THE FIRST NEW YEAR CATCH UP

2018.... only seems like yesterday it was the year 2000 ! So  New Year , so a new beginning!

Firstly I must apologise to anyone who sent me a Christmas card and has not received one from me. Due to coming down with a very bad cold for nearly three weeks, I totally lost the plot of who I had and who I had not sent cards out to, so gave up. I will endeavour to do better next year!

Lots of people make resolutions, I used to but would always find I've broken one before the end of the first or second day! So no more resolutions... but I've decided to make a list...
of things I would like to have happened by the end of this year.

I love making lists, usually mark a few things off quick  and then it's never seen again for several months or years , when I find it and look at what we hoped to do and what and when we did certain things! it's quite interesting to see what was done and what is still , years later , outstanding!

But this time I'm going to put the list in the back of this year's note book and I am going to take my time, at least this month, to write it.
There will be one related to the house and garden and one that's just mine related to things I need to get done.

I'm not going to add to it , which I would normally do, just mark off anything achieved and the month. It will be interesting to see what get crossed off and whats still outstanding at the years end.



We have a very exciting year ahead because our youngest daughter is expecting our first grandchild !

The baby is due late Feb, so not long to wait now. We have been very good and have only just started buying a few things for the baby! In fact the first things I bought were these two board books. I think it's so important to introduce babies to books at the earliest opportunity and both my daughter and her husband are readers, so I am sure this child will have a great selection of books as she/he grows.

I will of course share more when the time arrives ! You can see that I have already started knitting!


Now I have a few dolls in the works, at present , no Sasha's , although there is one that may come up sometime this year but she's the only Sasha I will buy should I be given the chance. I did buy a Sylvia Natterer that I bought just before Christmas and she arrived this week.

I thought she'd be a good  addition to that group.

Whenever I have seen this face sculpt, they usually have a high forehead , so this girl I loved as she does have a lovely fringe hiding her hairline.

But I do have a few in the works from last year, so these still have to arrive but I am going to try and limit the amount of dolls arriving this year but it will be a very hard task.. I'm a sucker for a pretty or handsome face!


 But impulse buys ..there the ones I really need to stop. I'm feeling very good at the moment as there was something I was thinking of bidding on but I resisted ! I did not need it and resisted. I may keep a running total of the items that really tempted me but that I managed not to buy and see just how much I have saved over the year!

However I am always on the look out for props and things of the right size for the dolls. I will share the ones I find with you.

So first up this year, is the company Maileg. This is their box of groceries, all made of wood and stored in this great wooden box.

Inside you get a box of cereal, tomato sauce , sausage, baguette, milk, cheese, beans, coffee and jam so ten items including the box. All the things in front of Bruno.

I bought this from ebay but check out the prices as this was £10 cheaper than the same item being sold by others.

From their Kitchenware range I purchased this.

Called tea and biscuits, you get two cups with saucers , a teapot , a plate , six biscuits and a paper bag. Again a good size for the dolls.

The six little biscuits would work well with smaller dolls too!.


On a more serious note, about the world wide web. It is a wondrous invention , that has allowed people from all over the world to become 'cyber friends'. We may never actually meet each other or we may. We may have known each other before or not. But it can also be a dangerous place where people with issues or axes to grind will cause trouble and distress to others.
That friendly helpful person , may not be as friendly or helpful as they appear. They may give you their opinions on other peoples character or behaviour, which could then colour your judgement on that person. It can be done in such a way as to make you believe that the person telling you this is one of 'their' victims or that they 'felt' you needed to know the 'truth' . I would say only this. You should go with how YOU feel about the person, you should look at, is there a reason this teller of tales would like to turn you from your friendship with the other person and finally if they have told you something that they say is the other person opinion , you should contact that person and ask them if it's true.

We do not know what others in the www are up to, we do not have that meeting, face to face,  where we can maybe get a feel for that person or listen to them speak , where a few warning signs may alert us to beware. Personally I would ask just this, if ever anyone tells you something about me , just email me and ask, the one thing I live by is being honest. I hate liars because of the distress or damage they can do.

Now before you think.. oh what's happened to Dee ! Please don't worry, nothings happened to me ( recently that I know of! ) but I am aware that even in doll groups, there are people who delight in turning people against each other.

And there endeth the lesson  !


Moving on... I'm now in two minds whether to continue Granny's Christmas story or put it on back burner until next Christmas and just do a new one......?
I have bought something already this year... I know! that's why I didn't make any resolutions! ..... that's fired up my imagination for future stories, I'm really looking forward to being able to start these stories in the spring.

I told Paul I needed a decent backboard for my dolls stories, so we went to the local hardware store and bought two pieces of board 4 ft by 2 ft and a length of angled wood and today Paul's started putting it together.

Yes I know it looks enormous but with dolls I have are sized from 6 inches to about 22 inches ,so  it needs to be! and these are the two smallest lengths!
It will have a 4 foot side with a 33 inch side and then the little off cut , seen here on the right and be 2 ft high. Now knowing I needed a good backdrop I bought some dolls house wallpaper... yes that's what I said dolls house !.... you can stop laughing! I didn't realise just how big I'd land up having, so now I'll need to rethink what I use paint or paper or fabric!

So that's what's been happening round here so far this year, have a great week ahead and stay warm!!


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