my sister and her husband had been able to watch their cutie of a niece for close to 2 years before deciding (with a third baby on the way) that it was time to give up babysitting. what a blessing it is for family to be your watch your babies for any amount of time- MY! all the genuine love and attention they got to give their niece! so, it only made sense that they would send her off to day-care with a special present: enter the "nap mat". basically, it's a sleeping bag, kiddie sized, with a cushy pillow and a soft blanket attached. they got it embroidered with her initials but still wanted to go the extra mile and asked me to do a little something, too.
here is what i came up with based on their request: 
hand stitched, ironed on, felt animals and her name. the animals are even cuter when you realize that each one represents little alex and her cousins.

if you know us, YOU KNOW! we love polka dots around here. so it was no surprise that this powder-blue, polka-dot fabric shirt would get a rave reaction from my husband. i'm not sure if i like polka dots because ricky likes them or because i always have... does it matter? regardless, we dress emily in as many polka-dots as we can. 
so because i felt successful after making my first baby shirt ever, i naturally made another one (practically) the next day. This time i thought i would document the process a little more. although, i don't even know why i bother since i never take the time to do an actual step by step tutorial and really who reads those anyway? don't we just want to be inspired by the pictures? am i just rationalizing my laziness? why blog anyway? what is my purpose in life... No. i refuse to do a tutorial. (however, i reserve the right to make a picture filled step-by-step post in the future)

Step 1: birth the most adorable model baby you can. check.
(pro tip: this step takes the longest)

Step 2: make a pattern out of paper. you can do this by taking a shirt that fits your kid and literally tracing that onto paper. i kind of did that and made some adjustments/plans as shown here by my sketch and the actual brown paper pattern made. 

Step 3: cut out all pieces.

step 4: assemble! i remember this part being more of a pain in my college days of making dresses for myself. i think its more enjoyable now because its on such a smaller scale. also, side note, i'm pinning this wrong in the picture and consequently had to re-do this. (seam ripping is also a lot less frustrating when the garment in 5 times smaller too)

step 5: admire! JK. try it on and make any adjustments. magically i didn't have to do this the first time but since i went a little "off the beaten path" with this one i did. I had to make the collar not so thick and lay flatter on her shoulders. i would totally make this one again and it would be way better- i think i might invest a little time in perfecting the paper pattern so i can make it again. 
(can you say baby shower present? whose next people?)