A Handmade Birthday Present

With the holidays and Grace's birthday being so close together it makes gift giving a bit challenging. You see, Grace isn't one of those children who seems to want everything that she sees in a store or catalog (you may remember her short list for Santa this past year). When we asked her what she wanted, her response was always, "I don't know". So this left Dean and I in quite a predicament.

After a bit of brainstorming I came up with the idea of giving her a pair of dolls (Grace had occasionally requested a handmade doll of her own since helping me make dolls for a Craft Hope project) and a bed for them to sleep in. Dean seemed to like the idea, so I went to work - making dolls and their clothing (patterns here), mattresses, pillows, quilts and a little schnauzer (pattern here). The bunk bed was handmade too, not by us (well, Dean put it together), but by a craftsman in Maine that sells on Ebay (found here).





Thankfully, Grace enjoyed her handmade birthday gift. She can often be found incorporating the dolls into her daily play - which without a doubt makes her Mama's heart smile!