Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity-Jig

Hey everyone!  I'm finally home after a whirlwind weekend with the girls. :)  I have a ton of comments to publish and respond to, and tons of pictures to go through.  I plan on getting to that tomorrow and putting up a post about my trip sometime this week.

I also have to peruse the Internet for Toy Fair pics!  I've missed all of the Toy Fair news while on our trip. ;)

And then, of course, I need to buckle down and get back to my writing.  (Just five more weeks until the Writers Conference!!) :D

Talk to all of you again soon!

More Cinderella from a Slightly Obsessed Fan ;)

Any of you who have read my blog for a while now might have picked up that I tend to obsess about things.  Just a little. :}

I don't know what it is, but especially when it comes to Disney movies, the little girl in me gets all goofy and bubbly and excited, and I feel like I'm ten again. ;)

So I suppose it's no surprise that I'm getting REALLY excited about the live-action version of Cinderella releasing next month.  Maleficent didn't interest me all that much (I liked parts of it), and Alice in Wonderland was okay (Tim Burton stuff kind of creeps me out), but Cinderella seems "just right" (to quote Goldilocks...or would that be Blondie Lockes?). ;)  The fact that Kenneth Branagh is directing it and Patrick Doyle is composing the music makes me all the more eager to watch the movie. :)

Part of this week's excitement was Wednesday's release of the newest trailer, which you can see HERE.

Some of my excitement also came from the fact that I found the junior novelization AND the beautiful storybook version of the film earlier this week while running errands:

I love the covers of both! :)

The junior novelization is a sweetly-written summary of the film, condensed (I'm assuming) for younger readers.  My favorite aspect of this version is that it's told by the Fairy Godmother, who inserts her own parenthetical notes throughout the story.  (You can just picture Helena Bonham Carter reading them to you.) ;)  I also like the pretty butterflies in black and white tones that grace the borders of each page.  My only complaint is that the book makes several references to Cinderella's blue eyes, when in this version of the movie she has very pretty brown eyes.  It's the prince who has the gorgeous blue ones. ;)  This version was $5.99 at Walmart.

The back cover

There are several pages of stills from the film inside.

The regular book, which has a hardcover binding that is smooth to the touch, features full-color illustrations.  It appears to be the whole movie in book form, as it includes much more detail than the junior novelization.  (Again, this is an assumption, as I haven't seen the film yet.)  I haven't finished the whole thing, but I'm enjoying the writing so far.  I do wish the illustrations were a little less stylized, but that's just a matter of personal preference.  They're beautifully done, but they don't always capture the look of the people playing the roles in the film.  Still, it's a lovely book overall and I'm thrilled to have a copy in my collection.  This version was $12.99 at Target and $11.04 at Walmart.

Back cover

A couple of illustrations: 

So obviously, for those of you who are not into spoilers, you're going to want to wait to read these until after you've seen the movie.  (Sorry, Mimi, I couldn't resist the temptation!) ;)  I'm wondering if they'll release nice storybook copies of all of the live-action movies they're making?  I'd love to have a Beauty and the Beast one for my collection, although I'm still trying to picture Emma Watson as Belle, to be honest. :}  I'm naturally a little more nervous about a live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast since it's my personal favorite.  Cinderella was never as special to me, so I'm not as freaked out about every little change or by the cast members. ;)

I also thought I'd link to some excellent pictures of the Mattel and Disney Store Cinderella dolls from drj1828 on Flickr.  Drj1828 is my go-to source for new Disney Store releases.  You'll find a plethora of pictures full of amazing, up-close detail in drj1828's photostream.  I always find this incredibly helpful when thinking about a future purchase.

