A) a spring that isn't as crazy as the last one, and
B) some sort of resolution to my health woes.
Seriously, I don't want to run in a marathon, but being able to take my dogs outside without maneuvering a walker would be great. Carrying my dolls to the playground across the street for pictures would be amazing. And a simple walk around the block, like Grandma did with me when I was little! Oh, that would be the best thing in the world. When Uncle From St. Louis took me he'd always hold me up and let me touch one of the stop signs (I had a thing for stop signs when I was small). As for the spring, well...this post is the beginning of the saga. Mama, Clio Teresa, and me, crammed into our bathroom with Ryan Hall, KFVS, and KAIT all streaming on our phones and tablets. Last spring wasn't the worst I've ever seen; that title still goes to 2011, with 1999 being a close second. I hope to the good Lord we never see another spring like those. But last March and April were no picnic.
All that said, November got off the a slow start for photography. I didn't take my first random pic until November 14th.
I'd just spent half an hour putting my dolls back in their places after Tommy (my problem cat) knocked a bunch of them from hell to breakfast. Primrose Jessalyn looked the way I felt: hot, winded, and overwhelmed.
November was a slow month, period, and it was the 28th before I had anything worth photographing again. Snow was in the forecast for my neck of the woods, and I got a handful of my dolls out of their warm weather garb and into something more substantial. Here's Kiara and Kyle...
November was a slow month, period, and it was the 28th before I had anything worth photographing again. Snow was in the forecast for my neck of the woods, and I got a handful of my dolls out of their warm weather garb and into something more substantial. Here's Kiara and Kyle...
...and here's Rowena Skylar.
Ah, snow. So beautiful, so infuriating. It ended up being a cold rain and a sharp wind that time, the kind of weather that'll "make you good and sick," as Mama put it when my sister and I were young. The snow came on December 2nd.
I made up for lost time on November 30th. Tommy had knocked My Newborn Nancy reeling, so I picked her up had had a little one-on-one time.
Usually Kiara sits beside me, but on that particular day Lily had her spot.
When Lily picks a spot, it's hers for at least an hour. Or until Tommy chases her off. I love Tommy, but he can be a tremendous a$$ at times. If he's not slapping my dolls around he's picking on Lily, and Lily is no spring chicken anymore. She turned nine in late July, and she growls if I try to pick her up so I think she has arthritis. I don't want any of my animals bullied, including Tommy, but my oldest two, Callie and Lily, are especially off limits.
December 1st. It was cold and wet, and I'd fished the last of Alice's egg sacs out of what was left of her web (Alice has been MIA and presumed dead since early November). Lagoona Blue saw it and decided to pay tribute to her freaky fab comrade.
Don't worry, it's empty! I wouldn't be caught dead bringing a live black widow egg sac into the house. Y'all can see how big Alice's sacs were, though. Lagoona could use it as a baseball if she wanted.
December 2nd. I put Ayla Diamond in her Christmas dress.
I never would've dreamed that such a tiny doll could be so satisfying to clothe! I think the Etsy shop is AKMysticMoose; they're a good place to go to if you have a My Mini Baby that you want to dress up.
December 4th. The temperature never got above freezing that day, and there was a sharp north wind. Sour Apple Mia and Ilaria made the best of it, though Ilaria's shoeless feet made ME cringe. No lie, the wind was like a bone saw that day.
What a pair! Spanish and Italian, Modern and vintage, stylized and somewhat realistic, goofy hair and natural hair. I do kinda wish Furga dolls smelled like vanilla like Nines d'Onil dolls do, but
A) Can't have everything, and
B) Not everyone can handle that scent. It's not overpowering, but it IS noticeable.
December 6th, Failbook memory from twelve years before. Head shot of Sabrina.
A) Can't have everything, and
B) Not everyone can handle that scent. It's not overpowering, but it IS noticeable.
December 6th, Failbook memory from twelve years before. Head shot of Sabrina.
Sabrina has a humorous backstory. She belonged to a lady who was downsizing her rather large collection. The collection had some beautiful stuff, including a couple'a Annette Himstedt dolls (I love those), but Sabrina was the one I really flipped out for. The dolls were being listed on eBay, and Mama, who was just as smitten with Sabrina as I was, engaged in a no-holds-barred bidding war against some dame from Russia. We see who won, LOL.
Also December 6th, present day. Ilaria flew solo.
I was trying to give Ilaria something of a glow-up, including shoes, socks, and the new brooch, seen above. Well...the new footwear didn't fit. Ilaria has bigger feet than Wellie Wishers, so she's still unshod. The brooch works well, though.
December 9th. Andra had been knocked off her shelf (by that darn Tommy) for the third time in a week.
