Random Updates and a New YouTube Video

Happy Late Labor Day, everyone!  I hope you all had a wonderful day with your families and friends.

I thought I would take some time to regroup and talk about something besides doll reviews. ;)  Sometimes I get so involved in cranking out as many reviews as I can that I forget to include a few more personal posts on the blog, too.

I know this is kind of cheesy, but because I'm covering so many topics, I'm going to label each one.  That way, you can see what I'm talking about at a glance and skip the topics you don't care about. ;)

Doll News:
Of course, I can't have a post that doesn't talk at least a little bit about dolls, so here are a couple bits of news from the doll universe to start us out. ;)

My mom had to make an out-of-town trip this past weekend and spotted some exciting things at Target and Toys R Us.

  First, the Hearts For Hearts Girls in their new packaging have been spotted!  The new packaging doesn't have the cardboard flap with the doll photos on the front.  Pictured above are Dell and Consuelo. 

No sign of the new dolls advertised at the Toy Fair yet, but hopefully they'll make an appearance soon.  Don't get too excited, though.  Mosi wasn't released until an entire year after her appearance at the Toy Fair!

There were also a lot of the new Strawberry Shortcake dolls from The Bridge Direct at Toys R Us (no picture, sorry).  My mom was able to spot the SSC Toys R Us exclusive set, called the "Berry Best Adventure Collection".  It includes Orange Blossom (yay!), Cherry Jam, Strawberry Shortcake, Lemon Meringue, and Raspberry Torte (double yay!).  They are in play outfits instead of their original outfits.  The set is around $40, which works out to about $8 per doll.  I have a hard time spending that much at one time on little dolls, but this set is definitely on my wish list. :)  I was able to find a picture on an eBay listing, which I pinned to my SSC Pinterest board HERE, if you'd like to see it. :)

So now that I got that out of the way, on to the more personal stuff. ;)

Blog Awards:

I'd like to apologize to my readers who nominated me (or Tess and Maggie) for blog awards this past summer.  Juliet XD, Kewpie83, and The Pony Tales Sisters, thank you so much for your nominations.  When I first started blogging, I used to be great at participating in the blog awards.  As I've gotten busier and more involved (and as the girls have gotten older), I've found it more difficult to set aside the time to participate, especially in the summer.  I'm sorry I dropped the ball on that, and I'll try to be better next time.  I appreciate all three of you and love reading your blogs. :)

Comments:
I also just looked through my spam comments and found a few of your comments mixed in there, some from way back!  I know there was one Anonymous comment from my BeForever post, a comment on my Frozen song cover from last March by MyLittleMegara, and a comment from Farrah Lily, I think on my post about my family day.  Sorry those got sent to the wrong place!  They're published now. :}

Yikes, and Belle is totally behind on her blog comments!  She just got them published, but it may take her a while to get all of them answered.  (I think she had about twenty seven comments awaiting moderation.)  Since she's not actively blogging anymore, she keeps forgetting to check for new comments.  Sorry about that!  She asked me to apologize to all of you who have left comments there in the past several months.

Emails:
I know several of you who have emailed me in recent months are still waiting for replies.  I'm still plugging away, but keep getting behind!!  I can get as many as ten emails a week, and most of them have questions which require some time and thought, so it can get a little overwhelming.  Rest assured that I will respond to each and every one of you as soon as I can.

Okay, I think that's enough apologizing for this month! ;)  Let's get on to some other stuff, shall we?

Facebook Fun:
In blog/Facebook news, I had two exciting things happen this past week.  First, Strawberry Reef did a Facebook post on the official Strawberry Reef Facebook page with a picture of the fan art I did for her this past summer.  Not only did she showcase my picture and link to my blog, but she even used my art as her new profile picture!! :D  I was over the moon!

Then, just a few days later, the official Shopkins Facebook page shared quotes and pictures from and links to my Shopkins blog review (you can click through the pictures to see them all).  What made it even more special is that they included quotes from each of my daughters' reviews.  The girls were so excited to be quoted. :)

It's so amazing to get some official recognition from these guys!  I can't express my thanks enough. :)

Weight Loss/Healthy Eating Stuff:
Let's see, in other news, the annoying weight loss/eating right battle rages on! Last May, I rejoined Weight Watchers.  My first day was rather terrifying.  I've always had a hard time dealing with failure, and going to my first meeting with the same leader and checkout person, but at ten pounds over my previous starting weight, was very humbling.  Part of me hoped they wouldn't remember me, and part of me was worried that they would remember me and would be disappointed in me for falling off the bandwagon.  But they didn't do either (as I should have known).  They were both so gracious, and my leader even shared a story of how she had to start Weight Watchers again several times to get back on track.  I was so grateful for their compassion and encouragement.

