The Boys Cook Dinner

"When did Mandy say Jolena was coming home?" Emil asked Billy as the boys stared at the empty kitchen.

No one was cutting vegetables at the sink. No yummy smells were drifting through the air. No beeps or buzzes or whirring sounds came from the appliances sitting on the countertops.

"I think it was Monday," Billy replied, "but I'm pretty sure she won't feel like cooking for a couple of days. She was pretty tired when she came home from last year's Doll Ski Team practice in South America."

Billy knew that Emil was missing Jolena––he missed Jolena, too––but they also missed her cooking. The dolls hadn't hadn't pretended to eat a really good, home-cooked meal since she had left, and they were missing it. All the dolls could cook, but no one could cook like Jolena! She often organized the other dolls so each one had a job to do. She would show them how to do their jobs correctly. Billy could remember Jolena in the kitchen, teaching and encouraging the other dolls, and would be very happy when she was home again.

"Well, it's our turn to cook," said Emil, turning to look at the refrigerator, which was the first place to start when trying to decide what to have for dinner. "What should we fix?"

"We need to be sure what we fix is good for us," Billy said. "We need something from each of the different food groups."

"Let's fix an extra food, too," Emil said, thinking about cookies or pudding.

"Let's see what's in the refrigerator," Billy said. The boys knew some easy dishes they could cook all by themselves. All they needed to do was see if what they needed was on hand.

There were lettuce, mushrooms, sprouts and other things for salad in the refrigerator. They found some frozen vegetables and cooked chicken in the freezer. There were some bottles and jars of sauces in the pantry. There is always rice. That suggested to them one of the easy things they knew how to fix. If they cooked some rice, heated up the vegetables and chicken with a sauce, made a salad and gave each doll a glass of milk, it would make a meal that would give them some of each of the kinds of foods they needed to be healthy.

After they decided what to cook, the boys got to work. First they helped each other tie cloth napkins around their waists to keep spills off of their clothes.

Then the boys washed the bottoms of their shoes and their hands before getting up on the countertop. (They know real children should not sit or stand on the countertops, but for some things the dolls have to because they are so small.)

Now they were ready to cook. They put water and rice into the big rice cooker.

Emil plugged in the rice cooker. He made sure his hands were dry. He was careful not to get his fingers too close to the electrical outlet, because he didn't want to get a shock.

Billy turned the rice cooker on and set it for the kind of rice they were using. Then the boys mixed the frozen vegetables and cooked chicken with a sauce from a bottle. 

They put it next to the microwave to cook later when the rice was done.

They made a salad with some lettuce, some sprouts and the other vegetables they had cut up.

They baked some cookies from some of Jolena's cookie dough that was in the freezer. They made sure that they had enough for each doll to have one cookie to pretend to eat. Usually that would be seven, but Jolena wasn't going to be eating one, so they baked only six cookies.

They put the vegetables and chicken into the microwave and set it for the time they knew it would take.

While the vegetables and chicken were heating up, they cleaned up after themselves. The other dolls would put their own plates into the dishwasher after they all pretended to eat. The boys could put a few things into the dishwasher now, but they had to wash some things by hand.

Then they washed the countertops, because they had been standing on them. Billy was just closing the dishwasher door when Charlotte came into the kitchen.

"How is it going?" Charlotte asked.

"We're all done now," Billy replied, "except for putting it on the table."

Charlotte looked around. "Where's Emil?" she asked.

Billy looked around, too. He was surprised not to see Emil standing next to him. "I don't know," he said. "He was just here. We were putting some things into the dishwasher."

Charlotte and Billy heard a thumping sound coming from the dishwasher.

When they opened it, there was Emil! 

"Oh, I'm sorry, Emil!" Billy cried. "I must have closed the door without looking to see if you were out!"

"It's OK, Billy," Emil said, as he climbed down. "I'm just glad you didn't turn it on! The dishes need washing, but I don't, and the water might have ruined my special glasses and my hearing aids!"

"Boys," Charlotte said, "please be careful. You should pull the tray out to load the dishes. Climbing inside could be very dangerous."

"Yes," Billy agreed, "I see that now, and I should have looked inside before closing the door!"

"Well," Charlotte said, "It's a good thing we were right here to let you out. You could have been stuck inside there for hours! The doors to dishwashers and refrigerators are hard to open from the inside. The people who make the appliances don't expect dolls to be in there and need to get out."

"I won't do that again!" Emil promised. Just then the rice cooker and the microwave both beeped. It was time to put everything on the table.

"Let's call the others!" Emil said. "We can pretend to eat!"

Cast--
Jolena: Götz Happy Kidz Lena in Aspen
Charlotte: Götz Happy Kidz Anna in Paris
Billy: Götz Happy Kidz Lily at London
Emil: Götz Happy Kidz Emilia


Photo of cookies by Isabelle Acheson on Unsplash.
This story appears in the book Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook.

