American Girl Dolls

My little buddy, Ragen, is celebrating her 6th birthday tomorrow & is having an American Girl birthday party.  She is so excited!  The other day they were over here & she asked Amy where all her dolls were ~ they are in her room.  Ragen hauled Amy upstairs to look at the dolls & to tell Amy which one to bring to the party!  So Felicity will be attending the party to celebrate Ragens birthday!

We've had lots of fun looking at DIY doll projects on pinterest!  And I started remembering all the fun we had with Amys dolls ~ all of which she still has and will be keeping for her daughters one day (good thing since AG isn't doing the historic dolls anymore). 

When Amy was 6 or so, she wanted an 18" doll but as a single mom ~ I wasn't convinced that a $90 doll was a good thing or that she would take good care of it.  She already had a bitty baby, Elizabeth, that she adored.  So we got a $18 doll from Target for a trial run ~ she had to take care of the doll, keep all the accessories together and neat etc.....for a year.  Then we would see.  We got lots of the Target goodies for the doll that year and Amy loved her!  She still pored over the AG catalog when it came and was convinced that Felicity would be hers in the future.  The following Christmas, Felicity joined the doll family ~ then Mollie ~ then Samantha's friend Nellie (Amy was born on my Aunt Nellies birthday).  Then Amy saved her money and bought one that looked like herself with brown hair & green eyes.  We watched for sales through the catalog & bought clothes for each of the dolls, a few bigger pieces (like the bathtub & stove).  Most of the doll furniture came from Target or JoAnns or Walmart.  The original Target doll was passed on to another little girl. 

The way I paid for the doll was to start making doll clothes to sell ~ that was the beginning of my sewing.  Everyone said I was crazy to start with such tiny pieces but in my mind it made sense ~ I would rather ruin a little piece of fabric than a big piece~  Not only did I make enough to buy the doll, the first year, I made enough to buy 5 dolls.  I was able to sell at my consignment sale & to sell the clothes at Amy's first ballet studio.  This was all from Sept. - Dec.  I also ventured into sewing for Amy & made her & the dolls matching outfits, some even smocked!

When the American Girl store opened in Atlanta, Mom took me, Amy, Katie, my sister Brenda & her daughter Bethany for lunch in the café & shopping.  If you think the catalog is great ~ you need to go to a store!  Its lots of fun.  I stood at the dolly 'beauty shop" and watched them repair the dolls hair back to it original beauty ~ and yes, just use the brush they sell for the hair, it does much better.  We ate a cute little teaparty style lunch ~ the dolls have their own chairs.  And walked around for a long time looking (drooling) at all the goodies that are available!

We loved the experience so much that the next Christmas ~ Greg made reservations for the girls & I and Mom and we went back!  Its definitely a girlie, feminine, dolly time!

there are extra dolls just in case you need a companion for lunch!

Appetizer of cheese sauce with vegies & bread for dipping!

Amy's Mac & Cheese dinner with French fries ~ she picked it!

So all of that wandering down Memory Lane to say, I am really having fun looking at stuff, finding new ideas, anticipating future grand daughters & seriously contemplating making doll clothes to sell again! 

Ragens party will be fun ~ I know they will enjoy yummy cupcakes (by Amy), and this adopted Grandma is looking forward to some girlie fun with Amy, Angel, Ragen, Sara, and Lauren & the other little girls that come!

There is a difference in the quality of the dolls ~ not just the price.  The AG dolls have a better quality full head of hair, are made sturdier, and have jointed arms and legs that allow them to sit in the chairs without sliding out.