I'm still not 100% sold on the Disney Store Cinderella faces, especially since they're so somber, but I do prefer the Disney Store hair and dresses.  I also think I like the Disney Store Lady Tremaine and Fairy Godmother better than the Mattel versions.  When it comes to the Cinderella dolls themselves, even though the Mattel faces are more of a stylized version of Lily James (the actress who plays Cinderella), I find them more pleasing and better proportioned.  Maybe I should get one of the Mattel Cinderellas and dress her in the Disney Store clothing. ;)

Anyway, here are a few specific pictures I thought I'd link to:

Wedding Cinderella Dolls (still boxed, DS and Mattel)

Cinderella Dolls (deboxed, DS and Mattel, Wedding and Ball versions)

Wedding Cinderella Faces (deboxed, DS and Mattel)

Blue Gown Cinderella Faces (deboxed, DS and Mattel)

Be sure to check drj1928's photostream for many more pictures of the Cinderella dolls and more!

We'll be leaving later today for our yearly birthday trip for my three daughters, and the Disney Store will definitely be one of our stops.  I'll have to let you know whether I succumb to any of the Cinderella dolls when I see them in person. ;)

Are any of you getting excited about this movie, too? ;)

Funko Mystery Minis Frozen Figures!

Okay, so this blogging hiatus isn't as much of a hiatus as I thought it would be.  There are just too many things to share with all of you! ;)  I did get a chapter and a half written yesterday on my book, and I'm planning on writing more later this evening, so I am getting some stuff done there, too. ;)

Today ended up being more of a running errands day than a writing day.  While I was out, I found some brand new Frozen-themed Funko Mystery Minis for $5.95 each at Barnes and Noble! :D

Lol, I couldn't tell my camera had taken this picture, but thankfully it did! ;)

Since I haven't had the chance to put together my "Ask Beastsbelle" vlog yet, I thought I'd do a box opening video, just for fun, to tide you over. ;)  You can see it HERE. 

Warning: (which maybe should have come before the link) I discovered I am really bad at taking a video with one hand while simultaneously opening a box one-handed. (How do all those YouTubers do it?)  Be prepared for random dropping of items, shaky camera, and my commentary about how hard it is to open this stuff and record at the same time. ;)

I also tried turning the camera to record myself from the back of my phone, but couldn't see what was recording.  It's not the most flattering shot of me, but since I keep talking about "keeping it real" here on the blog, I guess I shouldn't be all worried about my appearance. ;)

If you'd rather not suffer through my novice video, here are pictures of the two figures I got:

Marshmallow and Kristoff! :D

I think this is probably my favorite figure version of Marshmallow I've ever seen.  They captured him perfectly! :)

Other views: 

I'm so excited I got Kristoff!!  I even said that in the video before I opened them. ;)  I especially love that they posed him with his guitar.

Other views: 

I hope you enjoyed this short little post and my rather random video! ;)  Have a wonderful day!  I'm almost done with another short post for Friday for all of you to enjoy.  

On Friday afternoon, we'll be leaving for our annual birthday trip for the girls, and won't return until Monday, so things will probably be pretty quiet around here during that time.  I'll try to check in and at least publish comments so you can all enjoy them. :)

Favorite Doll Books

Back in September of 2014, I was asked to speak to our local doll club.  At that meeting, I shared some of my favorite doll books that the girls and I have found through the years.  Since I did a bit of work researching and summarizing each of the books, I thought it would be fun to share that information with you here.  This post has actually been waiting in draft form since October or so.  Since I was hoping to get a few posts scheduled to publish during my break from active blogging, I thought it was a great time to share this one with you. :)

For this topic, I purposely only choose books that were about actual dolls who were really alive in some way.  In other words, I didn't choose books like the Magic Attic or American Girl series, where the book is about a human girl (such as Samantha or Molly or Caroline) who had a doll fashioned after her.  I hope that makes sense.

Most of these are fun little obscure books, not necessarily award winners.  However, every book I chose for this post had something special that I enjoyed.  I hope through this post you and/or your kids will be able to find some fun new treasures for your family library. :)

Beneath each book, I've included a list of the main characters.  Some of the characters have brief descriptions, while others are simply listed.  I decided to keep the lists as they were (especially since it's been a while and I couldn't remember specific details about each character).  I suppose if you're curious about the characters I didn't describe, you'll just have to read their books! ;)

Henriette, The Story of a Doll

Written By: Tracy Friedman

Originally Published: 1986

Summary: Set shortly after the Civil War, this story focuses on the adventures of a French doll who goes on a quest to find her mistress's granddaughter.

