Crafting A Doll Bed

Whenever Cloe comes for a visit we usually find time to do some kind of crafting. As we were going to play Barbies this morning the subject was raised that the dolls didn't have a bed big enough or long enough to lie in. So the decision was made to try and make a bed with what we had available to us on such a short notice.

Having just 8 X 11 paper as our only material on such a short notice I racked my brain to come up with the construction of a bed. Well a bed has four post and two rails to give it strength, so I rolled a sheet of paper in six separate cylinders, four for the post and two for the side rails. Once in figured how to tape them together, I assembled the bed. The bed still needed strength so I made two paper fans and used one for the headboard and the other for the foot board and a Styrofoam plate and covered the back of the headboard with a sheet of paper. This made it much more secured and the bed looked more like a bed. I also attached a sheet of paper over the side rails for the bottom of the bed. I was informed by Chloe that we needed to color the headboard so that the girls would want to sleep in the bed. I colored the headboard with pink and purple to make it more attractive.

We tried out the bed with a doll, but the weight of the doll made the bed sag, so I took off the sheet of paper attached to the rails and covered the rails with tape slats. One strip of tape over the rails and one under the rails and pressed them together and then replaced the sheet of paper over the tape. Now the bed was sturdy, pretty and ready for use.

I was almost excited as Chloe to think that with two heads together we could come up with a bed for her dolls. Chloe decided that it would be complete after she cut pillows from some dinner napkins and colored a sheet of paper for a bed spread.

We used tape to cover the posts on the bed to make it more finished looking. I tried to get her to let me color the bed brown, but was overruled by a six year old that girls wanted a white bed.

Now that  we have a completed bed she informed me that she needs another one.

Spring Is Just Around The Corner

We have had an extra cold Winter this year in the "Deep South." It has been below zero with the wind chill factor and several days in the single did gets. Some of our evergreen plants look like they won't recover in the Spring because the leaves have turned brown for the extreme cold.

Then in late February we got a teaser for a few days, as it warmed up into the sixties just to go back down into the high twenties.

March finally came and yes we have had cold weather in March but that only happens about every ten years or so, so we weren't wanting or expecting anymore harsh weather. We must have missed the weather report and on a Sunday morning I called to see what the temperature was and it was 61 degrees, so I dressed for Sunday Service accordingly. After our Sunday meeting when everyone left I noticed that it was a lot colder than 61 degrees. When I called Time and Temperature, it had already dropped thirty degrees and is said that we would have sleet and snow for the night.

When we woke up the next day, they had gotten it right and it was very cold and icy. This lasted for several days and finally it warmed up on Saturday to 71 degrees. Sunday was about the same and we told Chloe we would go for a bike ride.

So we took Chloe behind the house and across the lake to a parking lot where she could ride to her hearts content. She selected a circle and started her ride.

 

And as she rode her bike she widened her circle.

 It was starting to get a little windy and she was glad that Grandmother had made her wear a sweater just in case she got cold, but this didn't stop her riding.

 

She has gotten pretty good at riding and I think I can raise up her training wheels so she will learn to ride it before long without them.

The sun was getting in her face and she was glad to have brought her sunglasses as well.

She finally stopped just enough for a short break before heading out again.

She informed me that when you are going up a hill you have to stand up and pedal to get more power to get up the hill. So after showing me this she rode the entire circle standing up to show me she could do it.

When we got home from the bike ride she decided that she wanted to ride in her little red car before going into the house. She rode out one time and pulled back into the garage.

Tears were streaming down her pretty little face as she said, "Poppy, my little red car is too small, I can't ride it like I used to why is this." I just let her know that over the Winter that she had grown taller and that, yes it was getting to small for her. She let me know that we couldn't get rid of it, when Grandmother spoke up and said we will get you another little car. The last thing she wanted to know was if it would be pink.

 

The Witch Is In The Dining Room

An incident happened the other evening that brought back memories of a story that I had told Chloe of when she was about four.

Long ago when I was a young boy, my brother and I shared a bedroom. Our bedroom was between the kitchen and the hall leading to the rest of the house. Sometimes people would use our bedroom as a shortcut to get to the kitchen instead of going around thru the Living Room and Dining Room.

Sometime during the early morning hours I had awakened and when I looked across the room I saw a tall man with  an overcoat on. He was too tall to be my dad or my brother, so I thought someone had come in uninvited. I took the covers and pulled them up over my head, but to my surprise later when I looked across the room he was still there. After doing this several time during the night, I decided to quietly slide off of the bed with my pillow and to sleep under the bed so that he wouldn't get me. I slept here until morning, and as I heard my parents moving around I knew that it would be safe to get up.

Much to my surprise when I looked across the room where I had seen the man standing, was the hat and the overcoat but no man. Instead there was the hall tree (hat stand) with the hat on the top and my dad's overcoat on the peg just below the hat. My imagination had let my mind complete the picture I had formed in my mind when I had looked across the room.

I was so mad at myself when I found this out, because I had slept on the hard floor for several hours because of my fear.

