Sasha Shangri-La

This post is about the lovely visitors to Sasha Shangri-La last month. It was a happy time to share friendships and Sasha dolls.

Anne Votaw and her husband were the first to visit.   It was wonderful to spend time with Anne and to see such beautiful dolls and learn more about them. 😊

A sweet wee visitor. ❤️

Friends enjoying time together. 😊

Mary and Peggy visited next. We enjoyed our sushi time very much. 😊

Mary brought her flute and played for us. Boy, she is an amazing flutist.  The best!! ❤️

Peggy meeting her new Sasha, Ellen. ❤️

We played with Sasha dolls, went for walks on Cow Creek, played with Sasha dolls, toasted marshmallows and made s’mores, played with Sasha dolls, and ate very well.  We enjoyed each other’s company very much. ❤️

Janet and I again enjoying sushi and we visited a local Native American burial mound.

My Lily went along with us and also Janet’s Glory. ❤️❤️

Lily is a no nose Gotz girl and Janet helped her immensely by repainting her tired eyes. 😊

Hi Mommy, look at my shadow!!

Janet and I visited the West Virginia State Capital in Charleston.  We especial enjoyed the Cultural Center. 😊

Janet’s favorite restaurant! 😊

My Christmas cactus bloomed during the the visits. So lovely. ❤️

Lily, Gertie, Faye and the babies all want to thank you for visiting with us. We hope you enjoyed this post. 😊 xxx

Janet and I in rocking chairs on the front porch. Rick took this photo just before we left for the Columbus airport so Janet would make her return flights home.  It was a most wonderful visit and one that will hold a special place in my heart. ❤️

I picked up Janet at the airport in Columbus, Ohio and it was a very happy reunion.  Since it was after 7:00 pm, we drove a couple of hours and stopped to rest at a hotel in New Philadelphia, Ohio.  The next day we drove to a second hotel in New York and we went to see Dorisanne the following day.  We were on a mission to pick up Janet’s beautiful studio doll named Katherine. ❤️

Janet reading her emails after arriving at the hotel in New York.

Janet and I eating breakfast and getting excited about picking up Janet’s Katherine or Katie. ❤️

We arrived at Dorisanne’s lovely lakeside home and immediately entered a wonderful world of Sasha dolls.  Janet’s first meeting with Katie! ❤️

Janet and Dorisanne eyeing  Glory wearing her hedgehog outfit. 😊

Dorisanne and Janet enjoying the visit. Dorisanne made a tasty lunch for us.  Dorisanne introduced us to her very special studio doll family and we also saw beautiful vinyl Sasha dolls too.  We had a wonderful visit.  😊

Glory and a beautiful Asian Sasha doll repainted by John Morgan and adopted by me! The two adorable bears were made by Janet. ❤️

That evening after leaving Dorisanne’s house, I could not get out of my mind a very special molded head studio boy that I met earlier.  Sooooo, the next morning I called Dorisanne before we left town and asked her if we could return to pick him up. Dorisanne graciously agreed and so I adopted a new studio boy that I named Albert or Bertie.  His name is Karli so he is now Karli Albert but I call him Bertie. Here are a few photos of Bertie taken on Cow Creek. ❤️

Love this boy. ❤️

After returning to West Virginia, Janet began painting and working to fulfill dolly orders for people living here in the States.  Here is s photo of her in action.  😊

A front porch photo of Janet with her beautiful Katie. ❤️

The next post will be of Mary and Peggy’s visit to Sasha Shangri-La.  Thank you for visiting with us today. Have a wonderful week. 😊 xxx

p.s. Bertie sitting beside Bennie his brother. Plus Bertie had a hidden surprise…look at the photo below!!!