Characters:

-Henriette: the doll who goes on a long journey to find the little girl she belongs to.

-Amanda: a young orphaned girl who is separated from her only relative.

-Amanda's Grandmother: an elderly woman who wants nothing more than to be united with her granddaughter, but feels she is too old and her plantation too run down to raise her the way she needs to be raised.

Unique to This Story: This book covers the perils a doll might face when traveling a great distance without a human.  It's a story I discovered as a young girl, and I instantly fell in love with brave Henriette. :)

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

Hitty, Her First Hundred Years

Written By: Rachel Field

Originally Published: 1929

Summary: A personal account from a little wooden doll's perspective of her first 100 years of life and all of the things she experiences.

Characters:

-Hitty and many others ;)

Unique to This Story: This story is told from Hitty's perspective and is written in the style of a memoir. It features all sorts of mishaps and adventures that Hitty goes through during the course of her life.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

Raggedy Ann Stories

Written By: Johnny Gruelle

Originally Published: 1918?

Summary: Raggedy Ann is the beloved rag doll of a little girl named Marcella (based on Johnny Gruelle's own daughter). Together with her other friends from the nursery, she has all sorts of adventures and learning experiences when Marcella is away or asleep.

Characters:

-Marcella

-Raggedy Ann

-Raggedy Andy

-The Camel with the Wrinkled Knees

-Uncle Clem

-The Indian Doll

-The French Doll

-Henny

Unique to This Story: The sweet, innocent adventures of Marcella's playthings in her nursery (usually when she is away) remind us of the way we always imagined our dolls to be when we weren't looking. The stories have special poignancy because of the death of the real Marcella.

You can find many of Johnny Gruelle's Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy books on Amazon.com HERE.

The Doll Hospital

Written By: James Duffy

Originally Published: 1989

Summary: Alison is an eight-year-old girl who suffers from a serious illness. She starts a doll hospital, and with the help of her older brother and her faithful companions Nettie, Boodles, and Denise, cares for dolls with all sorts of illnesses and injuries.

Characters:

-Alison: The main character who regularly talks to her dolls and toys (and they talk back).

-Charlie: Alison's fourteen-year-old brother who serves as the doctor for the doll hospital.

-Nettie: Alison's rag doll who is outspoken and opinionated.

-Boodles: Alison's stuffed dog.

-Denise: A French doll who is given to Alison by a friend of her brother. Denise is the first doll in need of medical assistance. Her illness is what gives Alison the idea for the doll hospital.

Unique to This Story: In this story, the dolls suffer from real illnesses like measles. Unlike many other doll stories, in this one the dolls can communicate with Alison and even talk to her older brother. However, from the writing style it could also be interpreted that Alison is imagining everything (I choose to ignore that possibility). ;) Through helping the dolls with their illnesses, Alison is able to face her fears about her own illness.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

The Doll House Caper

Written By: Jean S. O'Connell

Originally Published: 1975

Summary: A family of dollhouse dolls play an integral part in catching some robbers who have come to the house to steal the family's belongings.

Characters:

Dolls

-Mr. Dollhouse

-Mrs. Dollhouse

-Ruth

-Todd

-Baby

Humans

-Kevin

-Harry

-Peter

-Mother

-Father

Unique to This Story: The children in the family are all boys, so there are some hilarious references to the way boys play with dollhouses. In this book, the dollhouse is only brought out around Christmastime. Also, the dolls are not able to move by themselves until the humans are in bed.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

The Doll People Series

Written By: Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin

Originally Published: 2000

Number of Books in Series: 4

Summary: Annabelle, a miniature antique doll, lives in a dollhouse with her family, wondering about her Aunt Sarah who went missing years ago. Annabelle's life changes forever when she meets Tiffany Funcraft, a plastic dollhouse doll purchased for the younger girl in the house.  These books recount the two dolls' adventures and the beginning of their wonderful friendship.

