Girlhood and Dreams

     When I was a young child I, like many other children, had a special friend that I took everywhere and loved very much.  For me it was Raggedy Anne.  We played together in my imagination, and at night I snuggled under the covers holding my cuddly friend in the crook of my arm. She had big black button eyes with eyebrows and lashes painted on as well as a painted on triangle for a nose and shy smile.  She had red yarn for hair, a flowered dress with a white pinafore over it, red and white striped stockings and black shoes.  I loved her then, and find that in looking back I identified more with her than with the Barbie fashion dolls and baby dolls I also played with. I can't believe I still have her!  When we cleared out my parents house at the end of  their lives, there were some boxes in the attic with toys that they had stored there.  There were a few of my dolls, (no Barbies), and my nap blanket that I used in kindergarten at rest time.  I guess my parents couldn't bear to part with a few things that their little girl held dear in her girlhood days.  Raggedy Anne's dress and face are a little dirty, there is a water stain at her hairline on one side of her face, half of her hair on the back of her head is worn off, and there are stiches in her shoes where my mother lovingly mended the worn spots.  She is well loved and I found her recently when clearing out some things around the house.  She is a reminder of the love and security I felt when I was very young. I don't think I can part with her.

    When I was growing up, I had a recurring dream about a witch chasing me.  I can still remember it, a witch was chasing me riding her broom as I ran through the neighbor's house chasing after a little black and white dog.  How very strange!  I don't remember having any other recurring dreams the rest of my life, funny I should remember that particular dream.  I do occasionally have odd dreams that leave me foggy headed and wondering what they were about when I'm waking up.  Like gossamer threads they float away and disappear, and the mist left behind dissipates as I stretch and get out of bed, although some impressions remain for a bit. Some are really perplexing, like dreaming that I am driving a bus or something that suddenly turns into a house that is my house, but not like any house I have ever lived in, or that I overslept but in reality I haven't and it's the weekend anyway so don't have to be up any specific time.  Dreams are funny things--I remember my father told me one time that he had a dream he was being run over by a lift truck when he was in the hospital and a medical machine down the hall was beeping. The unconscious mind is a mysterious thing!

    There are, of course other types of dreams, such as daydreams and what we dream of happening in our lives in the future such as dreams of being a famous author one day. Ha!  Well, a girl's gotta have a dream, as they say! Never say never.

                                  My Raggedy Anne. She was very loved.  

A Wrap Up of September Celebration

It seemed to me like September was just a blink of the eye.  It was an eventful month so maybe that's why it seems to have passed so quickly.  It started with Labor Day and the little cookout I hosted and was followed by a 30th birthday party for Hillary.  There was a lot of planning and preparation and hoping for nice weather.  It all paid off and the day was a huge success with beautiful weather which was warm and sunny with a bit of a breeze.  The birthday girl was very happy that day and fully enjoyed the festivities and attention from family and friends. I couldn't have asked for anything better than that!  She even kept her birthday crown on all day which was a surprise because generally she doesn't like anything on her head.  I was exhausted by the end of the day but it was such a good time had by all that it was a really nice kind of tired that made the bed feel so good that night when at last I fell into it.

The birthday girl surrounded by all her gifts.  Which one to open first?  Such a fun decision to make.

Since we were to be outside, and because there are still covid concerns I decided that cupcakes and individual ice cream cups was the way to go.  No I didn't make the cupcakes, but I arranged them in two tiers and it was quite a nice presentation.  They were delicious!

A chipmunk sits on my husbands car munching on the acorns the old oak tree litters our driveway with.