Upon reaching the age of thirty-seven I was pretty sure that I didn’t have any hidden talents left to discover, but thanks to Annie I’ve learned that isn’t true. This weekend she showed me that I am, in fact, a brilliant clothing designer!
The roots of my new discovery can be traced to Annie’s latest obsession: making things. Annie uses her crayons to color a piece of paper, then asks me to cut it into a number of different shapes. She then tapes the pieces together using way, waaaay too much scotch tape.
“Look!” she’ll say when she’s done. “It’s a purse!”
The “purse,” of course, looks almost nothing like a purse, but she’s having fun and that’s all that matters. I, on the other hand, am pretty tired of cutting shapes and helping her tape them together, so that might explain why I went along with what happened next.
I was working on my computer when Annie ran over holding one of her baby dolls. As is often the case with baby dolls owned by little girls, this one was naked.
“Can we make her a dress? Would that be special?”
“I’m sorry, Annie, but right now I’m –”
“Pleaaaaaaaaase, Daddy?! PLEAAAAAAASE?”
“Okay, okay,” I said. “How do we make her a dress?”
Annie smiled from ear to ear, then did what she always does. She grabbed some crayons, made a drawing, then directed me to cut it into shapes. This time, though, she acted like a little Tim Gunn.
“Cut it here so it’s a long dress!”
“Make it pretty!”
“That piece is too big! Cut it smaller!”
After a few minutes I started to have opinions of my own about the dress.
“What if we cut holes here, Annie? That way her arms could go through like sleeves!”
“Yeah!”
“And I think we should cut the bottom of the dress to be more round. Would that be special?”
“Yeah, Daddy!”
We could make a hat, too. Something summery!”
“That would be special!”
Yep. It turns out I’ve got some skillz in the designing department. I present the first dress off of our fashion line, Le Spohr:
Very chic, don’t you think?
DefendUSA says:
“Dezigner Daddiez…You’ll have two hours for this challenge…”
Sue says:
Before we know it ,,we’ll be seeing your creations on the runway,Mr. Mike! They’re just fabulous!!!
Nikki says:
That last picture of Annie is absolutely gorgeous!!!
Meg says:
Coming to a Parisian storefront near you! Love it. I used to con my dad into helping with all sorts of random, “special” projects (Barbies, “cooking,” etc.), and he was always a good sport! Just like you.
Skye says:
It’s awesome how much fun kids can have with just paper, crayons, and a daddy (or mommy) willing to play along!
Shelly says:
I’ve been reading your blog & Heather’s blog for a long time but only recently starting commenting (shy, I don’t know?). This post definitely deserves a comment: it made me laugh out loud and marvel once again at what a great dad you are. Your kids are so lucky to have you & Heather encouraging their imaginations-and in this case, adding your own flair to Annie’s idea! Lol.
mp says:
Do they even sell paper dolls anymore? I used to love to play with them (I’m 38, so not that old!)–not to create stories with them, but just dress up the dolls and have a fashion parade. Annie might like something like that.
Steph says:
Yes, they still make them. and you don’t have to cut out the clothes. they are perforated so they just pop out. genius. And Mike, you are such a sweet Dad!
Caryn says:
I’m only 33, so also not that old and I LOVED paper dolls as a kid. At 7 or 8, so a little older than Annie, I used to trace the dolls and make my own clothes for them. We used to get them on family vacations and they were a great souvenir!
Alexandria says:
Your an amazing dad!
Bree says:
My grandma used to keep fabric scraps around. Then I could use different ribbons, other pieces to make clothes for my dolls. This would be a great way to encourage her creativity, without going through roll after roll of tape and tons of paper. They sells scraps for really cheap at most craft stores!
Expat Mom says:
Love it! My middle son is always taping stuff together, too. And asking me to cut things. He usually make stuff from Minecraft, though, not nearly as special as a fancy dress and summer hat!
Nicole says:
You are the best dad. Reading your entries makes me miss my father so very much, but also warms my heart. She will treasure you always.
Paula says:
Mike, you are an awesome dad to your kids and I hope you know that.
I present you with this link: https://www.google.com/search?q=paper+dolls+printable&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=kAcUUqb-IMqF2QXbzIHYCQ&ved=0CCsQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=673
My students LOVED to color their own dresses and cut them out and I’m sure Annie will be no exception. You can use these or keep designing LeSpohr’s line.
Pam says:
I have to tell you that my daughter (who is almost 16) had the exact same tiny little plastic doll and she carried her everywhere! And, the doll’s name was Annie! Her Annie doll was actually “her baby” when my son was born–see then we both had babies to take care of. Long story short, we made clothes for her Annie doll all the time. Annie doll is now sitting on the closet shelf in her room…she has patches and was much loved..sniff sniff. Thanks for sharing your young family with us!