Characters:

Dollhouse Dolls:

-Annabelle Doll

-Bobby Doll

-Auntie Sarah

-Uncle Doll

-Nanny

-Mama Doll

-Papa Doll

-Baby Betsy

Funcraft Dolls

-Dad Funcraft

-Mom Funcraft

-Tiffany Funcraft

-Bailey Funcraft

-Baby Britney Funcraft

Humans

-Grandma Katherine

-Mr. Palmer

-Mrs. Palmer

-Kate (third grader)

-Nora (preschooler)

Unique to This Story: The author's explanation of why dolls don't move when we're around is particularly clever (Doll State and Permanent Doll State).  The Dollhouse dolls have a gigantic baby doll instead of a doll in their scale because the wrong one was ordered for them, but they love her anyway.

These books feature fantastic, detailed artwork on inset covers, showing the order catalogs for the dolls featured in the stories. They also have very funny passages contrasting the way older girls and younger girls play with a dollhouse (“rancher family”).

You can find The Doll People books on Amazon.com HERE.

The Doll's House

Written By: Rumer Godden

Originally Published: 1947

Summary: A unique family of dollhouse dolls, belonging to two sisters, wants nothing more than a home. When they end up with a beautiful dollhouse, it seems like a dream come true...until they meet the doll that comes with it.

Characters:

Human

-Emily

-Charlotte

Dolls

-Mr. Plantaganet: The father of the dollhouse, still dealing with a traumatic past.

-Birdie Plantaganet: The mother of the dollhouse, a celluloid doll who is a bit of an airhead.

-Tottie: An antique wooden doll, the daughter of the dollhouse.

-Apple: An adorable plush doll, the little brother of the dollhouse.

-Marchpane: A haughty antique doll who feels that the Plantaganets have taken her house from her.

Unique to This Story: Mr. Plantaganet's emotional issues are hilarious yet perfectly understandable considering the way he started his doll life. All of the dolls have unique personalities that make them lovable and memorable. The story also has a part that might be a bit difficult for younger readers, demonstrating the sacrificial love of a mother.

In this story, the dolls often talk to the humans, but it is implied that the humans can't hear them.

The conflict between the doll family and the snooty Marchpane is resolved very cleverly.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

The Lonely Doll Series

Written By: Dare Wright

Originally Published: 1957

Number of Books in Series: Unknown; at least 9

Summary: The adventures of a little cloth doll and the stuffed bears that come to live with her.

Characters:

-Edith

-Mr. Bear

-Little Bear

Unique to This Story: Dare Wright's beautiful photography that captures Edith and the bears in the act of the story. ;) Her pictures lend an incredibly believable quality to her stories.  Edith was a customized 22” Lenci doll from the 109 series released in the 1920s. Source here: http://www.lenci-dolls.net/article.html

You can find many of the Lonely Doll books on Amazon.com HERE.

The Story of Holly & Ivy

Written By: Rumer Godden

Originally Published: 1958 in “Ladies' Home Journal” (just the text)

Summary: A Christmas Doll and an orphaned girl both get their Christmas wish: each other.

Characters:

-Holly-a sweet little Christmas doll in a toy shop window.

-Ivy-a lonely orphaned girl.

-Mr. Blossom-the toy shop owner.

-Abracadabra-a rather spooky stuffed owl who is also at the toy shop.

-Peter-Mr. Blossom's helper.

-Mr. Jones-a friendly policeman.

-Mrs. Jones-Mr. Jones' wife, who is particularly wishing for a child this Christmas.

Unique to This Story: A sweet story about a Christmas doll and a little orphan girl who need each other, and the events of one special Christmas that bring them together.  Barbara Cooney's beautiful, wistful illustrations are an enchanting addition to the book.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.

