Christmas Eve 2022

Christmas Eve got off to a poopy start, as my brother-in-law would put it.  Despite taking all possible precautions, a pipe in Mama's house exploded and annihilated the carpet.  Nothing got ruined but the carpet, but it's still a soggy, chilly, slippery mess over there and Mama and I have some serious work to do.  Add to that the fact that the weather is STILL not above freezing.  On the good side, it WILL get above freezing before too long, and Mama's heat is still working so things are workable. 

In dolly news, well...there isn't much new.  I did get three of my girls bundled up for a photo op, and two of them are new to the blog, so I guess that counts.

Luciana is an old regular, but Danica on her right and Gabby on her left are not.  Danica Holley and Gabriela McBride are my early Christmas presents to myself, and even though they're not related I jokingly call them the Sonali sisters.

Danica is a secondhand Create Your Own with a few dings and scuffs and some wear to her hair.  She's pretty much everything I could've wanted in a CYO, and she was a little cheaper than she would've been if I'd bought her straight from the company.  Gabby is also secondhand, with a few scuffs and spots of glitter glue on her cheeks, but that bothers me naught.  Again, her price was reasonable, and her curls were/are relatively neat, so I snapped her up.  I'm working hard to give her the royal treatment, just as I said I would back in February. 

Luciana, Gabby, and Danica have all been good girls, or Gabby and Danica have been during their short stays here, so they all got presents.  Rita Cheryl and Silver Bird will too, but theirs will unfortunately be a hair late.  Anyway, Gabby and Danica are wearing their cozy new winter threads, so if y'all want a better look, just scroll up (LOL).  Luciana's new dress is too light for the cold temperatures we're having now, but trust me:  it's a freaky little number!  I also got Danica an axolotl for a pet.

Danica is an Addams Family fan, so she named him "Gomez."  I'd have thought "Thing" would be better, but her critter, her rules!

That about sums it up for now!  Merry Christmas from me and the girls!

God bless y'all, 

RagingMoon1987 

Twenty below

About this time last year parts of my home county (and indeed, parts of the whole seismic zone) were picking up the pieces after a nasty tornado outbreak.  This year winter has gotten off to a more...well, wintery start.  For me the saga began two days ago when I decided to pose Rita Cheryl in front of one of my bushes.  It was chilly enuff that sleeves were necessary, but it wasn't unbearable.

Indeed, the dandelions behind the library thought spring had sprung.  One of 'em had even gone to seed.

Fast-forward to yesterday, about four o'clock.  The wind was howling, the temperature was plummeting, and the snow was falling.  I'd estimate that visibility was down to around a quarter of a mile, give or take.

Good thing my mom and I live half a mile from work!  The storm was a brief one, but it brought a sharp wind and some seriously cold temperatures.  The temp this morning was one below, and the wind chill was TWENTY-ONE BELOW!!!  I'm used to winters getting cold in Missouri, but wind chills this low are not common.  Or at least they aren't in the Bootheel.  The northern part of the state is another story.

The storm only dropped about two inches of snow, but it's that fine, powdery kind that blows around a lot, so the drifts are about five inches deep in some areas.  Here's what the front porch of the library looks like.  Thankfully, we are in for a beautiful day.

Rita Cheryl is from Brooklyn, so cold doesn't bother her much (notice her still-bare knees).  She decided to take her chance on this small patch of ice...

...and it didn't go so great!  Rita Cheryl didn't let the spill bother her, though.  Indeed, she used it as an opportunity to make snow angels.

Don't worry, we were both careful not to get any snow in her eyes.  Water is a mortal enemy of American Girl eyes.

The snow is beautiful to look at, but I keep thinking back to a phone conversation I had with First Uncle during my teenage years.  We were discussing snow, of course, and he said in a Garfield-esque monotone, "Bing Crosby dreamed about a white Christmas, but he clearly never had to drive in the sh!t."  Yep, driving in snow, even a little bit of it, is no picnic.  Mama managed just fine last night and equally fine this morning, but she and I have gotten into more than one bind while trying to drive in snow.  So if any of y'all have to be out in this weather, be careful, pace yourself, and take every possible precaution.  And if you don't have to be out, don't go out!  Brew a warm drink of your choice and binge watch your favorite TV show...like I'd be doing if I were home.

