Imagination

 How is it we raise chauvinists?  I mean really.  Yesterday when I brought these two books out of my tote and told the kids they were about dolls I heard groans from 6 year old boys.  Well, I hopped on that!

"Do you guys have action figures? Well, those are dolls." And one little guy said, "If that's true I'm never playing with THEM again!"  And then he said something totally inappropriate for this day and age and teacher said she would have a bit of a talk with him later. 

I then asked them if they have an imagination.  Yes, they said.  Do you use it? YES, they said.  Ok, good. Even though these books are about dolls they are also about people who have an imagination. And use it.

Elizabeti lives in a village in Africa.  She has a new baby brother and wants a doll to love like her mother loves her brother.  She doesn't have a doll.  She looks around and finds a stick but it's too pokey. She finds just the right rock and the rock becomes her baby doll and names her Eva. 

That got the kids' attention.  A rock? I looked at them and said, "Imagination, kids." 

Fanny wants a 'Connie' (read: Barbie) doll but mom says no. "They are too TOO" says mom. And I can remember feeling that way as I watched the age girls were given Barbie dolls fall from 8 or 9 to 5 and 6 and thinking the same thing.  She is too TOO.  But I wasn't as strong as Fanny's mom and caved when my daughter wanted one.  Thank goodness once owned the lustre wore off quickly for her.  

Anyway, Fanny decided to make her own Connie doll and proceeds to spend an afternoon sewing from scraps and yarn and clearly this isn't a true Connie doll.   Her friends laugh at her (and the doll.) Fanny is embarrassed but then comes to realize something she made herself has more heart value than something out of a box. 

One of the joys of Holly Hobbie's books are her illustrations.  Just studying her illustrations can take all day.

Speaking of things you make yourself, I thought I might poke my lost mojo with a stick by bringing the dreaded sewing machine out of the closet and onto the dining room table where it will be in the way, thus forcing the issue of doing something.  My intention is to make some pillows out of orphan blocks and the pink floral in front is going to be a pillow case for Elizabeth from the fabric she bought in Williamsburg.  I used a piece of it in her quilt so this might be an interesting pillow case. 

We have a chaise lounge that I had overflowing with pillows I've made over the years.  When the kids came for Christmas I told the girls to take them, "take them all.  I made all of these and they are now ready for new homes. Take as many as you want.  I'll just make more as I go along."  So they did.  There must have been 12-15 pillows. They took all but one so I was very happy.  I wish I had taken a photo of the chaise lounge before and after.  And here I am, my mojo project is more pillows.  But I find them to be much more useful than table toppers or wall hangings. I'm running out of wall space, too.

Yesterday I made a yummy buttermilk lemon cake. It was/is very yummy.  The glaze over the top is not one that sinks in but sits on top in a really intense lemony accent.  I buy bags of lemons and oranges and zest and juice them and freeze.  I discovered I have quite a few little bottles of both so will use them in this plus the buttermilk I want to use up.  The recipe is for lemon but orange will be good, too. It's a loaf pan thing but I used 3 smaller pans rather than one big one.  Better for sharing.