oh say say playmate, come out and play with me…

The two little girls come for visit when they can fit it into their busy days. They aren’t so little any more either, one having just turned nine and the other days away from turning eleven. They are moving farther away as well, so I treasure the visits I get.
They are still in the doll playing stage. I love this age. They go down to my basement where it is doll  and beanie baby heaven . They used to pull out all the dolls and strip them. The beanie babies would be tossed everywhere but as they have gotten older the routine is a bit different.
We had some work done in the basement and while that was going on, the girls were moved away from the main room and I let them set up their “houses” by the bookcase behind the couch, and with each needing their own space, I let them into my fabric storage closet. They have traded spaces once. I am not sure which is the favored spot but when I went down last week I noticed Phoebe’s house was in the closet. The big Mama doll was sitting in a windsor type chair and a book was perched on her lap. The dog (there is always a dog in Phoebe’s house) was on its own rug, and the little girl was tipped over, probably by me. I set her in the chair to hear the story being read and went to examine the other house. At Lucy’s house it was bed time, and pretty neat as we had given the girls time to straighten their houses before that had to leave.
They will come again soon and things will change…  I even kept their houses in tact during their two month long visit to New Zealand. I will miss their houses as they get older and have other interests. I wonder what the next phase will be.