Oh, and get this:  next Thursday the highs are predicted to be around sixty.  As Mama would put it, "That's the kind of weather to make you good and sick!"

Merry Christmas and happy Hanukkah,
RagingMoon1987

Thanksgiving 2022

Y'all out there, it's a-rainin' in the Bootheel!  

Wouldn't y'all know, today's the day one of Mama's dogs decides to escape.  I'm STILL pulling sticker burrs out of my shoes.  Anyway, Thanksgiving was better this year than it was last year, though it still wasn't great.  Sister and Brother-in-law are back in the area, but they've been very busy and will stay busy for the foreseeable future, so with that plus the rain they didn't come down.  Mama is cranky because her leg hurts, and Second Uncle was his usual blabby self.  So what's a fat thirtysomething to do but play with her favorite American Girl doll?

Rita Cheryl, of course.  And yes, I walked out into the rain to get this shot.  Notice how some of the ironwork is bent out of shape.

Yeah...it should look like this.

Guess who bent it out of shape!  <raises hand>  I was a climber in my day, kinda like Rita Cheryl is now.

She's already climbed higher than I ever did. 

Don't break your neck, girlie.  Notice that Rita Cheryl is wearing the same outfit she wore the last time the weather got bad.  That was the night that Mayfield got hit so hard (posts regarding that incident are here and here).  Meteorologists are predicting the possibility of storms this weekend, but thankfully no one has said the "T" word yet.  Hopefully it'll stay that way and everyone will just get wet while they try to kill themselves shopping.  I too am hoping for a Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal, but I'm not going out to get it!  The Moon Girl is staying her white American rear end home.

Happy Thanksgiving, 

RagingMoon1987 

A friendly PSA

Dollies don't let dollies drive drunk.

LOL, Madge Josephine MacQuarrie is way cuter than she looks in that picture, I promise!  She didn't come with that name, either; I bestowed that one on her.  But we all know how our dolls look when they're fresh out of the box, especially if they're secondhand!  Here's a better idea of what Madge looks like; she's got pretty eyes.

A word of warning:  these Meritus Girls on the Go have tragic hair, particularly if they're found out-of-box.  I'm trying to get Madge's hair under control, but it's gonna be an uphill battle!  Good thing she's got a sweet face!  I got a comment last night from a lady who runs the blog Bitsy Beauty Salon, so maybe she's got some ideas I can try on Madge.  Thanks for stopping by, Linda!

Yours,
RagingMoon1987

That type

You know the type.  The type that wears layers from the waist up during cold weather, and then wears shorts (and maybe also sandals or flip-flops).  And if you ask them if they're cold they answer "No, I'm fine."  Yeah...Luciana is that type.  She's got sense enuff to wear decent shoes in this weather, but that's about it.

Note the frost behind her.  This was the air temperature.

I don't know what I'm gonna do with Astro-Luci, LOL.  I couldn't stand going bare-legged in this weather!

Warm blessings,
RagingMoon1987

First snow of the season

As I noted back in June, we have our calendars and our designated beginnings of months and seasons, but God works on His own time, and the two extreme seasons (summer and winter) begin when they begin.  Case in point:  the Bootheel got its first snow of the season last night.  It was just a dusting, and temperatures are predicted to get above freezing today, so it'll probably melt.  But snow is snow, and it made my unkempt yard look quite pretty.

Rita Cheryl was well-prepared for the sudden drop in temperatures, but Tequila Rose was not.

Tequila Rose is taking it in stride.  She says she's thankful that she got out of North Carolina just in time, as the remains of Hurricane Nicole dropped a ton of rain in that area.  I told her that the snow here isn't always this light, but I don't think she paid much attention.  Luckily she didn't notice when I bought her a coat either, LOL.  That should be here sometime next week.

Warm hugs,
RagingMoon1987

Meeting Tequila Rose

Nope, I don't mean the booze, though I do admit that it looks tempting.  This is a doll blog though, and this particular Tequila Rose is a doll.

