This is Ahnalin's very own room.
A girl's very own room is always special,
but this room is Extra Special!
And today, I finally finished it.
For the first four years Ahnalin
was in our family,
she slept in our room.
Because she had Anxious Attachment,
a form of Reactive Attachment Disorder,
we felt it was best to keep her close to us.
When she turned 5,
she moved into her sister's bedroom
and loved it!
But now, she has her very first,
very own bedroom!
When I was looking through my fabric stash,
I found many, many wonderful fabrics
that I could have used to make her room special.
But when it came down to it, she and I
decided that she wanted most of the things
in her room to be "special".
To Ahnalin, "Special" means it
came from someone she loves,
or a family member whom
she never got the chance to meet.
This curio secretary came from my
grandmother's home and belonged
to my great grandmother.
The angel playing violin is
from her Nana and Papa.
The darling picture of my niece is from my brother
and sister-in-law.
The antique doll cradle was a gift from my great aunt
but the quilt is Ahnalin's blue ribbon first
quilt she entered into the fair last year!
The hand painted dresser is a vintage piece from
my sister-in-law and niece.
The dollhouse is from my friends Tika and Susan.
The faded floral pictures were from my grandmother.
The rocking horse was made by
my grandfather for India,
when she was a baby.
The braided rug was made by my mother
when she and my dad were missionaries in Jamaica.
The bunny teapot and cup are
part of a set given to Ahnalin by
my dear friend Melissa and her daughter Katie.
The Bible is from Don's parents.
The quilt and quilted sham were made
by my mother and me for my dorm room,
before I went off to Bethany University.
My mom embroidered many, many hearts
all over this quilt,
reminding me that I was loved at home.
The bed skirt was one I had made for
India when she used this quilt on her bed
at the same age.
The pillows belonged to India,
my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law, and me.
I made the double ruffled Euro Sham for
India when she was 6.
This is a piece of Chinese art called "The Wedding Party"
that my Daddy gave to Ahnalin.
The "Happy Cats" are from Ahnalin's Aunt
and the dolls are from Don's
parents and some from us.
This little daisy is actually only about
1/4 of an inch tall.
My cousin painted
it for MY dollhouse when I was a little girl.
It now lives in the girl's bedroom
in Ahnalin's dollhouse.
Now these are some of the only things in
the room that I actually sewed for
Ahnalin.
I bought this Laura Ashley cotton sateen
about 14 years ago at a garage
sale for 50 cents a yard!
And the blackout lining was in my stash too.
The rabbit lamp in the pictures
is something I ordered for Ahnalin
when we were waiting for her to come home.
And the Calico Critters Dollhouse
and furniture has been part of
her presents for birthdays and Christmas
since she was 3.
My friend Sheri gave Ahnalin the
pink jewelry box this year for Christmas.
The darling pink crocheted pig purse
was a gift from our friend Melody.
And Ahnalin wanted to have
her favorite Mama smocked dress
on one of my dress forms.
The Baby Dumbo was a gift from
her big sister India,
and the little mouse Huxley was a gift
from Daddy on the day we moved here.
The much loved Bunny came with us
to China when we adopted her!
I almost forgot to show this!
I bought this Bunny Jo wallpaper border
15 years ago, when I was
an interior designer for Laura Ashley stores.
We were trying desperately to have
another baby at that point,
and I bought this border on faith
that someday we would have another child.
So of course, it HAD to go in Ahnalin's room!
Ahnalin LOVES her new room!
In it, she is surrounded by love.
She is surrounded by things that
were owned or given to her
by loving, creative, giving,
faithful people.
Very, very Special indeed!
Now, I had better get back to my sewing.
Ahnalin wants to dress up like Laura Ingalls
for Book Day this week!
Happy Sewing!
