Pennys for mom

Pennys is spelled that way for a reason. It is the name of all of my female dolls that I give away to Dementia and Alzheimer’s patients at the hospice facility I work at. I named them Penny because I always wanted a little girl. I picked out her name when I was 15 years old. I chose PENNY MICHELLE as her name. Penny was for an old Joe Stampley song that I absolutely loved, and Michelle was for the Beatles song.                                                                         When I give my dolls away, they patients may rename them anything they wish. I just call them Penny. Mom loved her doll when she was sick. She held it just like a real baby. Slept with it and covered it up when she thought it was cold. So I began giving out dolls in honor of my mom, and I call them, “PENNYS FOR MOM.”                       By the way, all of the male dolls, I call JAKE. Why, you may ask? Well, because I fell in love with a song called “FEED JAKE” by the group Pirates of the Mississippi.  I call all of my male pets Jake also… I know, dumb, but it’s easy to remember.                      Anyway, I just thought I’d put this out there in case anyone else wanted to start a non-profit for dolls for Alzheimer’s patients.  It really helps them in times of stress. The dolls have to be given at a specific time in their disease. If you give it too early, they don’t care, and it won’t help. I determine if it’s time by bringing the doll out of my bag and holding it on my lap while sitting next to them. If they seem interested, I give them the doll. The first reaction is usually a hug or a kiss to the doll and a smile that lights my world. I’m gonna post a picture of mom with her baby. I forgot to mention that the dolls should be soft, not hard. The 11 inch to 16 inch seems to be the best fit. I always get an 11-inch one I think.