You can follow The Doll's Storybook here.

Do you have questions or comments for us? Would you like to order an autographed copy of one of our books? You can email us at thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.

Note: No dolls were harmed during production of this blog. All dolls shown are Götz Happy Kidz, Classic Kidz or Little Kidz. If you like these stories and are willing, please make a donation of any amount to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any organization that supports pediatric cancer research and treatment. We are not affiliated with St. Jude in any way other than these donations.

“The Doll’s Storybook” is not affiliated with Gotz Dolls USA Inc. or Götz Puppenmanufaktur International GmbH.

Watch for the next story each Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Pacific Time.

Do you like our stories? Some of them are available in print.

Our latest book is available from BookBaby and other booksellers: Mandy's Little Science Lessons: Stories from The Doll’s Storybook. Mandy and her friends explore insects, atoms, weather, trees, gravity and fossils while they run around in The Writer's house and neighborhood.

Royalties go to an organization that provides pediatric cancer research and treatment. If you don’t get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to our designated charity. Other booksellers pay much less, because the vendor gets a cut. The Writer’s author’s page at Book Baby is here. Scroll down and click on any of the books that interest you, or ask your library to get our books for you. 

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post and no AI has been used.

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Copyright © 2020, 2025, 2026 by Peggy Stuart

Mariah's Play

Billy found Mariah in the living room. She appeared to be reading some papers, except she kept looking away from them and mumbling to herself from time to time.

"What are you reading?" he asked her.
"I'm not reading, actually," Mariah explained. "I'm going to be in a play at school. This is the script (SKRIPT). That's the play all written down, with the things the characters say and do all explained."

Billy thought that was interesting. "I didn't know you were in the acting class," he said.
"I'm not in the acting class," Mariah replied. "The teacher who is putting on the play came to my class and asked if I would be in it. She said they really needed me and a few other dolls who are not in the class. She said I looked the part, and she said she knew I would do a good job."

"So what are you doing with the script?" Billy asked.
"I'm studying my lines," Mariah explained. "My lines are what I'm supposed to say. It's my part in the play."
"What's the play about?" Billy asked.

Mariah pointed to her papers. "There are some dolls," she said, "who all look like Veronika and Jolena and have all lived in the same place all their lives. They all believe the same things. They are all girls. In the play, they have a problem they are trying to work out, and they can't figure it out." 

"Then," Mariah went on, "they start talking with some other dolls, dolls who have different faces or different-colored vinyl, like me, some boys, some dolls who come from different places, and dolls who have different beliefs. They get different ideas from the dolls who are different from them."

Mariah explained that the play shows how important it is to have something called diversity (dih-VERS-ih-tee) when you're trying to figure something out or solve a problem or build something new. "Having diversity means having different kinds of dolls in your group," she said.

"Did that help with the problem?" Billy asked.

"It did," Mariah told Billy. "I think why it worked has to do with seeing things differently or having a different point-of-view. If I could just think of an example...."

She thought about that for a few seconds. "I know!" she cried suddenly. "Look at your hand!" she said.

Billy looked.
"What do you see?" Mariah asked.
"I see some jam I didn't get off when I washed my hands after I pretended to eat lunch," Billy said.

"What else?" Mariah asked.
"I see four fingers and a thumb," Bill said.

"Yes!" Mariah exclaimed. "Those four fingers are very much alike. They all come from the same direction. They are very good at what they do and at working together, but even when they work together, there are things they can't do. They are like dolls who are all alike. They are like dolls who all see things the same way."

"It's hard to pick things up with just my fingers," Billy said. "I usually need to use my thumb."

"That's right," Mariah agreed. "Your thumb comes from a different direction. It's able to do different things from the fingers. You have diversity in your hands, because your fingers and thumbs are different from each other. When they work together, they are able to do things they can't do alone."

"There are things that are hard to do with my right hand," Billy said. "I have these two fingers stuck together." Billy held up his right hand for Mariah to see.

"Yes," Mariah agreed. "We all do. It's one of the many ways we're all alike.
"My two hands are different from each other," Billy observed.

"Yes," Mariah said, "and they come from different directions, so you can do things with both hands that would be difficult to do with just one."

"It would be hard for me to pick up and use my camera without my thumbs," Billy agreed, "and I need both hands to set it up to take photos."

"Yes," Mariah concluded, "Your fingers and hands are like the dolls in the play. When they were all just alike they couldn't work out the problem. If you have a problem to solve or a project to work on in a group, it's better to have some dolls who are different from you in your group."
"When will the play be?" Billy asked. "I want to come."

"It's at the end of next month," Mariah said. "We have a lot of rehearsing––that's practicing––to do before then." Then Mariah paused. "Would you like to help me learn my lines?" she asked.

"What do I do?" Billy asked.
Mariah handed him her papers. "My part is underlined," she explained. "You read me what all the other dolls say except what's underlined. I'll say my part, and if I get stuck and can't remember, you prompt me. That means you tell me the beginning of that line to remind me."

