On Jessa's 4th birthday, we gave her a doll house. She opened it during her party and literally, refused to open any more presents, play with her party guests or do anything other than play with it for HOURS. We had to bring the cake to the doll house to even get her to blow out the candles. It was LOVE at first sight. She is addicted to the doll house. Sometimes she will take the people or furniture out and play with them elsewhere, but she loves the whole concept. And at first, if Spencer looked at it, breathed on it, or heaven forbid touched it, the world would quickly come to an end. We are talking her in the fetal position, rocking on the floor, and sobbing. Lately, however, she allows him to play in her rich, imaginative fantasy games. My favorite is when his doll is a "superhero" who swoops in to rescue her princess in distress. And as long as he plays her way, she allows him to play with her for (sometimes) hours.
How may you ask can I relate the 2 previous paragraphs to each other? Well, if you are also a fan of all things Friends then I am sure you already know where I am headed. Just in case you are not an obsessive fan, I will fill you in. In Season 3, there was an episode called "The One with the Dollhouse." Basically, anal Monica inherited a pristine, fancy doll house from an aunt. And Phoebe who had a terrible childhood had never played with a doll house. Monica invites her to play with her new fancy doll house. Quirky Phoebe brings lots of items to play with that Monica deems "inappropriate." On a daily basis, as Jessa plays with her doll house I think of how thrilled Phoebe would be with her ability to use anything and everything to play with her doll house. And I also imagine how much Monica would be unable to even look at the doll house that Jessa arranges and plays with because she would think it was most unacceptable.
Phoebe: Check it out!
Monica: What's this?
Phoebe: It's a dog, every house should have a dog.
Monica: Not one that can pee on the roof.
Phoebe: Maybe it's so big because the house was built on radio active waste.
Chandler: (holding a hanky) And is this in case the house sneezes?
Phoebe: No, no, that's the ghost for the attic.
Monica: I don't want a ghost.
Phoebe: Well, nobody wants a ghost. But you've got one because the house is sitting on an ancient Indian Burial Ground.
Jessa uses doll house figures, Polly Pockets, princess dolls, little people, happy meal creatures, those little rubber creatures from gum ball machines, shells, rocks, stuffed animals, large plastic dinosaurs, and so many other things that I probably have never even seen. She will ask you to "play doll house" with her, but that simply means that you are allowed to watch. DO NOT make the mistake of thinking that you actually get to touch anything. Other times, you are asked to leave and not watch. I guess she has a touch of Monica in her after all. . .
(Be sure to look closely at the pictures. She has put stickers on the walls to decorate. In one room, there is a littlest pet shop camp fire. Barry the Bee is hanging out with Ariel in the attic. There is a lizard in a window box covered up. There is a dog in a cradle. There is a cat with his tail stuck in the wall. Anything goes!)
Phoebe: Dinosaur Attack! Quick, everyone in the house! Ahhh!
Monica: You know what Phoebe, that's it! That's it! Alright, no dinosaurs, no ghosts, no giant dogs. OK? They're not the right size, they are not Victorian, and they just don't go.
Phoebe: OK! Fine! Come on dinosaur. We're not welcome in the house of no imagination!
Phoebe could bring a dinosaur, a ghost, a huge dog, or anything else she would like to play with to our house. I like the think that Jessa and Phoebe could play happily for hours in her doll house. Even though David loves Friends, he thinks I have a problem with reality because I consider the characters on Friends to be my actual friends. My friend Tara is the only one who truly understands this. And since they are MY friends, they would love Jessa and Spencer, too, right??
The bottom line is that I love to watch Jessa and her doll house. I love to hear the voices of her characters, her talking, and singing. She has the most incredible imagination and crazy fun world in her sweet little head. And when she and Spencer play with the doll house together, my heart smiles.
On Facebook, they always have those quizzes like "Which Sex and the City character are you?" I firmly believe if Jessa took a Friends quiz, she would be Phoebs.
****Spencer is feeling better today! Whew!
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