Special Childhood Toys

A few other gals have been digging out their old dolls or toys and showing them on their blogs. Great nostalgic memories. And of course, I LOVE nostalgia. (Really? Hard to tell. LOL)

So I just had to take pictures of some of the things I still have...and some I've gotten back, thanks to the internet.

This is my Raggedy Ann doll. She is missing her apron and little pantaloons. I have no idea what happened to them...but I have kept this doll all these years because she is special. Mostly because she is one of the few stuffed/rag type dolls I was able to keep. My Mother (she was trying to help) was told by my Pediatrician to get rid of all of the stuffed animals because I had an allergy. So, out went ALL of them, except for a few. What I really miss is my velveteen Mickey Mouse doll...but I understand. Luckily though, I still have Miss R.Ann.
And recently I found this tiny little doll that matches exactly! So, I had to buy her.

This yarn doll holds a very special memory. One day I was home sick from school and my Mom stayed home with me. She came into my room with some yarn and scissors and we made this little doll together. Priceless! I've kept him, too.

Now this Winnie the Pooh has been with me for a long time. I think he might have come from SEARS but I'm not sure. Maybe my Grandmother gave it to me? He's too cute now with his quirky "smile."

And this guy was really really special. This soft, fuzzy, little lion hand puppet.

I named him Rufus. I must have been 3 or 4? Where I came up with or heard the name Rufus, I'll never know.

And last, but not least (for today), this is my Sunshine Family Craft Store and the dolls. I had so much fun with this store and the dolls. This was in the 70's when the gas crunch, and the Mother Earth lovers were a trend. So, "BEING GREEN" is nothing new. I was being earth friendly while playing with my dolls way back then.

Now I must confess, some of these items are original and some I've had to buy elsewhere. My actual store was destroyed by the damp conditions of our basement. I found a brand new store still in the original box, unassembled on the internet. What a fun memory when I put it all together again. The only things missing are the original stickers I had placed around the store like the store sign, etc. The original little red haired baby I lost in the shuffle of life, but found this one at a yard sale. It was in a box full of little doll items and I had to talk the woman having the sale into selling me just the one little red haired doll. She finally said oh you can just have her for a dollar! I was thrilled. The whole set was coming back together again.

The whole point of this store and of the dolls I guess, is to make things using items found around the house. Recycling or re-purposing I suppose. So, the above items I actually made and I still have in my possession. Little store paper bags, a woven placemat (made out of leftover yarn from my Mom's rug hooking kit,) a beaded bracelet, a plant stand...and more. I just loved coming up with new stuff to "sell" in the store. Gee, that sounds familiar.

I also played Barbies with my Sister...which I would love to blog about in a future post. I've saved a bunch of stuff we used to play with. What crazy fun we used to have! More later...