Her full name is Tequila Rose Idabel Lawson.  She has pink streaks in her hair, and that made me think of the booze.  Well, that and I just like the combination of the words "tequila" and "rose."  Here's a better look at the streaks.  The little puffs clip on.  I had no idea these would be included with her, but I'm not gonna gripe.

Her face has some added paint too, mainly around the eyes and on the lips.

I don't know why I became so attached to this little doll, but...well, y'all know the old saying "I saw it in the window and had to have it"?  I saw her on Etsy and had to have her.  Like my other Etsy dolls Kyle and Llewellyn, Tequila Rose came fully dressed.

I make note of the clothes because Justine-Marie came bald and nekkid, even though someone had taken the time to swap her eyes and paint her face.  Never did understand that.  But anyway, Tequila Rose is fully clad...for now, anyway.  The temperatures are predicted to bottom out tonight, so this pet will need some leggings and a coat very soon.  But for spring, summer, and early to mid-fall Tequila Rose is all set.  I love the pattern on her dress!

The boots made me giggle, because they're Our Generation boots.

When I last tried Our Generation boots on an American Girl, millions of years ago, they didn't fit.  But then again, Denise was/is a Pleasant Company doll with thick tights on, so I shouldn't have been surprised that the shoes didn't fit.  Tequila Rose doesn't have that problem, though she DOES have a problem with the falling temperatures.  It got extra cold last night (first hard cold snap this season), and Tequila Rose's dress is a halter-neck dress.  I have another outfit for her that covers...well, a little more skin, though the top is still a T-shirt.

LOL, my mother bought me a pair of distressed jeans for Christmas during my first year living on SEMO campus.  At Christmas I was too big for them, but I walked around campus so much that by the time April rolled around I could wear them!  Ah, memories...back in those days I was a more healthy size and actually gave a flying burrito about how I looked.  Nowadays comfort is far more important than style.  But anyway, I like the jeans, but I freaking LOVE the shirt.  If you're an Eagles fan then the design may be familiar.

This is the album art for their 1974 album On the Border, which included one of my favorite songs, "Already Gone."  I don't have Tequila Rose's personality hashed out fully yet, but I've already determined that she's a hardcore Eagles fan.  Hence the shirt.  

Both the shirt and the jeans came from the Etsy proprietor BellasDivas, and they can do...oh gosh, I think they can do just about any album art, any sports team, any logo one could think of, and they do it fast!  I placed my order for the Eagles shirt on November 7th, and I got it YESTERDAY!!!  I think if I asked super nice I could get Erry Vision Films' logo on a shirt...not that I'm going to!  Yes, I'm a member of the "creepy logos" culture, on top of everything else, LOL!  Instead of creepy logos I plan on getting band shirts for some more of my girls.  Luciana has already asked for a Led Zeppelin shirt, so I'll have to see what I can do about that...and about Tequila Rose's bare arms.  But in the meantime, I'm going back to bed!  Mama and I got the day off!

Happy Veterans' Day,
RagingMoon1987

Day of the Dead 2022

I got Luciana yanked out of her leather jacket (dang, that puppy was tight!) and into something a bit more comfortable, but before showing her new dress off, Luciana wants to show her new friend off.  Yep, she dragged home another stray last night!

Only Luciana could make friends with a Teddy Scare.  Yes, instead of teddy bears this time around I've got Teddy Scares.  These are apparently the teddy bears that we adults wagged around constantly as kids, and then tossed aside as we grew older.  Now homeless, these bears roam the world aimlessly in search of someone to love.  If that's the case then Eli Wretch found someone to love him!  Yes, Eli Wretch.  He's an ex-trucker, and he's missing a few items that identify him as such.  No matter, I can replace that stuff.  These Teddy Scares also have something else to set them apart:  Living Dead Dolls have chipboard poems and death certificates, and Teddy Scares have toe tags. 

LOL, my mom and sister like to play Road Kill Bingo.  Anything that they can't identify on sight automatically goes under the category "possum."  Oh, and dig Eli's tattoo!  It's not a possum, but since this chick is green she might be roadkill.

When's the last time y'all saw a teddy bear with a tattoo???

Now that she's introduced Eli Wretch, Luciana wants to have a little fun of her own.  Not that she didn't have fun last night, LOL.

