On a trip home to Spokane, Washington, my friend Kate found an amazing, handmade mouse house at an estate sale. The house a transformed wooden box - probably an old gift box whose striped interior may have inspired the creation of the domicile. I imagine that a grandmother lovingly made the house for her grandchild, carefully sewing the mice (and a rabbit and small bear) tiny clothes (with trimmed hats and changes of clothes), wrapping little boxes in tinfoil and labeling them "peanut butter," "sugar crystals" and "ham sandwich," and constructing a canopied bed and vanity protruding from the wall. She found the tiniest painted china tea set I've ever seen to sit on a little sideboard, and included a set of metal outdoor furniture, and bunches of flowers for a garden. There’s even a bottle of champagne chilling in a bucket and a tiny Christmas wreath for seasonal celebration. I wanted to share this little treasure with you. It’s not perfect at all - and so it's such a relief from holiday expectations. Maybe it will inspire you to make your own, imperfect and magical miniature home for (or with) a child.

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