Our favorite toys: Because boys need dolls too.

My mom is always telling me cute stories from her preschool (check it out: www.thelumps.com). One thing I hear a lot of is how the little boys are obsessed with pushing around the baby strollers. And playing with the shopping cart, kitchen and babies. You know, the typical 'girl stuff'. Could be because they may not have these items at home. I don't know.

But I do know that if Asher wants to do such things, I'm down with it. I want to raise a well-mannered, sensitive, respectful, well-rounded guy. And I think that means things like dolls and kitchens need to be in his world.

When I was a little girl, I had my Lolly. She slept with me every night. She started getting holes in her from all that love. I think back on my childhood and remember her vividly.

A few months back, I did a search online for Lolly. She's considered a vintage toy now and can sometimes be found at auctions and on ebay for $30 or more. I learned that there was a boy version back then, too, named Cholly! I wanted to get one for Asher, but decided to take a different route. That seemed like a lot of money for something that may already be well worn.

So, I decided that Asher needed a rag doll. All his own. Special to him. But, it needed to be machine washable and baby safe.

Naturally, I turned to Etsy (duh). I found a seller that made custom handmade dolls at an affordable price. I emailed her to ask if she's made a little fella before. She sent back immediately (I love a quick response!) that she has a pattern for a boy doll and we got to work creating one for Asher.

Let me tell you, Heathir is a doll (no pun intended). You pick out the hair color, eye color and fabric for his clothes. Seriously, I sent her some color preferences and she sent back photos of fabric color palettes for me to choose between. I felt very much a part of the process. I even asked her if she ever put ears on her dolls, since the dolls I saw in her shop were without ears. I explained that Asher's big ears are very much a part of who he is. (Yeah, they stand out a tad.) She said she'd definitely give it a shot. She even sent a photoshop file of two different ear styles she was toying with. (But, let it be known she doesn't normally share photos of unfinished dolls.) It was a delightful process.

Very soon, Ames arrived in the mail. He came with his own ribbon-close wash bag, complete with his name and directions for his care printed on it. And he is adorable.

Ames sleeps in the crib with Asher. And so far (despite my best efforts), he hasn't really attached himself to any one 'lovey'. But, Ames is there hanging out with him at night. We have used him to point out eyes, ears, nose, mouth. And, we bring him out of the bed for play from time to time.

I'm pretty certain (read: hopeful) that Ames and Asher will become best buds over time. Until then, I'll just remain in awe of how cute they both are.

Images: Ames joined us on our Mother's Day shoot with our friend and photographer, Liz Cooper.