When the Dolls Woke

Written By: Marjorie Filley Stover

Originally Published: 1985

Summary: A little girl named Gail inherits a family dollhouse, and with the help of the dolls in the dollhouse, she discovers the secret to her family's long-lost fortune.

Characters:

Human

-Gail Aldrich-the little girl who has inherited the dollhouse from her family

The Dollhouse Dolls

-Sir Gregory: The father of the dollhouse dolls, made of bisque (as is the rest of his family).

-Lady Alice: Sir Gregory's wife.

-Maribelle: Sir Gregory and Lady Alice's daughter.

-Tommy: Sir Gregory and Lady Alice's son.

-Baby Winky: The baby girl in the doll family.

-Becky: A cloth doll who is the maid.

-Martinique: A wooden doll purchased by Gail's great-great grandfather on one of his voyages.

Unique to This Story: Much like “The Doll People”, the dolls in this story have been handed down through generations, so there are many references to the trials of being passed to some children who are careless or wild, as well as the trials of being older dolls and having one's clothing and home fall into disrepair.

In this story, the dolls are capable of anything their young mistresses imagine (for instance, if the girls pretend they can cook, the dolls have the ability to cook).

Throughout the book, there are curious references to the dolls “vapors”, which are used to express feeling or emotion.

You can find it on Amazon.com HERE.


I hope this post encourages you and your family to look for some fun, new reading material! :)

Kickstarter Shout-Outs, Updates, and More of Your Help Needed :)

My Kickstarter campaign officially ended last night, and I am THRILLED to report that I was able to raise $555, thanks to all of my lovely backers.  This was far above and beyond what I expected.  Once again, I want to thank all of you who backed me, but I also wanted to thank all of you who have offered me your congratulations or told me that you're praying for me.  The amount of support I've gotten for this next step in my writing journey has been overwhelming.  I would appreciate your continued prayers as I finish my writing and prepare for the conference.  I can't wait to share what happens at Mount Hermon! :D

I need to share some Shout-Outs one last time. :)

   -Eva Z. deserves another shout-out, because she raised her pledge.  Thanks, Eva!

   -Jay of JABHA Creativity swooped in and became a backer on the last day, too.  Thank you, Jay!

And thank you again to all of my backers.  I couldn't have done it without you. :)

I'm in the process of collecting mailing addresses and getting artwork postcards packaged up to ship.  I'll be working on the map for my $100 backers over the next few weeks, too.

I was thinking when my whole experience with Kickstarter is over, I'd like to share a bit about the site here on the blog.  Since it was my first time participating in a crowdfunding site, there were a lot of things I didn't know.  I thought it might be helpful for some of you to hear a little more about the site, how it works, what I liked and what I didn't.  I'll wait to share those thoughts until everything is done, though, so I can have a clearer picture of how the whole process works from start to finish. :)

So, as I mentioned in an earlier post, these next few weeks I'll be really buckling down and focusing on getting my book finished.  This means I won't be on the blog or my Facebook page much, especially these first two weeks.  However, I won't leave you completely in the lurch.  I've already got some fun posts scheduled to publish throughout my absence. :)

I will check my blog comments and publish them at least once a week, but I will not be responding to them until I come back.  So please don't panic if I don't respond to you or even publish your comment right away.  At the end of my mini-hiatus I will respond to your thoughts. ;)

I also plan on releasing my "Ask Beast'sBelle" (and the Gals) Vlog sometime this week.  There's still time to submit questions, so if you have a burning question you'd like to leave for me or my daughters, you can leave it in the comments on this post or on the original post HERE.  I will take questions until tomorrow. :)

In other news, I need help from all of you!  As I mentioned before, I'm in the process of working on my map of my fairytale world.  Since I'm early on in the story process, many of the landmarks on my map need names, and I'm facing a serious case of writer's block!

