Great excitement! Susan helping with my new doll shelf

 

Thank God for Susan who stepped in to help me set up my doll shelves in my bedroom.

I have promised myself that these would be the final dolls that I will add to my overall collection. They are all the dolls that I bought on my trips to Europe in 2022, 2023 and 2024. They are all very precious and hold special memories for me.

First, Susan chose the spot where the shelves should go. I then consulted Mom, who was so very quick to agree and it amazes me that she remembered every detail of the layout of my bedroom.

Then Susan and I went shopping to purchase the shelves. This after she had shown me some of her own shelves. Then Nick put them up. Then, finally, Susan came over and set up the display for me.

I was so very thankful to her, Nick, and Mom. When one does not have the sight to decide on certain things, it always helps to have reliable and enthusiastic folks around.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
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Finally!A blind Barbie

Finally, a blind Barbie has made her way onto the market and this is way overdue.

I bought her in September 2024 and she stands proudly amongst my other dolls on a shelf in my bedroom.

She comes with a cane and glasses. She is smartly dressed and I am very proud to make her a part of my doll family collection.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visithttp://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

 

Thank you Jilla: Showing Jilla's travel souvenirs

I  was really proud to show off Jilla’s book of our travels in Europe in July 2023. She did a terrific job with this and in addition to the souvenir book I also had dolls to add to my collection.

Jilla was so very good at helping me out with all of this. The book showed off, or rather reflected, our travels. And the dolls?  More to add to my collection!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly award-winning, sight-loss coach and accessibility advisor wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and  @author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at
www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

My doll house

 

Yes!  I admit it!  One of my cherished childhood dreams was to have a doll house and after so many years of wishing and dreaming I now have one in my living room.  It is my way of returning to my happy childhood days.

The days when I played with dolls, tea sets, and improvised doll houses.  Oh, how I loved those days!  My overactive imagination used to conjure up all kinds of adventures with my dolls.  

They attended school!  They went on outings to the beach, to the park, and they even went shopping and got into all kinds of mischief!  Then they would come home to Mom and she would cook them a delicious meal after which they would simply crash into bed and enter dreamland!

These were the times when I could create my own world; a world just for me!  A world where I could do whatever I wanted!  My world!

So, now that my doll house is finally here, I am going to have some new fun.  The furniture is just great and all I need now is to buy the dolls to fill my new home!  

I thank Stephanie and Sandra for helping to assemble this masterpiece for me.  It was quite a chore but their patience and perseverance overcame everything.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2022 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.
Merry Christmas!
Happy Holidays!
Joyeux Noèl!
Feliz Navidad!
Buon Natale!
Happy Hanukkah!
Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!
Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

I could not contain myself: Anticipating my new doll house

I don't think that I'll ever forget the anticipation of my new doll house before it arrived.  From the day that it was ordered to the actual day when it arrived!

I had always wanted one as I never had one as a child.  So, when my friend Sue told me that it was available online I did not hesitate to ask her to order for me.

A huge box arrived outside my door two days after Sue had ordered it for me and two weeks later it was all assembled and placed in my living room, thanks to Stephanie and Sandra.

Now I can actually visit my doll house whenever I want. I can go there and spend time touching the figures and furniture.  There are the kids, baby and her brother and sister.  Mom and Dad, Granny and Grandpa.

Then there are the pets!  Kitty, puppy, and bunny in their little homes, and bones, fish, and carrot to go along.

My new doll house is a true keepsake and something to pass on to future generations.  It is a heritage piece!

There are four floors. Bathroom and living room on the ground floor. Kitchen and dining room on the second floor.  Bedroom and patio on the third floor. Play room and nursery on the fourth floor.  There is even a lovely staircase and the furniture is all made out of wood and magnificently crafted. Even the family of dolls are all superbly made out of wood.

Now I can use my imagination to help me return to childhood and wonderful times! I am like a kid in a candy shop!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly sight-loss coach and advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

A New Doll House

Yes! I admit it! One of my cherished childhood dreams was to have had a doll house and after so many years of wishing and dreaming, I now have one in my living room. It is my way of returning to my happy childhood days.

The days when I played with dolls, tea sets, and improvised doll houses, oh how I loved those days! My overactive imagination used to conjure up all kinds of adventures with my dolls.

They attended school! They went on outings to the beach, to the park, and they even went shopping and got into all kinds of mischief! Then they would come home to Mom and she would cook them a delicious meal after which they would simply crash into bed and enter dreamland!

Those were the times when I could create my own world, a world just for me! A world where I could do whatever I wanted! My world!

