Living Dolls

The little picture above is Mi-Mi. Mi Mi pronounced ME ME was Kenzie's first (or second) baby doll. She moved in when Kenz was about six months. Mi-Mi lives at Mommy's. She's like a pillow on the bed,you can count on her to be there. Mi-Mi can wear baby clothes, hand me downs. She is easy to dress. (Dressing dolls is a skill, it brings a sense of accomplishment to small fingers.)

Nana bought MI-Mi on a routine trip to Walgreens. She was $9.99, a bargain, but her eyes are funny, one stays shut, unless you give it a little push.

Some months later I spotted a whole shelf of these same big baby dolls at the giant Toy Store. They were 30 dollars and did not even know how to wink.

Mi-Mi is quiet, but she's taking it all in. She's watching Kenz grow up, comforting her with that smile and empathetic look on her face.

The Group Photo

(Top Row from left to right) My Child, Lily, Henna, Gwen

(Second Row) Cabbie, Penna, Alana, Black Baby, Baby Alive, and Hannah (on Cabbie's lap)

Lily, Henna and Gwen have privileges, like riding in the front seat of the Barbie Jeep. They are sixteen, thirteen and seventeen. (Kenz's made up ages for them. They are actually only a couple of years old.)These three have blonde hair, but in different shades. None of it combs, it's too matted. Gwen has a braided pigtails that have survived being undone. Kenz doesn't believe in wasting time combing hair.

I like Gwen, she's the smart beauty. One day she showed up at my house, after living her life at Mommy's. She had on a satin blue dress that belonged to a fancy porcelain china doll who broke her head.

Lily is forgetful and not real bright, but she is always ready to join in a game of school, zoo or house. Her eyes are gorgeous green. She's lost her original outfit, so she wears whatever will stay at least halfway on. Lately, it's been a pink tee shirt that says LOVEABLE. (misspelled with an E)

Henna is fairly new. Gwen and Lily were looking for a girl about their age, when Kenz and I saw her, waving at us from the top shelf in the toy department at TJ Maxx. She has two sticky leftover bandage patches on her legs. She was injured in the 'fascination with band-aids stage.'

Henna has white teeth painted on, long eyelashes. She's a good listener. She lost her shirt, but she's got some great gold buttons on on her jacket. (Nana, have you ever heard of buttons that don't button.)

Sitting to the left of Lily is My Child. My Child has hair like my maternal granny did, perpetually fluffy. I think it's amazing that this was my daughter's doll, some twenty years ago. She is a softie. These dolls were famous in the 80's and have become collector items. For all the play that this one has had, it's neat how she almost looks new.

See more My Child dolls http://www.dollinfo.com/mychild.htm

Next time: More doll talk (the bottom row)

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Playthings

by Rabindranath Tagore

Child, how happy you are sitting in the dust, playing with a broken twig all the morning.
I smile at your play with that little bit of a broken twig.
I am busy with my accounts, adding up figures by the hour.
Perhaps you glance at me and think, "What a stupid game to spoil your morning with!"
Child, I have forgotten the art of being absorbed in sticks and mud-pies.
I seek out costly playthings, and gather lumps of gold and silver.
With whatever you find you create your glad games, I spend both my time and my strength over things I never can obtain.
In my frail canoe I struggle to cross the sea of desire, and forget that I too am

playing a game.