A Baby for My Baby

I've been wanting to make a doll for the girl for a while now. I've been sneaking a few stitches in here and there over the past few days so that she wouldn't see it until it was finished, and finally it's done! We gave it to her after dinner tonight and she got a huge grin on her face as she walked over to me and gave me and the doll an enormous hug. She sat on my lap and gave her doll so many kisses that the face was damp. :)
She carried it around a bit, but mostly wanted to sit on my lap and play with her (and kisses, lots of kisses). It took about an hour longer than usual to get her to sleep tonight because she kept stopping nursing to kiss the doll again. It was really cute. The doll even has a tiny diaper that the girl hasn't seen yet. The outfit is made of minkee so it's super soft, and the diaper is hemp fleece and flannel. I have a feeling that she'll be living with us for a really long time.

Awww, baby!

When we took the kids to MegaBabyStore to get their photos done, I showed the girl a little doll that was on a display near the photo studio. I was just hoping to engage her attention for a moment while her brother was having his jacket put on. She immediately took the doll from me and hugged it, then patted it's hair and said "awww, baby". The doll then got a kiss and another hug. By then the boy was jacketed, but I could tell that we wouldn't be leaving right away. The girl was now cheek to cheek with the doll, still cooing at it and saying "baby". We eventually convinced her to say bye-bye to the doll, and were able to leave. There were some sad noises, and a short round of tears, but it was over quickly and she was distracted by the cold wind outside.
Now I really know why so many kids have such a huge array of toys and stuffed animals. It was so hard for me to leave that doll behind when the girl clearly loved it so much. But, very soon she will have an even better doll to love and hug. A few months ago, I purchased the materials to make both kids their own dolls, intending to have them finished for their birthday. I ended up deciding to wait a bit longer, as they hadn't shown any interest in dolls or stuffed toys. Wouldn't you know that the day before their birthday is when the girl decides to discover dolls. Now I know what my next project will be.