Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Holding Out for Hayden/Holly/Hannah/Hazel and Other Random Thoughts

So, for those of you who don't know, I've officially fallen in love with My AG #55, one of the three My AG dolls recently released from American Girl.  I love her brown hair (which is pretty close to my own shade), her hazel eyes (also similar to mine), her cute freckles...just everything about her! :)  I think she'd be a great addition to the Hathaway sisters.  :D  I mean, she's got Emma's curls and a similar hair color, and Charlie's freckles, eye color, and hair length.  She's the perfect doll to tie the two of them together.  I think Piper would still work in the mix, too.  I may possibly make Piper a cousin to Emma and Charlie instead of a sister.  Piper would be a sister to my mom's Ruthie doll.  Or, I may just go for craziness and have 4 sisters!  I'm still deciding.

Thankfully (sort of), I have lots of time to decide.  After taking a hard look at our finances again, I've realized just how much I need to change things.  We have monthly school tuition payments starting in August for our 2 older girls, and even before that we're already needing to make some spending changes.

So, what does that mean exactly?  Well, for one thing, no new doll for me any time soon.  My birthday is coming up in September, so I'm thinking of asking for gift cards to American Girl if anyone needs present ideas.  I might put gift cards on my Christmas list, too.  My hope is that by sometime after Christmas, I'll be able to add #55 to my doll family. :)

Our financial situation also means that I won't be doing as many reviews of new products, since I'm going to need to cut back on my spending.  I'm going to try to stay away from eBay as much as possible (although I currently have some eBay bucks that I get to spend) :), and even thrift stores will have to be a no-no for a while.  See, my problem has always been to nickel and dime my money away.  I'm usually pretty good about big purchases.  It's all the little purchases here and there that get me into trouble. :(  And since I LOVE finding little goodies at thrift stores, I figure I need to just stay away for a while until I've gotten used to no impulse buying.

And all of you, feel free to keep me on task!  If I start doing all sorts of reviews of things I've purchased again, feel free to comment and put me in my place. ;)  I'll probably need it.  I would also appreciate your prayers as hubby and I try to rework things a bit.

Please don't worry, though.  There are still lots of posts I can do without spending money...so I won't leave you all in the lurch.  I may not have as many posts in the next few weeks, since VBS is looming on the horizon, but after that I should be back on track.  Also, my mom has really gotten into dolls, so I can do reviews of the stuff she finds. :)

Okay, and while I'm confessing things, I should probably give you another weight update...or lack thereof.  The bad news is, I'm back up to my starting weight.  The good news is, I've stayed at that weight for a couple of weeks now, so at least I'm not gaining more.  It's been pretty discouraging.  I've had a lot of stress in my life lately, so that doesn't help things either.  I'm thinking Pita may be doomed to forever live at my mom's.  :(  I may just be inconsistent and bring her home and try another motivational tactic (I REALLY want to do my doll comparisons post!!!).  I'm not sure...but I would really appreciate your prayers in this matter as well.

On to happier subjects.  I just finished Round 3 of The Doll Wardrobe's Photo Contest last week.  It has been a lot of fun being a part of things.  I'm not really expecting to win, especially since my hubby already won a doll from her (Emma last Christmas).  It's been enjoyable coming up with photo ideas, though.  Everyone has done an excellent job taking creative photos for each round.  You really should go check it out for yourself.  Here's Charlie's pic from this round (the theme was "Fashion"):

I had so much fun designing this fashion magazine cover. :)  It's worth being a part of things just for the creative aspect.  Winning is not important.   

And just in case you guys think it's rude of me to enter since my hubby won before, the main reason I entered in the first place was to get a Kanani doll for my aunt.  She's fallen in love with Kanani and can't afford a new doll. :)  If I managed to get one of the runner-up prizes, I'd probably save the gift card towards a #55 and use the summer clothes from the grab bag, as recently I've discovered my complete lack of summer doll attire.  There's not much danger of me winning, though.  Like I said before, all of the entries have been fantastic!  It's been really incredible seeing how creative everyone is. :)    

 Okay, moving on.  I'd  like to ask you all for an opinion.  If I do manage to have enough in gift cards by Christmas or so, I'm trying to decide on a name for #55.  She is going to basically be me at 12 years old, personality-wise, that is.  ;)  She will love horses and have a Breyer horse collection.  Her favorite movies will be "Beauty and the Beast", "Aladdin", and "The Princess Bride".  She will also be into vintage Strawberry Shortcake.  Her hobbies will be singing and drawing.  She may also possibly be into Lady Lovely Locks, but I'm still deciding on that.  Just giving you a little background. :)

So, here are the names I'm considering:

First Names:    

Hayden
Holly
Hannah
Hazel

Middle Names:

Edith
Brooke

Last Name:

Hathaway (sorry, no vote on this one!) ;)

So, readers, what do you think?  Which name do you think suits her best?  Leave your comment and let me know. :)  

I hope you all have a wonderful week! :)

P.S. I almost forgot!  I'm up to 85 followers!!!!  Thanks so much, everyone!  Just 15 more now until I reach my goal of 100 followers!!!! 

Okay, that was waayyy too many exclamation points for one paragraph. :} 

25 comments:

Claire said...

Hmm...I love the name Hayden Brooke Hathaway for #55. It goes so nicely with Emma, Charlie, and Piper!

anya said...