Throughout the summer, I've had both victories and frustrations.  I lost five pounds at one point, but have pretty much gained it all back.  One of my biggest struggles this past week was that Oldest Gal started soccer.  The practices run so late that it makes food preparation very difficult, and things that are quick and easy are not always the easiest to figure out points-wise. :{  As a newbie soccer mom, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed.  (Any advice from more experienced soccer moms would be greatly appreciated!)

It's so frustrating to struggle with this so much.  Yet, God is gracious, and like all other areas of life, I find myself much more successful when I go to Him and ask Him for the grace to deal with this issue rather than blundering stubbornly on ahead on my own.  I'm a work in progress, and I've got to keep plugging away.  I also have to remember that looking like a knockout is not supposed to be my goal, but getting my eating under control and living in a healthy way is. ;)

Draft Posts:
I've attacked my draft posts and whittled them down to a more manageable level, which is a great relief.  Starting this month, I'll be making a conscious effort to get those published and caught up.

Finances:
I think I've brought this up before, but Hubby's job is changing.  He's slowly moving up the ladder at his primary job, but it's one of those positions where he's still going to be part time for quite a while before he becomes a full time driver.  In addition to that, because of regulations on drivers and how many hours they can work (at ANY job), he's had to cut back on his hours at his second job.  This has been both a blessing and a struggle.  It's a blessing because he's had a lot more time off and has been able to spend it with me and the girls.  It's been so wonderful having him around more, especially after such a long, busy summer with his crazy hours.

Unfortunately, it's also been a challenge for our wallets.  We're making a lot less than we were before, and so we've had to be a lot more careful about what we spend.  The Lord has provided, and we've been able to pay all of our bills so far, but this month could be a little hairy.

This period of financial strain has actually been really good for me.  I recently came to the realization that whenever I'm stressed or emotional, I turn to either eating food or buying new toys to cope.  Neither one brings lasting happiness, and both can lead to more guilt and stress if not done in a planned, controlled manner.  Having to prioritize my purchases has made me think through them a lot harder, and has led to a lot less impulse buying (I'd gotten really bad at that for a while).  Remembering to find contentment and happiness in Christ instead of things has been a good lesson for me this past month. :}

Patreon.com:
One of the things I'm considering is looking into getting a Patreon.com account.  I don't want this blog to have a mercenary focus, but it would be great if I could make a little extra at something I'm already doing.  It would give me a little play money for doll-related items, and also help pay the bills (especially school tuition).  I've done a bit of research on the site, and it seems pretty legit, just rather new.  HERE is a link to their FAQ page, which explains what Patreon is and how it works.

I would most likely do the donation per month plan rather than per post to keep things simpler.  Have any of you had any experience with this site?  Would you be opposed to my trying it?  The nice thing about doing Patreon is that it would just be a small little clicky-link at the sidebar of my blog and that's it.  No big ads or other distractions on the blog itself.  You could completely ignore it if you wanted to.

I also wanted to ask if you guys had any ideas for some of the rewards I could do for the different donation levels.  I have a few ideas of my own, but would love some feedback from you as well.  I can't guarantee that all of your ideas would be feasible, but I'd love to get your input and see what would interest my readers the most.

Speaking at the Writers Meeting:
As I shared in an earlier post, I'm the speaker at my writers meeting this month, and will be speaking on blogging.  I'll be sharing the comments you left me earlier about what you look for in a blog, and will be sure to let you all know how that goes.  The meeting is Monday the 8th.

Conclusion and YouTube Link:
I think that's about all the randomness I have up my sleeve for now. ;)  In closing, I'll leave you with another YouTube video I recorded just for fun.  This was my third attempt on my second song of choice after five attempts at my first song choice.  I finally gave up on the first one...at least for now. ;)  Hope you guys enjoy the video, which you can see HERE.

More doll reviews and such coming your way, so check back later this week! ;)

Ever After High Cerise Hood Doll Review

Hey guys!  I'm finally getting around to the review of Cerise...thanks for being so patient. :}  Aside from the craziness of the week that is pretty much typical for this time of year, I had a few little distractions. ;)

First, earlier this week, My Froggy Stuff released a great new video, which you can see HERE.  It's all about making a "hidden doll house" out of decorative boxes.  Since space is always a major issue for us, I thought this was the perfect craft for us to try.  I went by Michael's on Wednesday, and they just happened to have all of their decorative spring boxes on 50% off, so I picked some up:

Unfortunately, the top two were too small, so I ended up returning those and getting a second big decorative box for the girls to use.

Here's the inside of my box.  I've been needing a place for my Ever After High gang to hang out.  This will be the perfect place to make a little set-up and then store it away when I'm done with my photos or whatever. :)

The blue walls made me think it might make a great tea shop for Maddie. :)

Today, the girls and I worked on our houses for a bit.

