KARRIN FROM VIRGINIA

I'm not sure when I started to buy or receive Willow Tree figurines but I buy them all at a local Counts' Hallmark store. They seem to fit almost any occasion from joy to sadness. My best friend's daughter didn't get married until she was 30 years old and then had trouble getting pregnant. I was in my friend's wedding back in 1965, made and decorated her children's birthday cakes for years and then had the pleasure of being asked to decorate their wedding cakes. I found out on Christmas day last year that Ansley was finally pregnant.  I went out on 02 Jan and purchased the figurine of the "pregnant lady" looking down at her stomach. To say she cried when she saw my gift is an understatement. Next month I will have the pleasure of decorationg her shower cake and instead of putting the regular "baby items" on the cake, I again went to "MY" trusty Hallmark store and purchaed the figurine called "New Life" with the father sitting down on the floor holding the baby in his hands resting on his knee and the mother looking over his shoulder. The mother has long hair and so does Ansley aned she sometimes wears it in a ponytail. Since I used to do ceramics, I took a very light blue paint and did what is called "dry brushing" and lightly colored the hat and blanket of the baby in blue so you know it is a boy! I can't wait until she sees her very special shower cake and Willow Tree figurine. I came up with the idea since I had just bought "Thinking of You" with the girl holding the conch shell (I have these shells all over my house) and the shell is colored. With Willow Tree and Jim Shore figurines, I could go broke in a short time. These are the only type of gifts I like to give.

Submitted by Karrin in Virginia, May 2010