With my fiftieth birthday around the corner, not to mention the highly anticipated arrival of my AARP membership card, I must confess that my childhood lovey memories have faded a bit. I couldn’t tell you any of their names, but what I do remember is that my twin sister and I each had a little lamby and some very special Madame Alexander dolls that were a gift from my Aunt Peggy.
My sister and I happened to discover the Madame Alexander dolls right before the Christmas holiday (circa 1973) while we were on a top-secret mission to find our gifts. With the help of special agent Dickens, our English Bulldog, we found the dolls tucked away in boxes under a bed. (Note to adults: If your children are skilled detectives, the bed is a terrible hiding place.)
One of the dolls had a gorgeous burgundy skirt, white pinafore with matching bonnet, petticoat, bloomers, and black Mary Jane shoes. The doll also had beautiful long dark brown hair—well, not for long!
Like the rest of my cherished dolls, this doll went through a rigorous Newman care program. Hair styling and gown redesign were a must. Nothing short of black magic occurred than when I learned how to use scissors, markers and makeup. (My sister and I also had a gift for melting crayons on the radiators, but that’s a whole other story.) Needless to say, this doll was no longer that perfect little doll I found under the bed, but there was no doubt about it—she was my perfect little doll.
About Robin Newman
Raised in New York and Paris, Robin was a practicing attorney and legal editor, but she now prefers to write about witches, mice, pigs and peacocks. She’s the author of The Case of the Missing Carrot Cake, A Wilcox & Griswold Mystery (Creston Books) and Hildie Bitterpickles Needs Her Sleep (Creston Books). The second book in the Wilcox & Griswold mystery series, The Case of the Poached Egg (Creston Books), releases April 2017 (but is already available for pre-order at your favorite independent bookstore, Amazon and Barnes & Noble) and No Peacocks! (Sky Pony Press), flies onto bookshelves fall 2017. Robin lives in New York with her husband, son, goldfish, and two spoiled English Cocker Spaniels.
You can connect with Robin here:
Website: www.robinnewmanbooks.com
Twitter: @robinnewmanbook and Facebook
Thank you, Robin, for sharing your childhood lovey story with us! I must add that I, too, had beloved Madame Alexander dolls as a child. My favorite was Little Bo Peep, which I was given the day I turned six. That year, for my birthday party, guests came dressed as famous nursery rhyme characters. I, of course, dressed as Little Bo Peep.