Yes, Bertie has toes!!! 😊

Hello from Cow Creek which has been very busy in recent weeks and now has quieted down for a much needed respite before the holidays. I am so very far behind in blogging comments and posting too of course. I have missed you my friends.  So, I thought I would write a note to let you know I am well and enjoying the peace and quiet here on the farm and taking time to reflect and renew. 😊

I picked up Janet Myhill-Dabbs at the airport on Monday, October 9th.  It was a sensational visit!  I will write about those fantastic happenings later. 😊

Before that, our family had a long awaited Memorial gathering for our son Lance on Saturday, October 7th. It was held at a family cemetery not far from here and it was a time to remember Lance and to grieve with beloved family members and to say our goodbyes. I felt the hand of the Lord there in our midst on that beautiful Fall day.  Lance is with us and I believe we will see him again one day. ❤️

Taking a loving cue from Ronnie, I have also found a Gregor that I have named Lance to honor our son’s memory.  He is wearing a wonderful leather tool belt with handy tools that Ronny generously gifted to me for him to wear.  ❤️  Lance’s work was in construction and he liked working with his hands. He was a gifted artist as well. ❤️

I hope you enjoy these few photos of Lance. He is so very precious to me. ❤️

Have a wonderful week!  😊 xxx

❤️❤️❤️

After leaving Tricia’s house, I went to stay with Janet.  Billy and Janet kindly took me on a road trip to Cragside in Northumberland.  It was the home of William Armstrong and the house was the first house in England to be lit by hydroelectric power.  It is a most impressive house and the architecture, furnishings, and innovative technology of the day are just wonderful to see.  I enjoyed every room in the house. 😊

A photo of Billy on the entrance path leading to the impressive house.

A massive cutting-edge of the day kitchen.

An automatic dishwasher!!!

A cozy nook to rest a bit.

A peek to the outstanding gardens from a window.

I took photos of the beautiful rooms.

Paintings lined both walls of an upstairs hallway. This painting reminded me of Tricia as I imagine her as a little girl and knowing her love of cats. 😊

Billy and Janet enjoying an ornate fireplace.

A replica of Princess Alexandra’s dress.  The Princess visited Cragside.

We walked the pathways surrounding the house.

Cragside is a very beautiful place to visit.

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Now, onto the Holy Island visit 😊

Bill drove Janet and I to see Holy Island in Northumberland. Twice a day the island’s access road is cut off by tides.  Holy Island is a holy place steeped in a rich history and people make pilgrimages to visit this special Island. Sadly, I only took a few photos.

The priory and cemetery photos.

The castle was under renovation construction so not open to tours.  A really beautiful and serene area by the sea. ❤️

We stopped at a few shops before we left Holy Island. A great day!

The next photos bring us back to Cullercoats ❤️

We walked one morning to Riley’s Fish Shack. It is a beautiful walk along the North Sea.

A feast for breakfast!  So yummy! 😊

Both feet into the Sea!!

We had time to play with dolls during my stay which was so nice. After the SCW, I bought several outfits from Janet that were left on her sales table, lucky me! This outfit is so lovely on Morgen and her sandals were made by a Marti.  She looks great. ❤️

Dear Gertie also has a new Janet-made outfit to wear and she stands next to her twin sister Edith. Gertie brought presents for her beloved twin. She missed her so much! ❤️

Finn also scored a new Janet-made outfit and he loved spending time with Glory. You can see my sweet Minnie in the background. We all had a wonderful time. ❤️

Janet and I went to the beach for a picnic on a nice sunny day. 😊

Janet showed me this neat cave.

Janet enjoying the tasty red rice salad that she made for our picnic on the beach. What a lovely day! I had the best time at Janet’s house.  She and Billy were so very kind and the very best hosts. I felt very welcome during my stay and I am grateful for our friendship. ❤️

Janet, Tricia, and I flew from Newcumberland to Rome, Italy. This is the view of the Alps as seen during the flight. Gorgeous!

Thank you for visiting the blog. I hope you enjoyed this final post of the visit to England and the next post will be in Italy  🇮🇹. Have a wonderful week! 😊 xxx