So what made me think of this was, Chloe had left her winter coat here over the weekend and to make sure that she got it when she came on Tuesday, I hung it over the post on the Dining Room chair. I also put my coat on the chair next to her coat and put my hat over the top of my coat. When she came that morning I told her mother that I forgot to put her coat with the rest of her things and that I had put it here to remind me when she went home she could take her coat.

We did many thing together that day, played Barbies, played games on the computer and she wanted me to tell her some of the things that I had done growing up. This kept us busy into the late afternoon, when we decided to go outside so that she could ride her bike. I told her to get her shoes so she could put them on and she left the room to get them.

All of a sudden I heard her scream and before I could check it out here she was running back into the kitchen and about knocked me over in the process. I asked her what was wrong and why did she scream. Then she told me sh had seen a short Witch in the Dining Room and I needed to go with her to get her shoes.
I asked her, "Chloe are you sure that you saw a Witch or do you just wanting to get me to go and get your shoes." "No," she explained, "Come with me and I will show you what I saw."

As I went into the Dining Room, I didn't see any Witch, just the coats on the backs of the chairs. Then she started laughing and said, "Poppy these coats are just like the coat and hat that scared you when you were about my age." All I could do was just smile and give her a hug for remembering that story and let her know that I was sorry that the coats had given her a scare.

Making And Baking Banana Bread

It seems we can't eat bananas fast enough at our house and usually before they will go bad we peel them and put them in plastic bags in the freezer to make smoothies with later on. It has been such a cold winter this year that we haven't wanted anything cold but always welcome a good hot cup of tea.

So we had to do something with our bananas. Debby decided to make some banana bread, with nuts and chocolate chips.

As you can see, we couldn't wait until it got cooled down, we wanted to have a piece with our tea while it was still warm.

Cousin Time

I have several cousins that live out of State and I enjoy it when they come to visit. They range in age from their thirties to just over one years old.

I love to play with the little one but I have a "Special One" that when he comes he takes me horseback riding on his shoulders, we dance and he showed me how to ride the witches broom. We play hide and go seek and I forget that he is so much older than me.

Here I am sitting in Daron's lap. Don't you think he is so nice looking looking. Everyone says he looks like my Pop.

His mom and dad also came to visit my Grandmother and Poppy and then they asked my grandparents if I could spend the night over at my Pop's house. I was hoping so much for them to say yes and when they did I couldn't wait to get my clothes packed for the overnight stay.

This is Daron's dad and my daddy calls him Uncle Wayne and I do the same. He is my Grandmother's brother, so I could probably call him Grand Wayne since he is my grandmother's brother. He is so cool, and he is the first one to teach me about riding the witches broom. You just take a regular broom and ride it around the house and act like a witch or you could act like a cowgirl if you wanted to.

I go and tell Poppy "Thank You" for letting me go and spend the night at Pop's house, and that I'll be very good and you'll get a great report on how I was.

Maybe we will get to jump on the trampolene and feed the baby calves, or plays with Penny or Skye, Pop's dogs.

PJ's And Playtime

There is nothing more fun that getting to play in your Pj's and paint, color or draw. I love it when my Poppy sits with me and we talk about him growing up and we laugh as we draw and color together.

What's fun is to say let's draw a flower or a princess and see who's picture looks the best. Poppy has had more experience, but I am learning how to do it better every day.

Have you ever tried to draw on cloth, it can be done but the cloth like to wiggle under the pen.

Sometimes when we are drawing in the bedroom and Poppy is sitting next to the computer I have this little game I like to play with him. I don't think that he has figured it out yet though. It's called Distraction. I get up on the computer table and either stand up or sit down where he can't see the keyboard to type on the keyboard or see the full screen. It doesn't take long and he stop being on the computer and plays with me and holds me like a baby and tickles me and this is what I love. I love that one on one time with my Poppy.

He tells me I must not have been tickled enough today as he starts to tickle me and count my ribs. I know he is going to tickle me under my arms as I hold them tightly to my sides so it is harder for him to tickle me.

Poppy I'm glad that your holding me and now I am so tired can you scratch my back so I can go to sleep.

Love Ya,

Chloe

It's So Cold Outside, That I'd Rather Stay In

It has been so cold here this winter. We have had single digit temperatures for several days and the evergreen plants are starting to turn brown.

 

Chloe decided that it is to cold to play outside, but since it was warm inside she wanted to eat an ice cream.

I explained to her that she had on her meeting clothes and please don't get any Ice Cream on them, and she was very careful.

When she changed her clothes Chloe and Grandmother made some cookies and after taking them out of the oven Chloe helped to ice them.

 

And you have probably already figured it out she wanted to sample a few of them.

Then we got out the crayons and we colored for a little while. Chloe has been studying all about fruits in class and this is what she drew as she told me about these fruits.

Then we played Barbies for a little while and Chloe said that Arial was going to read us a story. Arial stood in front of the page while Chloe read.

We then moved on to the garage where Chloe could ride her bike around the truck, carefully avoiding hitting it.

Well I don't know how tired you are but it has been a long and busy day for me and yes I'm tired, but I wouldn't trade this "Special Day" with anyone ever.