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GamgeeFest's Keepsakes  by GamgeeFest 16 Review(s)
LarnerReviewed Chapter: 19 on 1/9/2007
Ah, dear. so THAT'S how Tolman ended up being born in Gondor, eh? The anniversary gift for the leaving of Rivendell? And SO realistic!

Author Reply: That's the version that makes most sense to me. If Rose knew without doubt she was pregnant before setting out, I don't know if she still would have gone. I'm glad you liked the idea that Tom was the anniversary gift for the Fellowship leaving Rivendell. The thought struck me as I was writing and it instantly caught my imagination. It's been 11 years since I've lived with a colicky baby - it's not something you ever forget!

Queen GaladrielReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/30/2006
*grins* I love this! I love it! Oh, I'd give a lot to see the tall men of Gondor walking back and forth and singing and cooing to hush a tiny little Hobbit baby!
God bless,
Galadriel

Author Reply: I would dearly love to see it also! Those guards never fathomed they'd be guarding such a tiny treasure some day. How luck little Tolman - and Rose and Sam! - is to have had them around. :D

mews1945Reviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/14/2006
What a lovely, happy story. The thought of all those big, strong guardsmen walking the baby while they're on guard is just charming. And I was so delighted by the thought that ARwen was able to give Sam a glimpse of Frodo in Valinor.

Author Reply: Thank you Mews! Eomer is right - no one is a better teacher in patience than a baby that won't stop crying. Those guards are going to be much better off for their time spent baby-sitting. :D Arwen's gift was truly a surprise, but very appropriate and touching. Sam couldn't have asked for a better.

Grey WondererReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/11/2006
Brilliant! Young Tom on gard duty. Maybe later on his early training will cause him to become a bounder or a Shirriff. I loved every word as always.

Author Reply: Tolman would have made an excellent guard - his wailing alone would scare off most predators and would warn against any movement in the nearby area. :D I do think that of all the Gamgee children, Tom would be the one most likely to journey to Gondor again. He would want to see the place where he was born and had heard so much about during his youth. :)

AntaneReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/11/2006
I love the part of fitting the wee one into boots and the idea of these hard warriors being babysitters, but most of all I love Arwen's great, loving gift to Sam - to know his oldest treasure is well and happy.

Namarie, God bless, Antane :)

Author Reply: Tom in boots would be quite adorable. :D But I don't think Rose would have appreciated it very much, lol! Nothing can bring out the inner softie in every guard as well as a baby can, especially a hobbit baby, which wouldn't be much bigger than a kitten or small cat. They just couldn't get enough of Baby Tolman.

Sam will always treasure Arwen's gift. To know once and for all, beyond doubt and hopeful wishes, that Frodo is healed is a big ease off his mind and really all he ever wanted.

Thanks for reading!

RenaissanceGrrlReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/8/2006
If you think I’m going to be traveling through Arda during the high heat of summer while I’m pregnant, you’ve got another thing coming to you Samwise Gamgee.

XD Smart cookie, that she is. Traveling pregnant in summer is a pretty sucky experience to this day, from what I understand. ^_^

My God, how small WOULD a Hobbit baby be? I never thought of it before.

rag dolls soft and limp for the baby to chew on or big and hard for the baby to sleep with

*blink* Shouldn't that be the other way around? Couldn't a hard doll hurt a sleeping baby if it rolled onto it or something?

“You want another one, you can have it yourself."

Smart and snarky! ^_^ I <3 Rose.

Athelas? Nice. (If I recall correctly it only lists some of Merry and Pip's kids on the family trees, right?)

Aww. How sweet. ^_^ WaFF again!

Author Reply: Being pregnant during the summer is a miserable experience. I don't blame Rose for not wanting to travel, even on ponyback, if she can avoid it.