Yeah, yeah, I know Luciana is of Chilean decent and not Mexican, but the colors in this outfit suit her better than they do Marina.  Mama supplied this, as is usually the case with the things my dolls wear.  I'm fairly certain that the scarf is not supposed to be worn as a scarf, but it was too short to be used as anything else.  Luciana likes it that way anyway

That's all for today, and for awhile.  I need some time to get the next set of reviews ready, so unless something new crops up, I may be silent for awhile.

Happy Day of the Dead,
RagingMoon1987

Halloween 2022

Amelia and Rita Cheryl don't have costumes at the moment, but they can still dress up cute!

Rita Cheryl is actually wearing Luciana's new coat instead of her own, but as we'll soon see, Luciana is wearing something else.  Now to the costumes.  C'mon, y'all know I've always got someone dressed up!  In her spotlight post Marina stated that she wanted to be a mermaid for Halloween.  Welp, I made it happen!  It cost way more than I should ever spend on doll clothes, but I regret nothing.

This is the oft-derided Sparkling Mermaid costume, available from 1998 to 2000.  It was always one of my favorite costumes; the other options back then were sock hopper, hippie, cowgirl, black cat, and princess, and the mermaid seemed (to me, at least) to be the most original.  Even today I don't see many mermaids among real-life Trick-or-Treaters.  This outfit seems to be unpopular among other AG fans, and...well, I guess I can see why, since it's not the most flattering getup in the world.  It's kind of hard to move Marina around in it too.  Sitting her down was an effort, for example, though that's not easy anyway since she's a young doll and thus a tightly strung one.  I was able to sit Marina down, though, so it is possible. 

I also had a difficult time placing the wrap as it's quite long, but luckily for me the AG wiki has some instructions for tying Josefina's rebozo.  I chose one of those methods for getting the wrap on Marina, and it works fair enuff, though the ends still drag on the ground.

Loop around the waist, cross the ends in back, bring the ends over her shoulders and tuck them in.  Reasonably easy, though it does hide some of the cute sea critters on the wrap.  The seahorse is visible here, for example, but the orange starfish on the right is all but invisible.

These critters are ON THERE, by the way!  When I was a little kid I presumed that they were sewn on to the wrap, just like a trio of plastic perfume bottles on my favorite top.  I thus predicted that the sea creatures would fall off with ease, just like my perfume bottles did.  Joke's on me, because these appear to be molded onto the mesh of the wrap.  See?

Or at very least the crab appears to be looped securely into the mesh.  However, if one looks closer one can see that he is very firmly glued onto the mesh of the wrap, rather than looped or molded in place.  The glue is even more obvious on this yellow shell.

Glue isn't always the best way to put an outfit together, but this glue looks and feels quite strong.  I don't think I'll have any trouble with sea critters going AWOL.  One thing that bums me a little about this ensemble is that the critters on the net aren't painted like the critters on the crown.

The pieces tie together just fine, stripes or no stripes, but...well, I like stripes, okay???  Polka dots will always be my favorite, but stripes are also pretty great.  Anywho, this costume is not a favorite among American Girl fans for this reason or that, but I actually quite like it.  It goes well with Marina's hair, and it comes with shoes.

American Girl's second mermaid costume inexplicably does not come with shoes.  As cold as the weather can be during Halloween, shoes are a must.  At least around here they are.  Anyway, I respect this outfit for its originality in a world full of princesses and sock hoppers.  Oh, and it's also green.  Y'all know my feelings on the color green.

On the other hand, putting together a sock hopper costume is relatively easy, and the components (flat shoes, a sweater of some type, and a long, swirly skirt) are easy to move around in.  Perfect for a little kid, I'd say.  So Silver Bird isn't the most original, but she does look adorable.  Silver Bird chose to be the sock hopper this year.  This is an Etsy getup that I've had on hand for awhile.

Y'all may remember from Marina's spotlight post that Silver Bird chose this getup.  I had this on Lindsey last year, but Lindsey's body is one of the slimmer bodies and didn't fill it out very well.  Spoiler alert:  Silver Bird's chunky Pleasant Company frame doesn't either, but since when have Halloween costumes ever fit perfectly?  The blouse tucks nicely into the skirt, so that's a plus.  Oh, and the proper shoes?  These...actually, I can't remember if I had to buy these separately or if they came with the outfit.  Either way, Silver Bird has the required saddle shoes.

