My First Childhood Doll: Do You Still Have Yours?

Do you remember your first childhood doll? Every toy I got as a kid has its own unique story, but my very first doll is and always will be very special to me! What about yours? Did you give your doll a name and do you still remember it? Was it a beautiful made up name? Has your first dolls name a story?

Toys from the past bring back your childhood memories.

Most of the time our dolls have lived with us for many years. Do you remember dressing yours? Was your doll a big comfort to you when you felt sad and/or alone? I know that I shared many secrets with mine! Dolls are such great listeners! My childhood doll was my very best friend!

Photo: A very old photo of me as a 1,5 years old girl

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On this very old photo you see me as a 2 years old toddler on my Grandmothers lap. Don't I look cute? ;-)

This photo brings back sweet childhood memories. When I look at it I can still remember a lot of great times I had with her. She was a very sweet woman who loved me dearly. And I loved her! It was love at first sight between the two of us and this never changed! My Granny is my Angel. She is in heaven now and I miss her a lot. But I know we will meet again when it's my time to leave this planet.

How my doll got her name...

On my second birthday my Granny gave me the best birthday present ever: a doll! This was my first and she was and still is so very special to me. She is so soft and sweet. Wherever I went as a child I always took my precious girl with me! I was a happy doll mommy!

Although she is the best of all cute dolls in the world, her life with me started pretty traumatic! I also got a pair of scissors on that same birthday... Of course I got that present with the intention to get me interested in cutting paper or so... But I had other plans! When the "big people" paid no attention I grabbed my new pair of scissors and my newborn baby and took them to my room.

Apparently I had early medical ambitions (Later on in my life I became a registred nurse!)... I decided to use my pair of scissors on that poor doll and started cutting. First I "trimmed" her hair and then I started with the belly... in no time that poor doll was torn apart...oops... When I realized what I had done, I started crying out loud. I was a very sad and sorry doll mommy!

Fortunately my Granny was a great doll doctor!

She heard me crying and rushed to see what had happened. I think Granny had a hard time not to laugh out loud when she found me sitting on my bed with my doll and the scissors lying on the floor! She took me to the bathroom where we had a first aid kit. Like an experienced "doll doctor" she started to repair the damage with gauze bandage and plasters. She also had a fix for the hairless head: some beautiful pieces of cloth fixed that problem perfectly.

I was so happy! My Grandmother was my big hero! The doll looked good again but still a bit sad. And thus arose the name of my childhood doll, which is in Dutch "De Zielige". Translated in English that would be something like "The Saddy"

I made up the name myself and never changed it ever since the "doll surgery incident".

I was looking for a great video for you to watch in between reading and found this one. This doll looks a lot like my first childhood doll and looks pretty messed up as well. At least this one still has hair on her head! It could be "The Saddy's" family! Maybe I should contact the owner of this video, what do you think!

This doll looks a lot like "The Saddy"!

When I was a kid there were no Doll Doctor Specialists and/or special kits. But now there are. Keep your doll happy and healthy!

Here you can see the results of my "scissors surgery"... These plasters must have been of high quality because they still stick in place after 41 years! I don't want to remove them, I'm afraid I will damage "The Saddy" That would break my heart!

A happy couple!

I never used my scissors again on "The Saddy". Instead of hurting her I took very good care of my precious doll. I washed her and had a doll dress collection so she could always wear clean clothes! After a while, I can't remember exactly when, I got another (male) doll. I called him Japie (that's a Dutch name, there is no translation, you pronounce it as "Yaapee").

The Saddy and Japie were best friends in my imagination and it didn't take long untill I decided they should get married. There was an official ceremony with my Granny doing the official part. I have no photos of that but can remember it very well! With a white piece of curtains we had dressed The Saddy up as bride. Japie had a huge black hat made of cardboard. After the doll wedding I made them kiss for hours.

I still have both childhood dolls. On the photo you see the "happy couple" together sitting on a chair!

"The Saddy" became very special to me. Of course I don't play with her anymore, I'm an adult! She will stay with me until the day that I die. Maybe I will take her with me in my coffin (let others do that...). "The Saddy" is part of my childhood memories, part of my life. She connects me with my deceased Granny. Sometimes it feels like the spirit of my Granny lives in this doll from time to time! At least the memories of her do!

"The Saddy" breathes both of our spirits. That's what makes her my most special childhood doll!