Day 290-293 Baby

My mother always said: If you want a handsome child, pick a picture of the cutest baby you can find, put it where you can see it everyday and when your baby is born, he will look just like the one in the picture.  You may think it is just a housewife's tale but if my mother says it's true, then surely  it must be. 

Taschen's Indian Interiors

So this was my picture, one which I had been looking at since 2009. The idea of a tribal baby was conceived right after I decided to build the Rolla's tribal home in July 2009. I loved this baby so much, I remembered wanting an exact replica. An artisan's doll like my Palace Maya, I had thought, but that was then and before I became so involved with the stories of my dolls. 

Not surprisingly, Baby M was the hardest to actualise. Despite being the 1st character conceived,  he was the last to be created. There were also no stories spun around Baby, until the post before last that is, and only thanks to Jennifer's gifts.

Then Rosamargarita came to the rescue. It was only after I received her knitted baby wear that I finally felt some sort of inspiration to start on Baby. As you can see, Baby is wearing Rosamargarita's blue sweater. Regretfully, I had to dirty it a little. Alright,  maybe not so little. 

I did practise some restraint though and knew I could not possibly dirty RosaM's hat too so I made Baby one from ribbon and sock. I then fed him sticky Indian sweets, dirtied his face and everywhere else I could find so that there was no mistaking our baby was a boy. I even blackened his eyes fiercely. Sadly, when I passed Baby around to all at home, no one thought he looked anything like the baby in the picture. Some even wondered if he was a she. 

Off went his frilly hat and the crazy eyeliner and I gave him a turban made from Maya's sari. It was just like how mum used to dress me and my siblings. 

Until I was about 12, my sisters and I frequently wore similar dresses made by mum. The pattern differed slightly but the fabric used was the same. Everyone in our neighbourhood knew we 3 little girls were siblings just by looking at what we wore. We didn't even have to say anything since mum had told us not to talk to strangers. Strength in numbers, my mother always told us. Once people know we were sisters, they would not want to try anything funny, she said. That was how we ran errands for mum, the 3 sisters together, since I was in primary school.  But I digressed....

I hope RosaM forgive me the liberty I took with her sweater. I had to give Baby only the best because he was so dear to me. Too much so perhaps because I gave him all the knitted wear she made.

And although he looks nothing like the perfect baby in the picture, I love him anyway. Can you see how Ro is keeping an eye on him right now? She can  barely contain her smile looking at her child. And neither can I. 

What shall we call our Baby, dear friends? 

His name must of course starts with an M, just like his sister's.