Holly, Dolly Christmas

I will be spending a quiet and restful Christmas vacation at home.

I am planning on having a holly, dolly Christmas!

On December 6th,  Santa made a quick stop for St. Nicholas Day.
He let Ella know that he would return by leaving her a fire engine,

and a Little Little Golden book about fire engines. 
The fire engine is now a symbol for Santa because we met him
in the Santa Fe plaza on an older fire engine with other fire fighters
the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Santa also left a Hallmark Kiddie Car Classics 1929 Roadster.

My PukiPuki expected around March should be able to use it.

A big part of my holly, dolly Christmas will involve

the construction of this dolhouse kit.
When I first opened it, I thought

"What have I gotten myself into!!!!"

I have now looked at the pieces and the directions more carefully.

It seems do-able, but I am really glad I didn't get a bigger house!

My word for this project is "manageable".

Getting Started
Building the Dollhouse

My interest in my dollhouse and in dollhouses

led me to explore the world of Tasha Tudor.

 I purchased 

"Tasha Tudor's Dollhouse: A Lifetime in Miniature"
by Harry Davis and Jay Paul.

I am enjoying learning about Tasha Tudor and her relationship

with her special dolls.

When the dollhouse was built by experts to house her collection,

Emma and Thaddeus, made by her,
moved in and became representatives of her unusual life,

shared on display with museum visitors.

My Tasha Tudor collected images on Pintrest
http://www.pinterest.com/trobertabq/tasha-tudor/

Then, there was this practical matter

of my having a wonderful kit, but not being an expert.
"How to Make Your Dolls' House Special"
by Beryl Armstrong was affordable and well reviewed.
It seems to have some good tips.

FICTION

I found the image of an older fiction book

called "The Dollhouse Caper" by Jean O'Connell.

I found a used copy for only a few dollars.

I am still waiting for it to arrive.

I discovered "The Very Little Princess" in the school library.
For a few more dollars, these short chapter books 

will be added to my doll book collection.

PICTURE BOOK

I teach second grade.

Last week, one of my students checked out

"Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas".

I have not been too into this character as she is so excessively

a girly girl. However, I read this book aloud to my class and 

delighted over how cute it was.

Especially her doll.

Fancy Nancy's doll Marabelle was on one page of the story,

but this girl knows how to spoil her doll!

I found out that there is a Fancy Nancy book about her doll. 

Her pirate loving younger sister tatoos Marabelle with a pen.

What doll lover has not had to deal with ink stains 

or clothing stains on a beloved doll?

I'm interested in seeing how Marabelle is loved,

how Nancy's distressed, angry and hurt feelings are handled,

and if the ink ever comes off of the doll.

Ah, yes! Ella!

My special doll is waiting for Christmas to arrive.

Ella will be getting a Zapf mini world baby doll.
Some of the clothing has arrived, but the baby

is not expected until next week.

Whose clothes are these?

Ella is in line for more Spampy Clothes.

She hopes that it will be her turn soon,

although I don't know if her order will be

completed and arrive before Christmas.

Three pairs of sneakers are on their way.

Under miscellaneous impulse purchases

I found a nice printed cardboard house

for Zapf mini world baby dolls.

I have not found another one like it online.

The closest I found came with the Zapf advent calendars,

so it may have been a part of a similar set.

I thought it looked like a fun, decorative set.
I can't wait to take my own picture of it when it arrives!

I also found this Viking paper doll set.
I loved the illustrations!
They reminded me of the movie

How to Train Your Dragon.

Christmas season for me has become more of a month long

holiday dolly binge.

It is time to focus on my dollhouse and what it will need,

and enjoying some restful time in dolly play.