I thought it would be fun to have you, my readers, share in this story adventure with me by helping me name some of my landmarks.  Here are a few of the things that need names:

-Rivers
-Mountains
-Beaches
-Roads
-Regions of the land (The kingdom is split into seven different areas, each with their own ruler, trade, and culture.  The first region is an island, the second is sandy and coastal, the third is heavily forested, and the fourth has lush meadows.  The fifth is located high in the mountains, while the sixth is full of lakes, ponds, and waterfalls.  The seventh is mostly forested with a few small beaches.)

I can also share that there are areas in which you might happen to find mythical creatures, such as unicorns, dragons, and mermaids. ;)

This is a fairytale world, so the names can be unique!  If you'd like, you could even share what sort of landmark you'd like to name or explain how you came up with the name.

Leave your name ideas in the comments below.  Each reader can contribute six name ideas.  The deadline is Saturday, February 21st, so you have two weeks to brainstorm! :)

I have not decided yet how many names I will choose to use.  A lot of that will depend on what you come up with! :)  If your name is chosen, I will give you credit in the back of my book once it is published. :)

I guess that's about it for now!  I'm looking forward to seeing your creativity unleashed! ;)  Now, it's time for me to unleash my own and get writing!!  I'll be all the way back in two to three weeks, and partially here to publish comments and make sure posts publish correctly in the meantime. :)

My Week in Retrospect :)

It's been quite an eventful week in my end of the world.  I thought I'd share a few of the things I've been doing with all of you. :)

 Kickstarter:

   First off, you might have noticed that I didn't do any Kickstarter Shout-Outs last Friday.  That's because I've already met my goal and didn't get any new backers last week (which is totally fine). ;)  As of now, I have 50 hours before my Kickstarter fundraiser ends.  And thanks to all of you who backed me, at that time I'll be able to collect my funds and pay the rest of my Mount Hermon entrance fee in full! :D

While I didn't have any new backers last week, I was very excited to receive my last shipment of artwork postcards last Friday! :D  I spent the evening signing and dating them and then letting them dry.  I can't wait to send these off to my backers! :D  (I also printed a few extra copies to take with me to the conference, just in case.)

Fun Finds:

   I also found some great new things around town this past week, some that came home with me, and some that didn't. ;)  

Target

At Target, I found the new Crazy Hair Lalaloopsy Girls (this one is Scoops Waffle Cone).  While I'm not really a fan of this particular line from Lalaloopsy, I know some of you are.  I do love that they included Cinderslippers in this line, too.  If only they'd re-release her as a mini!  My Prince Handsome is lonely. ;)

   I do wonder how you get the hair clean once you've applied glitter to it.  You're supposed to be able to style and restyle this hair over and over again.  I'm just not sure how all that stuff would come out between styles. :}

 Goodwill

I found a few little goodies at Goodwill.  First was this Lalaloopsy Littles outfit, still sealed in the package, for 99 cents.  It was just perfect for Middle Gal's Squirt Little Top, a thrift store rescue with no clothes. ;)

The back of the package.

I also found a vintage Friend Bear, from the Care Bears line, in the 49 cent table.  Friend Bear will look great on display with Funshine Bear and Birthday Bear, my other two Care Bears thrift store rescues. :)

Friend Bear from the back.

Kmart

While at Kmart, I was excited by this Rainbow Rocks "Rockin' Hairstyle" Equestria Girls Fluttershy doll. (Wow, that title's quite a mouthful!)  While I didn't mind the first Equestria Girls movie, I wasn't as much of a fan of the second movie, especially because I don't enjoy rock music.  That being said, I think this is the first Equestria Girls Fluttershy doll I've seen that completely captures Fluttershy's sweet nature.

The face paint has a softer, sweeter look to it than the previous dolls.  I'm also thrilled that the new EG dolls have actual feet instead of the footless stumps the original EG dolls have.  I'm not a fan of peace signs, so I'd probably remove her necklace and earrings, but nonetheless, this doll might eventually become a part of my collection. :)

Fluttershy didn't come home with me that day, but a package of the new Lalaloopsy Tinies with hair DID. ;)  The girls and I split them between us.  A review will be up soon! :D

Toys R Us 

I haven't been to a Toys R Us for a couple of months, but my mom stopped by the closest store a while back.  While there, she found another item I've been wanting to see in person:  My Little Pony Squishy Pops.  These little blind bag-type toys are in little surprise balls.  They retail for just under two dollars.  She brought two of them home.

