puff sleeves (gathered with elastic thread), a bow "belt" sewn in at the waist, and short skirt.  I didn't want any top stitching on the belt, so I cut a 2 inch strip of jersey knit, folded over and pressed about 1/2 inch, then zig zag stitched across the waist just below the fold line on the inside of the belt, similar to how you would open up and attach bias tape (attach the belt to the front and back bodice pieces before sewing them together). Hope that makes sense!  The bottom edge of the belt was left raw, then I attached the skirt to enclose that edge.  The little bow was hand sewn to the dress.

Since Cora is still crawling, the skirt is fairly short, almost tunic length.  My two skirt pieces were cut to measure 11x20 inches.  The cute knit is from the Doodles collection at JoAnn's - this collection is full of some really cute knit prints.

And since a short dress requires something underneath, I made Dana's Perfect Diaper Cover with ruffles.  I love a nice, ruffled baby bum.

Per family tradition, Cora got her first year photo banner, with pictures from each month (plus one or two extras slipped in when I just couldn't decide between pictures).  I've done these for all the kids on their first and second birthday - it is amazing how much they change month to month in that time!

Earlier in the fall I made this happy birthday banner (a la MADE or CINO) using my flannel and felt scraps.  It's been really handy to have in the party box and will get lots of use.

Cora's cake was super simple - just a single layer heart shaped gluten-free cake from a box.  I never have mastered gluten-free baking, but I can handle a boxed mix.  :)

We usually have our family dinners at my in-law's house, and my mother-in-law mentioned that this little piggy bib has seen a LOT of birthdays.  Sure enough, that's my husband on the right wearing the same pig bib on his 2nd birthday (even sitting int he same high chair!), and it was made long before he wore it.  I love that.

I love this little post-cake satisfied face.  :)

So happy birthday to Cora, our little pickle pie.  She is developing a feisty little temperament and has an opinion to share, and we love her.

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