So now that my doll house is finally here, I am going to have some new fun. The furniture is just great and all I need now is to buy the dolls to fill my new home!

I thank Stephanie and Sandra for having helped to assemble this masterpiece for me. It was quite a chore but their patience and perseverance overcame everything.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Wonderful times: Playing with the dolls

I thank God that as a child I had the privilege and pleasure of having been able to play with dolls. There were so many of them and I remember most of them.

They each had names and although I could not see their faces I found ways to conjure up images of them in my mind. To this day I still have a few of them hanging around in my drawers. They are safely tucked away in plastic bags.

Dolls, dolls! And now I collect them! I have over 54 of them from all nations plus a special cabinet of dolls. I bought this cabinet a few years ago after my friend Gabriella and her late husband Randy had given me a small collection of dolls from Randy's late mom.

I have three cabinets of dolls proudly displayed in my condo. So I am still surrounded by dolls!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day!

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

Forever in my memory: Remembering the doll house

Oh, my special little doll house!  The one that I improvised just for me.  The one with three little rooms and a front yard.  It was the one made up of a board that stretched over 2 small wooden cartoons.  Thus we had a center room and two outer rooms.  Or so I imagined it to be.

I used the rooftop as my kitchen and there I had set up all of my dishes, appliances, and everything else.  Then, venturing down to the rooms and the center room where my dolls slept.  The two outer rooms were for laundry and then the bathroom.

The front yard was big and there my dolls played and had lots of fun!

I spent countless hours playing by myself and during this time my dolls came to life and played with each other.  I entered into my own little world where I could make everything possible; to imagine, create, and dream a little.

Oh, yes!  That was my doll house!  A treasured memory forever.  It did not matter that I could not really see the faces of my treasured dolls!  They were in my imagination and there they shall remain forever and a day!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit 
www.donnajodhan.com.

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

And now my weekly podcast!
From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts!
www.donnajodhan.com/takeanother5.html.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

Forever my doll house: My makeshift doll house

This is exactly what it was.  It was a makeshift doll house but it was mine, nevertheless, and I loved and cherished it because I had created it with my own two hands along with my imagination.

This is what it was.  A large piece of board supported by two small crates. There were three tiny rooms.  The center room was the one between the two crates and the outer rooms did not have any outside wall. I placed all of my main furniture in the two outer rooms while my little dolls slept in the center room.

I did all of my cooking and ironing and other activities on top of the board and I called this my kitchen and pantry.  I made space for a very tiny yard outside of my little house and there I would bring my dolls out to play.  It worked very well and it was my little space in our family's home and mine alone.  Everyone left me to do what I needed to do and even the dogs respected my privacy.

I can still picture it now.  It was all mine and will be mine forever.  Mine where I played, imagined, created, and dreamed.  Dreams that I kept secret and ones that, for the most part, have come true.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day. 

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit
http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

And now my weekly podcast!
From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts!
www.takeanother5.com
And available for download from iTunes and Google music play

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

Re-imaging my doll cabinet

Last November 2013, after I had concluded some painting and re-carpeting to my condo, it became necessary for me to rearrange my doll cabinet and thanks to Mom it was done very quickly and efficiently. All well and good but here is the thing: I have to re-image my doll cabinet, and why? Because my dolls have now been rearranged and I have to go in and learn where Mom has put each of them.

Not a problem for me, it just means that I have to learn where they are and then form a mental picture in my mind. I am very sure that the previous mental picture which I drew when I had functional vision now has to be re-drawn and I will be using my sense of touch to draw it. What this means is this: I need to erase the previous mental picture of my doll cabinet and replace it with a new one.

It could be looked at like this: A previous memory is now gone forever and will be replaced with a new one.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
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This is a personal message from author Donna Jodhan
"Each time we raise our voice at someone else we are engaging in bullying! Each time we raise our hands to slap or punch someone else we are also engaging in bullying and each time we engage in actions to either manipulate or force someone else to do what we want we are also engaging in bullying!

There is no room in this world for bullying and each day we fail to take action against bullying it is another day that we allow others to bully us and our kids. Our heroes and role models are the ones who have made us proud, those brave young men and women who gave their lives for us in past wars and those who continue to do so. They are not the ones who choose to be racists and those who believe that their bad behaviour in public is acceptable.

I write and record audio mysteries that are being used at such events as murder mystery evenings as well as at public awareness and team building events. I promote understanding, tolerance, and problem solving and my audio mysteries continue to be broadcasted around the world and you can listen to them anywhere! On the plane or train! In the car or right there in your home! On your i device or computer!