I had some leftover wood grain contact paper that we used for the floors (and the girls' dollhouse door, too).  Man, is that stuff a pain!!  Even though we very slowly and carefully put it on, we still ended up with air bubbles. :}  Oh well, it looks pretty nice in the pictures (as long as you don't look too close and see my crooked cutting job). :}  I had some reflective scrapbook paper that I wanted to use for a small mirror on the right wall of my room, but it refused to stick, so I'll be putting something else up there.  I used school glue for the paper backing of the mirror, and when I tried to take it up, it ripped the paper lining of the box. :(  So for now, it'll just look tacky until I get something else up on the wall instead.

The girls did a great job on their room.  They did almost everything themselves (it's always fun seeing what they come up with).  As you can see, their reflective paper mirror stuck much better than mine. ;)  

Oldest Gal's Belle, looking quite lovely in Aurora's dress.

My girls really like my Ever After High dolls, but at this point we're planning on waiting until they're older to get them "officially" into EAH.  With her typical creativity, Middle Gal came up with her own versions of the characters by mixing and matching the clothing and dolls she already had.  Here we have her versions of Apple White and Dexter Charming (she thinks they make a nice couple...poor Raven!). ;)  "Dexter's" glasses are Littlest Pet Shop ones, but they work great!

Middle Gal also came up with her own version of Briar Beauty, seen here (LPS glasses were used for Briar, too). :)  Little Gal preferred to make up her own EAH characters.  Next to Briar is "the son of Jack Frost", but I can't remember what she named him.  Oh, and both of them are holding homemade saws...just what every fashion doll needs. ;)

This is Little Gal's other character, "Icicle", the daughter of Elsa.  I completely love how "color blind" Little Gal is...how cool is that? :)

I also took My Froggy Stuff's suggestion and bought two big book boxes to store my EAH dolls in.  They fit very nicely on the dresser next to my big doll rooms.

Here's the front of one of the boxes.

This one has my Rebels in it:  Raven, Maddie, Cedar, and Cerise.

My other box holds my Royals...and Hunter, because I just couldn't split him and Ashlynn up. ;)  Hunter, Ashlynn, Briar, and Apple.

The doll room itself fits nicely underneath my Lalaloopsy collection. :)

My other distraction came this morning when I was browsing Facebook.  I noticed THIS Facebook post from Strawberry Reef, my favorite My Little Pony reference site.  She's asking artists to submit ideas for a G4 style logo of her Strawberry Reef pony.  Naturally, I was interested, and started doodling right away.

Here's what I came up with (yep, the paper is wrinkled...I erased too fast). :}

After I drew the picture, Hubby helped me scan it into the computer and print off a copy.  My thought was to color in the copy so I'd have the original.  Unfortunately, the ink from the printer bled horribly when I colored the pony in, as you can see.  I also was not pleased with the red outline of the pony.  I used a regular red sharpie and felt that the line was too thick and distracting.  (I also forgot and outlined the eyes before I remembered they were usually not outlined in the cartoon.)

So the second time, I colored in the original.  This one turned out much better. :)  The original black pen didn't bleed like the printer ink.  I also used a fine point red Sharpie marker for a thinner outline, and I added more shading and detail.  You can still see the wrinkle in the paper, and I had a hard time getting it captured on film just right, but overall I'm pleased with the result.

This was another attempt to photograph it.  My camera kind of fuzzed out her head in this one, though.  It's starting to have more and more problems.  I may have to think about getting it replaced. :(

I doubt that a picture in marker is what she was looking for, but I had a lot of fun participating anyway. ;)

But now it's time to stop getting distracted and get on to the post! ;)

Oh, and just so all of you know, I won't be going into quite as much detail with this one since I just finished a post about Cedar. :)

Here is lovely Cerise in her box.

A closer look at her face.  I started getting interested in Cerise when I saw she had a different face mold than the other gals. :)

Side of the box

Cerise's artwork

Back of the box

A closer look at the details...

...and her full-length box art.

Other side of the box.

Here are a few shots of her free from the plastic cover:

Here's Cerise, completely deboxed.

Back view

I really like her face paint.  She's serious, but again, not quite as "stuck-up" looking as some of the earlier dolls.

Cerise's profile.

When I first got her out of the packaging, I noticed she had a few strands of hair that were extra long.

It was easy to fix.  I just trimmed the long hairs.

Part of her hair was hanging out of the front of the hood and held in place by rubber bands wrapped around her arm.

The silver clasp on her hood was also held in place by a rubber band.

Her hood had a clear piece of plastic inside to make it look nice and full, and there was a little plastic tie that attached it to the top of her head.