"Why me???" she seems to be saying. Theta looks like she finds it amusing, even though she too has hit the ground a few times due to cats...or Mama or me klutzing around.
That same evening two of my Cabbies got some bright new dresses. Christmas lights were few and far between here in Malden this year, but my girls made up for it a bit.
I chose my two golden girls, Candela Laura and Beryl June, to model these. Thanks, Mama! You always find cute stuff for my dolls to wear, and I appreciate it.
December 10th. I had Lena out in preparation for her inclusion in the post about Grandma's Marshmallow Babies, and I thought she and Candela Laura looked cute together.
It's too bad Mama and I can't find cute clothes in Lena's size, because the purple in Candela's dress makes Lena's eyes pop. I need to bust out my sewing machine and start taking measurements.
December 12th. This one was truly spur of the moment.
I was standing up to go to bed (not a pleasant experience), and I'd placed Li'l Imp between Candela Laura and Ilaria. This is the result: the green-eyed freckle faces are mugging for the camera, and Ilaria is channeling Alfred Hitchcock.
December 15th. I'd just gotten back from the library's Christmas party and I was ready for a nap, but I did pause to get a couple'a cute pairs (while I was straightening up yet another of Tommy's messes). These two are my Love 'n' Care Babies, Diamond Estelle and Alice Helene...
I have Skylar and Logan too, but I haven't moved them yet.
These next images are from a post that never made it off the ground. December 16th. Two dolls arrived in the mail, and this is the first glimpse I got of Dollikin (a large Uneeda doll). Good thing Dollikin is jointed to the hilt, but she still looked like she'd been hogtied and thrown off a cliff.
Fish heads, fish heads...LOL, shortly after this Dollikin's lower elastic gave way and her legs/butt fell off. Oh, the horror!
Good thing I know how to fix her, but what a drag, just the same! The doll with purple hair has nothing to wear, but I was able to give her some shoes and socks, at least.
These are the shoes and socks that I'd intended for Ilaria. Though this new girl is the bigger doll her feet are smaller than Ilaria's. She can thus wear Wellie Wisher socks and shoes if the socks aren't too thick, but not the clothes. I've chosen the name "Ultraviolet" for this doll, by the way, after one of Andy Warhol's crazy comrades. Ultraviolet's lip paint is in rough shape, but I can fix that.
I like how Ultraviolet retains a bit of class despite being nekkid and a little roughed up. She's still got her gold cord around her neck, and a similar cord holding her ponytail in place. She reminds me of one of my bisque dolls, Elfriede, who came with a silk ribbon tied around her neck. I think Ultraviolet might be a Migliorati clone, as her body has a similar shape to this doll.
December 19th. Another of those pictures I caught as I was getting a for work.
Ernest John, of course, but this time he's got Pineberry with him. Kiara can also be seen on the far left.
December 21st. I was in a bad mood all weekend, after altercations with Coworker A and with Uncle Man-Child the day before. The quarrel with Coworker A was my fault, and the one with the overgrown child was his. You don't yell at my mama and pets without catching hell, especially when my mama pays your bills. Anyway, I was still aggravated the next day, and then Tommy and Vanessa made a cute photo op.
Later that same evening I caught Aimee and Lori like this.
They'll be helping out with a review soon, if I can get my hip to cooperate. The review is scheduled for after the first of the year.
December 22nd. I noted on Failbook that this Christmas season was one of the most bah-humbuggy I'd ever had. NO ONE was in the spirit! Great time to play Dolly Dress Shuffle.
From left, Silver Bird, Jettivee, and Rita Cheryl. And yes, it was warm enuff to traipse around in sandals (like Jettivee) or without shoes (like Rita Cheryl). These are what the temperatures looked like last week.
I've taken to calling winter warm snaps "Mayfield winters," for reasons that are obvious to anyone who lives in the area. The temperatures bottomed out not long after.
December 23rd, I got a very small dolly.
She's one of those dime-a-dozen Hong Kong dolls, one of those that has no name or company. Y'all might remember how I like these. I haven't thought of a name for this one yet, but I love her smug little face, and especially her eyes. A couple'a my Failbook friends noticed the eyes too.
December 28th. Lorifina sits pretty on one of the family Christmas presents.
Heck, Lori might need a foot warmer herself, cold as it got after Christmas.
And that, ladies and germs, concludes my year! 2025 is not a year that I'll look back on with a smile. Indeed, this has been one of the worst years I've had, with the pain and the medical woes and several depressed spells. Granted, the year could've been a lot worse; no one I loved died or got diagnosed with some terminal illness, no one I loved suffered any property damage when the tornadoes hit, and my animals are all safe and well with me. But 2025 was still was no walk in the park. Lord willing, 2026 will be better.
Love and God bless,
RagingMoon1987
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