A Real doll comes to our home!

On my last post, I mentioned that I still love dolls.  But I love REAL ones even more!!

On Tenley's first birthday, they were in Hawaii.

We celebrated almost a month later.

She wasn't so sure.

The toy tastes better.

We had several days of fun together!

Peek-a-boo!

Taking a photo of Nana!

I think Tenley will love dolls too!

She loved the playhouse under the stairs!

She loves to cook!

Jason loves my quiche so I taught him how to make it, pie crust and all!  He did a great job and has even made it since they've been home!

Recipe for the pie shell:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

Cut in 2/3 cup lard (or 2/3 cup plus 1 Tablespoon shortening)

Add 6 Tablespoons cold water, mix in with fork

Roll out on floured counter top.  Roll larger than pie pan.  Cut and place in pan.

(you could look at directions in a cookbook or on-line to see how this is done.)

This recipe will make 2 smaller pie crusts, or a double-crust, or if pie pan is large, just 1 pie shell plus a little extra to make a type of "knee-pletz" (k is pronounced).  Spread out flat, add cinnamon and sugar and bake a few minutes.

Recipe for  Quiche Lorraine:

4 eggs

2 cups whipping cream

3/4 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/2 pound bacon or if you prefer, as Jason, did, use ham

1 cup swiss cheese, shredded

Mix all together.  Pour into pie shell.

450 degrees for 15 minutes.

300 degrees for 30 minutes.

I had a big pie pan and it took a bit longer.  Cook until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Climbing the newly carpeted stairs.

She was just learning to walk when they came to our house.  Actually, now that she is home, she has given up crawling altogether and is walking all over!

We went shopping

while the guys went golfing in 100 degree weather.

She loves music!

This 'frig toy plays music and makes animal sounds.  So fun!

Swimming!

We have made stepping stones for the other grandchildren, so now it was time for Tenley to make one also!

We went out to eat.

The guys did pickleball.

We watched them for a while, then went shopping!

I enjoyed reading books to Tenley, singing to her, watching birdies outside together, and touching flowers in the garden.

"...but be filled with the Spirit, 

     speaking to one another in psalms

               and hymns and spiritual songs,

  singing and making melody with your hearts 

                        to the Lord;   𝆕

always giving thanks for all things in the name of our 

       Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father."

Ephesians 5:18-20

Sing little children, sing, sing,

Sing little children sing.

    God is good, He cares for you,

Sing little children, sing.

We played games after Tenley went down for the night.  

We have a blanket that has our family pictures on it.  This cracked me up when I looked over at Jason.  He didn't know what was so funny.

Oh what fun we did have!  

Tiny Tears and the doll museum

I have loved dolls since I was a little girl.  When we moved to the States, I was 16. My mother said I was too old for dolls and she donated my "babies" to the kindergarten that my parents helped with.  Can I say I was sad?  I'm sure the children there were delighted and I do hope they enjoyed many hours with them.  I shouldn't have been upset.  Most of the dolls I wouldn't have minded, but, about my special ones, I admit to crying. 

My favorite dolls were Tiny Tears and Baby Dear.  Here is my brother Danny, "onbu"ing my dolly the way Japanese mothers carried their babies.

I got Baby Dear for my birthday when we came to the States in 1962.  My Great-Aunt Hulda sewed lots of clothes for her.  I even got a suitcase just for those clothes!  Here we are, ready to board the Brazil-Maru for the trip back home to Japan.

The Baby Dear doll is based on Eloise Wilkin's book "Baby Dear".

It is such a sweet book!!

I played with dolls for a long time.

I think I'm going into 5th grade here, with my Pebbles doll.

I found out that some of the ladies in my community life group at church enjoyed dolls too. So when I heard about Paradise Doll Hospital and Museum in Towanda, which is close to our town, some of us made a trip there!

This lady has over 9,000 dolls in her collection!!  All sorts of dolls!

Look!  Tiny Tears!!

Chatty Cathy!  One of the girls at our dorm used to bring her Chatty Cathy doll to school with her.

My mother did let me bring my Barbies back to America with me so I had some of these in this collection.

My daughter had these.

My son had Alf!

One of the girls at our dorm had this one too, I believe.  It also had some red and yellow spots you could stick on the doll so she'd have measles or chicken pox!

The presidents' wives with their inaugural dresses.

This is the repair part of the shop.

I left one of my Barbies and my GI Joe (it was my brother's but I pretended that he was Barbie's husband when I was little) for her to fix their legs.

We were so grateful for the tour and for all the answers to questions we had!

It was such a hot day, so afterwards we headed to the local burger and ice-cream shop.

That very day, a lady who found me on Facebook, told me she wanted to give me the Tiny Tears that belonged to her mother!!  What a very generous gift!

One is never too old for dolls!

"He who is generous will be blessed.  

He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed."  

Proverbs 11:25