Once I read (in American Girl Magazine, ironically enuff) that in some areas black and white saddle shoes were worn only by boys, while girls wore a blue and white variety.  Brown and white shoes were worn by both sexes.  I haven't found any information online that confirms this, so take it with a grain of salt.  Regardless, Silver Bird's shoes are the classic black and white that we all know and love/loathe.  I grew up wearing saddle shoes, believe it or not, so I grew to love them.  Silver Bird is one of my girls who prefers going barefoot, but as I mentioned above shoes are not optional during this time of the year.  So Silver Bird may not be as original as Marina, but it's at least obvious what she is. 

Luciana, on the other hand...Luciana's costume isn't immediately obvious, unless one knows me or her.  She's the Ninth Doctor...with the Eleventh Doctor's bangs.

Okay, Number Nine wore a pea coat as opposed to a leather jacket, but Luciana gives no flying burritos.  As long as she keeps that jacket away from her Tribble then all should go well (remember that Goldie tried to eat Lark's jacket once).  If y'all go back to Luciana's spotlight her decision to be the Doctor should be no surprise, though her decision to be the Ninth Doctor did surprise me (she prefers the Beloved Tenth, LOL).  I guess I should be glad she didn't want to be the Sixth Doctor, with that loud jacket he wore.  There isn't much to say about Astro Luci this Halloween; she's clad in black, and I have to admit that she looks pretty sharp.  

And with that, my lineup for Halloween this year is complete...except I think Silver Bird has something on her mind.

Silver Bird:  Either one of y'all fancy a dance?
Luciana:  Let's kick it!

Oh Lordy, I know where this is going.  Cue "In the Mood," Marina!

Marina:  I'm on it!

Glenn Miller for the win!  Don't get too close to the edge, y'all.  Remember what happened the last time Doremi tried to fly?

Luciana:  Served her right!
Doremi:  I HEARD THAT!!!
Silver Bird:  Oh crap...

Uh-oh, looks like my lineup ISN'T complete!  Luciana, you and Silver Bird keep dancing and I'll show off Doremi's costume; she's a princess, just like she wanted to be.  Like Marina's costume, this one is one of the older ones, the aforementioned Medieval Princess costume.

It's mostly velvet, one of my favorite fabrics, plus some sort of polyester (I presume) with a sparkly upper layer.

Both the sleeves and part of the skirt are made of that, while the bodice and other parts of the skirt are made of this velvet.  It's thin enuff that the lighter color shows through. 

Doremi's crown is made of gold...lame?  Sateen?  Some sort of shimmery gold fabric. It has no stretch, so it fastens in the back with Velcro.  I love the plastic jewels up front.  The front of Doremi's dress has these too, but the pictures of those wouldn't focus.

On her feet Doremi wears these cute gold slippers that are made of the same fabric as the crown.  These are elasticized and unfortunately like to slip off.

Doremi is the only one who has her Trick-or-Treat bag. 

Silver Bird's costume never had a bag, Marina's costume is missing the bag, and I had to piece Luciana's costume together so she doesn't have a bag either.  No problem, they can use these Rainbow High bags.

Luciana:  Sorry, Marina, but there's no green one.
Marina:  Never mind that.  You're standing on my wrap!

If you girls are good girls tonight I'll share my Almond Joy bars.  NOW my Halloween lineup is complete.  Line up, y'all!  Marina, you stay between Doremi and Luciana, lest they kill each other.

Marina:  No problem.

Even Doremi's friends love to hate her.

Doremi:  I HEARD THAT!!!

What're you gonna do to me, squirt???  You're about an eighth my size!  Anyway, Silver Bird and Luciana have unfinished business.  Fire up that radio again, Marina!

Luciana:  This sure beats resonating concrete!
Doremi:  How come no one asked ME to dance???

Behave yourself, Doremi, or you'll get a rock.  

Happy Halloween,
RagingMoon1987