"I'll be your thumb," Billy said. "I'll help you do something you can't do by yourself!"

Mariah agreed Billy was indeed being like a thumb. It was going to be much easier for her to learn her lines with Billy's help.


Cast--

Mariah: Götz Happy Kidz Mariah, "Chosen" from My Doll Best Friend
Billy: Götz Happy Kidz Lily at London
Marmalade: Purrrfect Cats from KTL

Note: Studies such as this one have shown that teams made up of people with diverse perspectives produce better results than homogenous teams. 

You can follow The Doll's Storybook here.

Do you have questions or comments for us? Would you like to order an autographed copy of one of our books? You can email us at thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.

Note: No dolls were harmed during production of this blog. All dolls shown are Götz Happy Kidz, Classic Kidz or Little Kidz. If you like these stories and are willing, please make a donation of any amount to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any organization that supports pediatric cancer research and treatment. We are not affiliated with St. Jude in any way other than these donations.

“The Doll’s Storybook” is not affiliated with Gotz Dolls USA Inc. or Götz Puppenmanufaktur International GmbH.

Watch for the next story each Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Pacific Time.

Do you like our stories? Some of them are available in print.

Our latest book is available from BookBaby and other booksellers: Mandy's Little Science Lessons: Stories from The Doll’s Storybook. Mandy and her friends explore insects, atoms, weather, trees, gravity and fossils while they run around in The Writer's house and neighborhood.

Royalties go to an organization that provides pediatric cancer research and treatment. If you don’t get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to our designated charity. Other booksellers pay much less, because the vendor gets a cut. The Writer’s author’s page at Book Baby is here. Scroll down and click on any of the books that interest you, or ask your library to get our books for you. 

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post and no AI has been used.

<a href="https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/19832501/?claim=j3fj3mbb8kt">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Copyright © 2020, 2025, 2026 by Peggy Stuart  

Victor the Vulture, a Halloween Poem

  Vroni sat, serenely sewing, while outside the wind was blowing,

Stitching calmly at her place in the window by the street,

Making all her stitches neatly, ending all her seams completely,

Knowing seams must all be tidy, sturdy and, of course, complete!

On the windowsill beside her was a meal for her to eat,

With a cookie for a treat.

On the shelf there sat a vulture, wise observer of our culture,

Preening feathers of one wing, and making sure that they were neat.

From outside there came a clatter, giggles and a bit of chatter,

Clearly something was occurring out there, on the open street!

So the doll looked out the window, dropping sewing on her seat.

(Clearly, it could not compete!)

In the cold of late October, on an eve sedate and sober,

Vroni pulled aside the curtain, looking up and down the street.

What she saw she found amazing! From the window she was gazing,

Figures masked and costumed scurried, and a scary floating sheet!

Clearly human children playing at some craziness, complete 

With the sound of running feet. 

Suddenly there came a tapping, at the door an urgent rapping,

While our heroine considered if she shouldn't just retreat!

By the door a bowl of candy had been placed where it was handy.

Vroni saw the pile of yummies, neatly wrapped and gooey sweet.

Then she turned and looked at Victor. (Now the comb lay at his feet.)

Said the vulture, "Trick or Treat!"

Cast--
Veronika: Götz Classic Kidz Vroni
Victor: Himself

Photo of "sheet" by Šimom Caban on Unsplash, cropped

This poem first appeared on October 29, 2021. It is one of the poems included in the book Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook and is available to buy here.

The Writer would like to thank Edgar Allan Poe for the inspiration provided by his poem "The Raven."

You can follow The Doll's Storybook here.

Do you have questions or comments for us? Would you like to order an autographed copy of one of our books? You can email us at thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.

Note: No dolls were harmed during production of this blog. All dolls shown are Götz Happy Kidz, Classic Kidz or Little Kidz. If you like these stories and are willing, please make a donation of any amount to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any organization that supports pediatric cancer research and treatment. We are not affiliated with St. Jude in any way other than these donations.

“The Doll’s Storybook” is not affiliated with Gotz Dolls USA Inc. or Götz Puppenmanufaktur International GmbH.

Watch for the next story each Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Pacific Time.

Do you like our stories? Some of them are available in print.

Our latest book is available from BookBaby and other booksellers: Mandy's Little Science Lessons: Stories from The Doll’s Storybook. Mandy and her friends explore insects, atoms, weather, trees, gravity and fossils while they run around in The Writer's house and neighborhood.

Royalties go to an organization that provides pediatric cancer research and treatment. If you don’t get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to our designated charity. Other booksellers pay much less, because the vendor gets a cut. The Writer’s author’s page at Book Baby is here. Scroll down and click on any of the books that interest you, or ask your library to get our books for you. 

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post and no AI has been used.

<a href="https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/19832501/?claim=j3fj3mbb8kt">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Copyright © 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026, by Peggy Stuart