The back of the hood had a big residue spot.  I'm guessing this was from the product in Cerise's hair, which was stiff and crunchy with some sort of gel (the hair, not the hood...just in case I didn't make that clear enough). ;)

I wanted to see what Cerise looked like without her hood, so I snipped the little plastic tie with scissors and pulled out the curved clear plastic inside the hood. 

The clasp on the hood was easy to open.  The brooch-looking plastic piece on the left had a knob that fit into a hole on the "chain" part of the clasp, as shown above.

Here's another look at the clasp.

Cerise's hood is incredibly detailed.

I love the pretty pattern on the cape.

I also love how the inside of her cape is lined with a soft, see-through material.

Her hood has a hole in the back for her long hair to go through.

Here she is without her hood.

Back view

Her bangs and the hair at the top of her head are heavily gelled so they stay in place.  Both the hair product and the way her hair is rooted would make it very difficult to do her hair in a high ponytail or any similar style.

Many have wondered if Cerise has her pointy ears.  She does, but they're very small.

A closer look at her outfit.

Her "leather" belt and "silver chain" accents are very detailed.

She has a red ring and a black leather-look bracelet.

Her leggings look like hard material, but they are actually made from a soft stretch fabric.

Her boots have some great detail.

Her basket is very cute and detailed, but does not appear to open like the other Ever After High "purses".

Side view

One thing I thought I should mention was that the tape I had to remove to get Cerise's stand out ripped a bit of the cardboard off of her name.  In the past, I haven't had a problem with the tape doing that.  Just be careful opening the box if you're into keeping your boxes as nice as possible. 

Cerise's instructions...

...and her stand.

Like all of the other dolls, Cerise also had a story bookmark.  

Most of you probably already know that Cerise is the daughter of Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf.  In both the webisodes and the second EAH book, he is more humanoid in form, so he's basically a werewolf.  Normally I'm not into the whole werewolf thing (especially since I was terrified of them as a child), but I appreciate the way they've handled the story in this case.  I especially loved hearing Red and Wolfie's backstory in the second EAH book.  It was more a case of two sweet "people" falling in love, rather than the "he's dangerous but I'm still gonna go for him" storyline that is one of my pet peeves. :}  Cerise's parents love each other and love her very much, but due to the prejudices of their clans, they have to keep their marriage a secret.  

Anyway, here's Cerise's story from her bookmark.  Enjoy. :)

And now for some photos of the lovely Cerise:

It was really fun playing around and trying to find her best angle. :)

Cedar and Cerise are two of my very favorite EAH dolls because of their detail and their facial expressions.  I can't wait to see what Mattel releases next from this line (hopefully Dexter Charming!).

Here is my whole Ever After High collection so far.

Madeline Hatter, Raven Queen, Apple White, Cedar Wood...

...Cerise Hood, Briar Beauty, Hunter Huntsman and Ashlynn Ella.

And just for fun, here's one that I edited on ribbet.com. :)

Overall, I'm thrilled with my Cerise Hood doll.  I'm not normally a fan of white streaks in dark hair, and I wish they'd made her skirt a little longer (although the fact that she's wearing leggings underneath makes it slightly better), but other than that, I have no complaints about the doll herself.  I think her face is cute and appealing, and it fits her character.  And while I'm more drawn to the bright, warm color palette of Cedar Wood, I enjoy red and black too (before kiddos and before they were "in" colors, I had a guest room in red and black). ;)  

Looking back over this review, I realize that I used the word "detail" or "detailed" a lot.  I apologize for overusing the word.  To be honest, though, the first word that comes to mind when I think of Cerise (or any of the EAH dolls, for that matter) is "detail".  Mattel has done an excellent job at paying attention to the small stuff with this line.  I think that's one of the things that make these dolls so fun and appealing. :) 

As I said earlier, the werewolf theme isn't one I'm normally a fan of, but in this case it's not a scary or dark werewolf theme (and much preferred to Twilight, in my opinion).  The story of Cerise and her family is handled tastefully, especially in the second EAH book, "The Unfairest of them All" (which made me like her as a character even more).  Also, I have to say, it's kind of nice to have a werewolf character that I like after so many years of being deathly afraid of them. :}  That being said, I would like to clarify that most werewolf/vampire/zombie type stories are ones I try to avoid.  There's a definite trend of glorifying the macabre and gory in our culture right now which I do not agree with and do not believe is healthy, especially for the kiddos out there.  I realize not all of you are on the same page with me on that, but I felt I needed to mention it.  For some moms who feel the same way I do and would like to avoid the whole werewolf scenario entirely (which is completely understandable), you might want to skip this particular doll. ;)  

Cerise gets a 5 out of 5 from me for her quality and "detail". ;)  

To check out my review of Cedar Wood, click HERE.  At the end of that post, you'll find links to my other EAH reviews. :)

Have a great night! :)