When you open them, they have a surprise wrapped in plastic.

Unfortunately, sometimes all you get are two plastic beads.  Phooey. :(

But you can also end up with a super cute pony! :D

I took some clearer pictures when I got home.  I'm not impressed with the beads AT ALL, but Rarity was darling!

Even though she's super tiny (right around an inch tall, give or take a bit), she's very detailed and painted well.

The black plastic under her feet in the previous photos is there to help her stand, and I believe also helps her connect to the bracelets and jewelry made as part of the line.

She also has a tiny suction cup to help her stick to flat surfaces.  

Here she is next to my blind bag Rarity for comparison.

   Overall, I think these MLP Squishy Pops are adorable.  I'd really like a Fluttershy for my Fluttershy shelf.  However, I think I'll buy one of the bigger sets that comes with a bracelet, where the pony is visible in the packaging.  That way I don't end up wasting money trying to find Fluttershy and ending up with beads instead. :{

99 Cents Only Store

When I was in the 99 Cents Only Store, I found this cute little Olaf figure.  They also had Anna and Kristoff figures, but they were very poorly painted.  Olaf was a bit bigger, so his paint wasn't all that bad.

In fact, he's rather adorable, especially for just 99 cents! ;)

He seems quite happy on my Frozen shelf with my other little Olafs. :)

Doll Surgery: 

   

   My doll club had a very successful doll restringing and evaluation booth set up at the mall during a local antique show a couple of weekends ago (I was even mentioned by name in my local paper!). :D  However, a few of the "patients" brought to us had cases too complex for immediate restringing.  So this past Saturday, my doll-stringing mentor and I worked on them at her house.  Here are two of the dolls that I restrung:

Poor baby!

I'm especially thrilled with how this doll turned out.  His (or her?) arms were strung similarly to an American Girl doll.  It took me FOREVER to work around the little plastic cups inside his arms, but I finally got him all fixed up and back to normal. :D

This poor dear was my first fifteen-piece body.  It was a lot of work, and I made a few mistakes along the way...

...but I was thrilled to finally get her all back together. :)

Fan Mail: 

   I was excited to receive some Fan Mail this week from All About Boog, a fellow blogger and the winner of the My Little Pony Express Giveaway I held on the blog two months ago.  It was very fun opening the early Valentine's Day Goodies she sent for me and my daughters to enjoy together. :D

Here are the goodies she sent:

It was so fun opening everything, like a little package of unexpected happiness. :) 

I think my favorite item was this vintage Strawberry Shortcake book, which All About Boog found at a thrift store.  She's another thrifter, just like me! ;)

    Thank you so much, All About Boog.  It made my day to know someone was thinking about me. :)  My girls and I are enjoying all of the fun things you sent us. :) 

   This brings me to a question for all of you.  I've now had several people interested in sending me things, and I'm hesitant to keep giving out my home address.  I've been considering the idea of getting a P.O. Box for fan mail.  If I did so and started receiving fan mail, I'm afraid I couldn't answer you guys personally (I'm already overwhelmed enough with email), but I would definitely do blog shout-outs whenever fan mail arrived.  What do you guys think?  Those of you who have P.O. Boxes, have you been pleased with them?  I've never had one before, so this is new territory for me.  I just think it would be nice to have the option, like I said, so I wouldn't have to give out my home address if my readers wanted to send me something.