I totally agree with Claire! Hayden Brooke Hathaway is a charming name.

Us and Me said...

I like Hayden Brooke too!!!

AuntLou said...

Brooke sounds the best with all the first names. I have the same bent of nickel and diming. Prayed for each thing you asked for. Love to hear how you improvise and enjoy yourself without spending! :)

Chloe said...

I like Hannah Broke Hathway.

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks for all of the comments, everyone. It's always fun to hear which names appeal to everyone. It sounds like Brooke is definitely the most popular for the middle name!

Aunt Lou, thanks so much for your prayers. I appreciate them more than you know. :)

bwaybabs said...

I like the names Hannah and Holly, but I can't say I'm too fond of either of the middle names. I'd go with Brooke though.

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks for the input, bwaybabs. :)

Jen said...

#55 is the cutest! If I didn't already have a full roster of modern girls, she'd be awfully tempting. Of those name choices, I have to say I like Holly Brooke the best. (I'm rather prejudiced against Hayden, seeing as how every other kid out there seems to be Aidan/Braden/Caden/Hayden/Jaden/you get the idea. :D Also, it's my emo-hipster nephew's name.)

And I SO hear you on the nickel-and-dime spending! I never think much of $10 here and $15 there, but it sure does add up! I'm trying to avoid both eBay AND the sale lists on AGPT. We'll have to look out for each other! :D

Gabby said...

I love almost all the names you've chosen! I think Hazel Brooke is the prettiest- and my favorite!

:-)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks for the comments, gals.

Jen, you made me laugh with your Aidan/Braden/Caden/Hayden/Jaden comment. :) It's so true, too! I must confess I still like the name, though. ;) And yes, I think we should look out for each other! I actually used my eBay bucks yesterday and then deleted my entire watch list...which is UNHEARD OF for me. :} I figure it's a good start, though.

Gabby, I'm so glad someone chose Hazel! I was hoping all of the names would get at least one vote. No one seems to be going for Edith, though. I'll admit it's not at the top of most people's name lists. I was thinking of Edith in the Lonely Doll books, and also the main character in Louisa May Alcott's "The Inheritance", if that helps anyone. :)

Meghan Rebecca said...

Holly Brooke! :) she is so cute!
Love Meghan

Hayden said...

Okay, Hayden, for obvious reasons...:) I think Brooke goes better with Hayden than Edith does, and Hathaway is a pretty cool last name. I'll have to file it away for future use in my story-writing :)

By the way, I though of a funny story you might appreciate:

I got my first American Girl Today doll several years ago, and I decided to name her Caroline, but being the fickle person I am (*smile*) I changed her name to Clarissa a few months afterwards. Clarissa had been packed up for a few years and when I took her out a few months ago, it suddenly registered: My aunt and uncle, a few months before, had named their newborn baby girl Clarissa Caroline! I thought that was an odd coincidence :) I guess my aunt and I have similar taste in names!

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks for commenting, Meghan Rebecca and Hayden. :)

Hayden, I'm not surprised by your name choice. ;) Thanks for sharing the story, too. I love the name Clarissa Caroline!

Okay, everyone. So far it's 4 votes for Hayden, 3 votes for Holly, 2 votes for Hannah, and 1 vote for Hazel. For middle names, Brooke is winning by a landslide! 10 votes for Brooke and none for Edith.

Keep the votes coming!! :) In about a week or so, I'll do a final tally and announce the winning names! :)

Carolyn said...

I like unusal names, so I vote for Hazel Edith, although hazel Brooke sounds equally appealing. :o)

As for spending, I think most of us are in the same boat. Good luck with that.

Have a great day!

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks, Bama. :)

Us and Me said...

Hayden Brooke

. said...

I think Hayden Brooke Hathaway is a gorgeous name for her! I am usually one to go with the majority of the group(LOL) but I love this one! Personally, I will not be getting #55 because after my wig "ordeal"(I ordered a wig the same night as a doll and didn't use the wig on that doll;) That wig looks crazily similar to this one, & I'm planning to get a fairly nice Felicity on eBay or A.G. Playthings soon(After I get Miss. Ivy/Fei Yen of whom I have been saving for with my countless hours as a day camp director!! LOL) And I'll probably custom freckle her;) I'm pretty set on a name: Lucienne Margaret(pronounced Lu-e-scene)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks for your comments, girls! :D I have a feeling Hayden Brooke is going to win by a landslide. :)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Emmie, I can't wait to see your custom Ivy. :)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Whoops! It's Rachel Noelle, not Emmie, isn't it?

. said...

Sorry about that! I didn't sign my name because I was on my iPhone! LOL Sorry for the confusion! Yes, Fei YenZ(Meaning flying swallow bid in Chinese;)/Ivy & Lucienne in my mind are gorgeous, now I just need some dolls to reflect it on!(LOL)
Sincerely,
Rachel Noel
P.S. I'm actually "watching" an eBay auction right now to the now *retired* JLY #4, and it's still within my price range….. you never know(Plus I'm re-naming her anyway! LOL;)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Ooh, I hope you win her! #4 is adorable. It's such a shame they decided to retire her.

Elliebob said...

I love the cover! :)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Thanks, Elliebob. :) I had a lot of fun coming up with it.