I figure a baby hobbit would be about the size of a kitten at 6-8 weeks. Plenty small enough to fit in a boot, if not the little baby boots that the Big Folk were sending to them. :D

Keeping in mind that the dolls are bigger than a hobbit would make them, the harder dolls would serve as pillows or cushions - to keep baby from rolling off the couches or onto his tummy. It's a very handy trick.

Only Faramir is named and given a birth year on the family trees. We know Merry had a son only because Merry hands his goods and offices over to his son when he leaves the Shire. Any other kids beyond that is up to the author. :D Athelas seemed an appropriate name for Pippin's daughter, especially since she proves to be the cure for colic. lol

AndreaReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/8/2006
Great story, GamgeeFest!

I can imagine that those guards and all the Big People were fascinated with little Tolman, the tiniest bairn they had ever seen.

And "Athelas"! Well, the virtue of that particular herb is known to all of us, of course. How appropriate that Pippin's little girl was given that name.

When I read the last lines of this story, I thought it would be wonderful if Tolman and Athelas would come to love each other and marry :)
Dreamflower had the same idea, it seems. What's your opinion?

Author Reply: I can just see the looks of fascination on the faces of the Big Folk when they saw little Tom. A hobbit baby has to be the tiniest little thing ever, far smaller than they imagined a baby could be.

Athelas was very appropriately named! How suiting that she's the only 'cure' to Tom's colic. ;) I think Tom just needed another baby to talk to. lol The muses do seem to be leaning toward a Tolman/Athelas union. I'm rather fond of the idea myself. They're certainly off to a favorable start. :D

Thanks for reading!

BodkinReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/8/2006
Tiny Tolman doesn't seem to have been the best travelling companion - but I just loved the way the guards made him part of their beating of the bounds. He's definitely got his own bunch of baby hobbit-worshippers!

I expect Rose was glad to get him home - even if it meant gathering together the other dozen. (Thirteen children! It's remarkable that she didn't release Sam to go and join Frodo rather earlier than she did!)

Delightful.

Author Reply: Tom sure does have all the Big Folk wrapped around his tiny little fingers, doesn't he? For being so small, he makes quite a fuss. I feel for those poor merchants but I'm sure the guards didn't mind having to baby sit for a couple of hours. They at least had more entertainment than the guards who had to watch the perimeters. :D

13 children is quite a lot. I'm sure by the time she had Hamfast, she was saying that each new baby was the last one! I can hear her blaming Sam for all these babies during each delivery. LOL

Baggins BabeReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/7/2006
"But Lady Rose,” the guard started.

“I am his mother, young man, and I have eleven more of these at home,” Rose intoned in her no-nonsense voice that not even the King himself would defy. “Don’t tell me I can’t keep a watch. I’ve sat up more sleepless nights than you can even count, and got through the whole next day without a wink of sleep besides.”

“Yes, Lady,” the guard agreed, bowing apologetically.

I could quote any number of lines from this wonderful story but that is my favourite. Rose won't take any nonsense, even from strapping Gondorian guards!
Loved the images - guards pacing up and down with a very noisy hobbit baby and all those Big Folk making goo-goo noises and silly faces at little Tolman!


Author Reply: Rose grew up with 4 brothers and has raised 12 children (13 now), plus she's been the Mayor's wife for about 15 years now - she's not about to be told no! She knows how to assert herself when she needs to. ;)

There's something about babies that make grown ups act like silly infants themselves. I figure that effect would be doubled for a hobbit baby, especially since the Big Folk would never have seen one before this. They just can't get over the fact how tiny Tom is. :D

Thanks for reading!

speckled_llamaReviewed Chapter: 19 on 11/7/2006
I just love the idea of a hobbit baby fitting into shoes! Its so adorable...

Author Reply: Hello, speckled_llama! Let's face it - hobbits are small enough. A hobbit baby would be about the size of a kitten or even smaller. Tom would fit, literally, in the palms of their hands - and in their boots, as one soldier clearly discovered. I can just see them sticking Tom in the boot and laughing with him as he squeals with delight, while another guard keeps watch for Rose to return! lol Thanks for reading!

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