Spirit Week:

   Part of this week's craziness involved Spirit Week (celebrating school spirit and culminating with Homecoming at the end of the week) at the girls' school.  There are four dress-up days, each with a different theme.  This means that I've had to come up with twelve different costumes for the week!  It's been a little crazy, but fun, too. :)  The dress-up days this year are Neon Day, Disney Day (hooray!), Under the Sea Day, and Red, White and Blue Day (our school colors).  I didn't think to get a blog-safe picture for Neon Day yesterday, but when Oldest Gal held up her mirror to her face for one of the pictures today, it gave me an idea.  I mean, I had to share the Disney Day pictures with you guys, right? ;)  

So here are Oldest Gal, Middle Gal, and Little Gal, aka Belle, Anna, and Alice.  Aren't they just adorable? :D

Here's a look at the backs of their costumes.  Oldest Gal's Belle dress was a modified old formal of mine.  Middle Gal's outfit was one she came up with herself.  I provided the black tank top and pink pillowcase cape (both Goodwill finds).  Little Gal's dress was an Alice costume we had packed away from earlier years. :)

   The girls had a great time, and it was super fun making this a special day for them.  However...

Doll Club:

   ...it was just slightly hectic since in December I'd already committed to hosting the doll club at my house today! :}  If I had realized it was the same week as Spirit Week, I probably would have rescheduled.  God is good, though.  I got everything done just in time.  Well, sort of.  The girls were ten minutes late to school. ;)

   Some of you have asked me in the past about my doll club and what we do.  We meet once a month in a different home, and each meeting has a different doll topic.  (My topic this month was Strawberry Shortcake dolls.)  We also usually have a business meeting in which we discuss club finances, vote on things we need to decide or change, and go over minutes from the previous meeting.  It sounds pretty official, but it's more of a laid-back official club. ;)

   The greatest thing about the club is that we each share our knowledge of dolls in different areas, and we all come away from the meetings having learned something new. :)

   Since I was speaking on Strawberry Shortcake and it was February, I decided to go with red, pink, and Strawberry themed decorations.

The table had a pink tablecloth and lots of little goodies on the top.

 

We had Valentine's Day M&Ms...

...peanuts, goody boxes for each guest...

...and strawberry candies. ;)  You'll also notice I found adorable Strawberry Shortcake confetti for the table (thank you, Party City!). :)

I hung some of my Strawberry Shortcake pictures and a mirror on the walls:

I also swapped out the Big Hero 6 calendar that normally hangs in our dining room for Oldest Gal's SSC one, and each of the girls colored a SSC picture for the bulletin board.

Just under the TV, I arranged a display of all of my Strawberry Shortcake dolls and collectibles.  When it came time to share about the history of SSC dolls, I stood beside the display and held each doll as I talked about it.  I also passed the dolls around so everyone could see them up close.

   I had a lot of fun sharing about a line of dolls that are so near and dear to my heart, and the gals in the club seemed to enjoy hearing about them.  After we'd finished the main topic, my mom, who very graciously served as the caterer, fed the ladies her homemade tacos and dessert.  We had a wonderful time visiting and eating together.  My mom is the best.  I couldn't have done it without her today. :)

   So, I think that brings you all up to speed.  Tomorrow, I'll head to the library for more writing time, and then to the dentist's (oh joy), as long as Little Gal stops coughing and actually falls asleep. ;)  Friday, I'll go into the school to help the elementary students with an art project (illustrating their own books).  Saturday, we have a playdate scheduled with friends.  Sunday, I'll sing in a trio in church.  Then the madness begins again next week! :}

   I wanted to let all of you know that beginning next week, I will be really focusing on getting my writing for the conference done.  My goal is to have some blog posts scheduled for you, as well as my vlog for YouTube. (You guys can still leave me and my daughters questions for the rest of this week!  There aren't too many questions so far, so we'd love to get some more.  Details HERE.)  Aside from that, though, I will be taking a bit of a blogging hiatus.  I will not be actively blogging or responding to comments for at least two weeks.  I really need to get my book done so I can make the most of the opportunity I have to go to the writers conference.  I'll have more details on the official plan later, but I just wanted to let all of you know what's on the horizon. :)

   I hope all of you are doing well.  Has your week been as full as mine?