Miss Fannie’s Hat

The following post is from Jessie of  Vanderbilt Wife. She’s filling in with her awesomeness today while I’m on my bloggy hiatus:

We have discovered so many wonderful books through Impress Your Kids. My daughter just loves How to Be a Baby (By Me, the Big Sister), The Parable of the Lily, the Jesus Storybook Bible, and My ABC Bible Verses.

I was excited when I told Amanda about a wonderful book we found that she actually hadn’t heard of! Libbie’s newest favorite bedtime story is Miss Fannie’s Hat by Jan Karon (yes, the Mitford lady).

“Miss Fannie has lots of hats. And each one is her favorite.” How can you go wrong with a story that starts like that? Karon’s witty humor creates a story that is lovable, memorable, and teaches a wonderful lesson.

When Miss Fannie is asked by her “handsome young preacher” to donate a hat to the church auction, she’s a little troubled. All of her hats bring back memories. How could she give one away? But as she realizes that one little gift could make a big difference at her church, Miss Fannie remembers what it’s like to be a joyful giver.

I wanted to do a craft with Libbie (3 in October) to help her remember Miss Fannie’s favorite Bible verse: “With God, all things are possible.” I decided to create a wall hanging featuring a copy of Miss Fannie’s favorite hat (and the one she donates)–a pink straw hat with roses.

First, we painted a small straw hat (from the doll section at Hobby Lobby) with pink acrylic paint and let it dry. Next, we used a hot-glue gun to add small pink fake roses to the hat. I let Libbie pick where she wanted the roses, I glued, and she placed.

Then, I wrote out the Bible verse on a piece of pink vellum. I glued it to the hat with a ribbon, and then glued a loop of ribbon to the top of the hat so it could hang on the wall.

Libbie is extremely proud of her project; and, best of all, she can recite the Bible verse in her precious 2-year-old voice.

If you have a daughter, Miss Fannie’s Hat is a wonderful read. It’s a little lengthy for Libbie’s age, but she loves it so much she will happily stay still for the whole thing. I think girls up to age 9 or 10 would enjoy this great book!


Jessie is a stay-at-home mom and freelance writer/editor in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She has two children: Libbie, 2, and David, 7 months. Amanda was her very first blogging friend! You can find her on Twitter @vanderbiltwife.

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