Please join my campaign against bullying (CAB) by supporting my efforts to keep on writing and recording!
If you truly care then you will certainly dare!"

Remembering the dolls

They are oh so precious to me and my doll collection includes over 85 dolls. I started collecting them as a kid and continue to do so. When I first started out, I had very little vision and had to depend on my sense of touch along with descriptions from others to help me form my memories. Then when I got my vision I had no difficulty in forming my own descriptions. Now, with little to no vision, I have to depend on a variety of ways to keep remembering. I use my sense of touch, my previous memories, and descriptions from others to help me keep on remembering.

I can still remember the faces of many of them, the color of their clothes and costumes, and their hair and eyes. I love my dolls and do my best to preserve memories of them. I often slide open the doors to their cases and run my fingers gently over them.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to learn more about the world of blind persons by visiting www.nfb.org.

The challenges of renovation

A few months ago, I decided to do a bit of renovating to my condo. I decided to repaint, re-carpet, and fix some stuff to half of my condo. Yes, I had a great contractor and yes, I went to great pains to ensure that I moved everything out of his way, but the fun came when I had to put everything back in its place.

For me, I tried doing this by using my memory. What did it look like before I moved everything away and I also had to depend on my memories of how things looked like before I lost my vision. For me, if something is out of position by just a few inches, I’d know the difference and it all has to do with how I picture things by touch. I guess that it can be compared to how a sighted person uses their eyes to visualize things.

Another challenge for me was to make sure that I did not bump into things when they were left in the hallway during the renovation. I must say though that my contractor was very good and very aware of my potential challenges. The worst of it came when I had to place things back in the cabinets and there was my doll collection of course. I got around this by ensuring that when I was moving things out, I did it shelf by shelf and placed the contents of each shelf in specific boxes and bags.

I’m Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and tell others about some of my challenges. Visit www.nfb.org to learn how blind persons go about finding their way around.

Remembering my doll collection

Whenever I feel like reminiscing a bit, I just love to sit back and remember my doll collection. True it is that I can do it by touch. That is, I can go to my doll cabinets and touch each doll individually but it’s not quite enough. You see, I just love to bring back those images into my mind.

I started collecting dolls when I was quite young. My parents helped me and over the years I have managed to collect over 60 dolls and counting. Then a year ago, my friend and her husband surprised me when they gave me a beautiful doll collection that belonged to his mom; she passed on last year.

So, here is how I remember. First, I go to the cabinet and start by touching each doll and as I touch each in turn I conjure up images of what they look like. Then I go to my favorite chair and there I sit and with much patience and meticulousness, I draw the big picture in my mind. In order to keep this picture forever preserved, I need to make sure that the dolls are arranged in a specific order. The ones that I remember them to be just before losing my vision. If any of them are out of order, then there goes my perfect picture.

It is a bit different for the doll collection that my friend and her husband gave to me. I don’t really know what they look like but my friend was kind enough to describe each of them to me so I have to draw on her descriptions to help me remember. Dolls, dolls! One of my favorite memories.

I’m Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and share my memories with others. Visit www.rnib.org to learn how blind persons use their memories to help them have fun.

Can Blind Persons Play with Toys?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions that I get and my simple answer to this is why not?  Blind kids do not have to see in order to play with toys.  Blind kids play with all kinds of toys and enjoy many of the things that most of their sighted counterparts enjoy.  That is, except for those high tech toys.

 

When I was a kid, I played with dolls.  I had doll houses, played ball games with my brothers, rode bicycles, and flew kites.  I even had toy guns and played with my brother's toy soldiers and you know what?  I had a whale of a time doing all of it.  I developed ways to play football and cricket.  I learned how to pitch marbles, and I even participated in hide and seek games.  Boy did I ever play with all kinds of toys; from the regular girl's stuff to kicking tin cans in the road and playing ball hockey.  True it is that my family and friends had to adapt things somewhat for me to play with them but despite this I had a world of fun.

 

If you are thinking of giving a toy to a blind child then please, please do not think twice about giving them something that they can certainly play with.  Anything that does not include technology that is.  Anything from dolls to doll houses, toy soldiers to toy cars, and so on.  How do blind kids play with toys if they are unable to see?  They use the touch and feel technique.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and spread my message to others that yes indeed!  Blind kids can and do play with toys.  Here is some contact info for you to check out.

Connie Leblond

Assistive Technology Center LLC

8880-723-5011 Ext. 1

www.atechcenter.net