Just A Regular Every Day

I have not had a real chance to play with my Sylvanians in a long while. When I packed up my Sylvanians in May last year to do some house remodeling, I did not foresee that getting them back out again would take this long. But life is crazy that way and what we plan for one day isn’t necessarily what will happen the next. The best we can hope for is to always be prepared, and if that doesn’t work, at least to hope for some grace and wisdom for when things go awry.

These last few weeks, we’ve all been hard at work to make our house feel like a home again. We’ve had boxes of things from my parents’ move lying around forever. Old furniture that we had been storing for a planned remodel were occupying what little space we had left. Even our collectibles were in sore need of organization and downsizing. We were living in boxes again and suffocating from the huge weight of clutter in our lives.

The first to go were piles of junk. I call them junk now but for a long time, I could not bear to let them go, determined as I was to find a use for them. Then, we finally found a great upholsterer who could work within our budget. In two weeks, we had three sofas, two arm chairs, and three ottomans looking like new again. We finally rid ourselves of that unsightly pile of old sofas lying around in the garage. We started moving around the house, reorganizing to make more room, giving old collections a once over to make sure we didn’t start piling them on again.

We still have more to go through and that means combing over the catch-all rooms- the basement library in our home, the kitchen and bedrooms in the schoolhouse. We have also planned some minor kitchen remodeling, additional shelving by the basement stairs, and a second round of roof repairs. It’ll take us much longer to sift through all those, but as long as we continue, one day at a time, I am confident even those will be ticked off our to-do list in no time.

In the meantime, while I take the morning off for some rest and recreation (I have a wee bit of a cold), allow me to share with you my newest Sylvanian treasures. I think finding them reawakened my Sylvanian mojo, my desire to start playing with them again after all these many months. And you already know by now that Sylvanian grandparents are my favorite figures in the whole line; they never fail to make me smile.

I purchased this pair of Babblebrook grandparents from my dear friend Apples for a very reasonable price. They were a little stained and dirty from storage and didn’t have all their accessories (Grandpa was missing his cane and Grandma was missing her shawl) but they were in great condition. Their fur/flocking did not have any scuffings or scratches, which was most important. Their clothes were not ripped and only needed some washing to restore to their original colors. And they both had their wire eyeglasses, which can be so difficult to find these days.

I gave them both a bath last night. Washing the figures lightened the stains but I did not try any of the more vigorous cleaning techniques I have employed on newer figures because of the possibility of tearing their flocking. These are old figures, circa 1986, and I would much rather love them with their flaws than risk hurting them.

Here is a before picture (original photo of Apples):

Here is an after picture:

I fashioned a cane from a real plant stalk and spray painted it clear to give it some sturdiness. Grandma’s shawl is borrowed from an outfit sewn by The Crafty Ladybug for my Periwinkle grandmother. The color is great on her, and is very close to the original. I can live without the missing parts for now but will be on the lookout for them in the future.

Finally, here they are, being welcomed by some of the senior rabbit citizens of Kitty Little Lanes.

Sylvanian Families help remind me that no matter how busy we are with real life, it’s always a gift to be able to play, to relax, to unwind. So today, as I get ready for the next round of cleaning, I am thankful for these moments of peace, for this gift of unhurried time, and for this joy of childhood play.