Dolls

Lori asked me about my mother's Christmases as a child. I really don't know anything about them. She said she recalls a story about my mother actually getting a doll one Christmas and it seems to me that it was a gift from the mission -- not a new doll, but a used doll, and she cherished it.

My mom loved dolls and vicariously through her daughters she was able to get dolls. I recall one year my father gave her a Gibson Girl Collectible doll which she set on top of HIS chest of drawers and she would carefully get it down and let us look at it -- never touch it. I think that's why she put it on his chest of drawers because it was so high that we couldn't get to it. This picture is a pretty good duplicate of that particular doll. Note the parasol on her right arm.

My mom also had a couple of dolls which she kept in the cedar chest that was in Deb's and my room. One was a Chinese doll with a china head. Another was a doll some missionary from Mexico had given her.

Then when we were old enough she started us on "collectibles" and that's where the vicariousity (is that a word?) comes in. She basically bought us a new doll for our birthday and for Christmas, and rarely asked what we wanted. She always made us feel like the doll she purchased was exactly what we wanted and couldn't live without.

She made sure we took care of those dolls, and even made some clothing for them. I know I learned to sew by hand by making clothing for those 8-inch dolls. Mom would give me scraps of material and I would design and sew the clothing for the dolls. Some of them were really awful, but I have to admit some of the clothing I made for them was pretty nice.

So, Lori, I hope that answers your question about Mom/Christmas/Dolls.

MTF