Sweet summertime

Just like the Bob Seger song I love.  Daddy always said that "Night Moves" made him think of Mama, because the girl in the song was "a black-haired beauty with big dark eyes."  That's about all their relationship had in common with the song, however, as Seger's amorous couple were nothing more than friends with benefits.  Anyway, I love that song, and even during the hottest months I often refer to summer as sweet summertime.

This summer is not quite to the level of Barbie Summer, back in 2023, but some of the dolls up for release are pretty darn awesome.  By coincidence, the three that I'm talking about today are also either themed or named after something good and fattening.  These first two are variations of the same doll, an American Girl dressed like Peaches 'n' Cream Barbie.  This first one reminds me a lot of my Doremi.

The other one has eyeshadow that's a little heavy-handed, but she's still pretty.

Now...for the uninitiated, Peaches 'n' Cream Barbie was released in 1984, and she looked like this.

I'm a product of late 1987 so this doll wasn't one of my childhood friends, but I love that soft, peachy-pink dress.  I think the AG doll captures the overall look very well.

The other doll is also Mattel and also candy-themed, but that's where the similarities end.  She's Twyla Boogeyman, and she's this year's ComicCon exclusive. 

I won't be going to a ComicCon anytime soon for a number of reasons, but I can still ogle from afar!  Now ComicCon has had a number of exclusive Monster High dolls through the years, but this particular doll caught my eye because she's an extension of the Sweet Screams line.  I freaking loved the Sweet Screams line, with its garish colors and candy theme.  I desperately wanted to complete the set, but alas, I only have Draculaura...somewhere.  But hey, I have Draculaura from that set!  Some folks wanted her and didn't get her.  Draculaura and Frankie Stein were the first two, and I actually saw these at Target (that was when I obtained Draculaura).  Frankie appears to be hard candy-themed, while Draculaura looks like she's wearing...ewwww, licorice!

The next wave, which I DIDN'T see in person, had Abbey Bominable and Ghoulia Yelps, both characters that I love.

Ghoulia went pretty heavy on the gummy candy, it appears.  I love gummy candy.  Mama hates the stuff, but I love it.  Abbey's theme is ice cream, fitting for a yeti who always has to be cold.  Longtime fans of Monster High may remember that G1 Abbey wore a crystal around her neck that kept her body cold.  Either way the revival of the Sweet Screams line has me excited.  I hope that maybe there'll be a revival of this line for the G3 bunch.

Mmmm, now I want something nummy to eat, LOL!  I've lost fifty-three pounds since February of '24, so the cake and ice cream will have to be kept to a minimum, but by George, when my birthday comes I'm havin' CAKE!!!  But any way, these dolls are all bright and colorful and I love the snot out of them.  The American girls are unfortunately $275 and some change, and I've got an MRI to pay for in the near future, so these dolls are not coming home with me anytime soon.  But as I said above, I can admire!

Regarding my hip, I do have an MRI scheduled for early on July 2nd, and...that's all I know ATM.  I'll keep y'all posted on that too.

Warm regards, 
RagingMoon1987

So random, December '24

December 1st.  I'd just learned that Twyla Boogeyman's eyes glow in the dark, and I was planning on doing a post on that.  It fell through, but I still have the picture I took.

I don't talk much about Twyla, but she's always been one of my favorite Monster High characters due to her smaller size and her coloration.  Unfortunately my Twyla is falling victim to time just like Lagoona Blue has, and her hair looks pretty nasty.  I'm hoping I can save it.

December 2nd.  Bae Day Monday was for Jesmars.  I only have the one, Candela Laura, still in her fall dress.  Here she'd offered to help me shake out the winter quilts so that the family can avoid another spider bite (that lovely saga is here and here).

The ninth and the sixteenth are for Lily Ledy and Tsukuda, respectively.  I don't have any of those, but I'm looking forward to seeing the other folks' dolls.  The quilts got a clean bill of health, by the way; I guess the only spider in the pile was the one that bit me.

December 3rd.  Autumn Leah (right) finally arrived in the mail (she was listed as "out for delivery" for a solid twenty-nine hours).  Here she leans on Gwenda Cecile; my friends on Failbook wanted to see them both.

Y'all have met Autumn Leah, but I never talked about Gwenda Cecile, even though the two arrived around the same time.  Gwenda Cecile is a poseable Kid from the Hasbro era, with thick, pale blonde braids and bright blue eyes.  She has a head mold that reminds me of the crazy-expensive Coleco #19 head, which has a big toothy smile.

December 7th.  It was a Saturday, and I'd been to work and Mama hadn't.  When I came home that evening I found this.

Adora was wearing Bluebelle's hat, and poor Bluebelle was in the floor!  I presume that Mama brushed against their shelf at some point during the day.  Her coordination isn't any better than mine is at this point.  Bluebelle's hat is too small for Adora, but it still looks kinda cute!

December 12th is about as random as they come.  This headshot of Rosemary turned up in my Failbook memories.

Rosemary doesn't look like that anymore!  She's got a new wig and no eyelashes, and I need to fix that latter bit.

December 15th.  I was putting Jazzie's post together and decided to fool around with the rest of my Barbie dolls.  For some reason I included Marlo, even though she ended up not being in the post.

Y'all know how I like opposites, and Dionne and Marlo are about as opposite as it gets.  New and old, red and blue, brunette and blonde, black and white.

Since I once compared Marlo to Midge, here they are together.  Marlo is slightly in front of Midge here; in reality the two are the same size.

Hmmm, maybe she doesn't favor Midge as much as I thought she did.  She doesn't look much like TNT Barbie either.  It doesn't really matter much, but I like to nitpick.

Lastly, here's Marlo with Jazzie.

These two don't look a lot alike either, but that's to be expected since there's at least twenty years separating their production dates.  I have to admit that even though Marlo can't pose worth a doggone, she IS photogenic.  I need to think of some other scenarios for her.

December 16th.  This is a Failbook memory, of Yasmina and Raya together. 

I don't remember why I had them together, but I did.  I've always loved Yasmina's yellow, slightly creepy eyes.

December 18th.  Another Failbook memory.

Imani was so new that I didn't have her whole outfit yet.  I only had her sleep sack.

December 18th, present day.  Shelley (left) got a new dress that coordinated with Barbie's.  Y'all can see what happened next.

Now Shelley needs some shoes of her own!  I'd like to find a similar outfit for Midge too, so she and Barbie can pose together again. 

December 21st.  Saturdays on that Cabbage Patch group I like are called Seasonal Saturdays, and the Saturday before Christmas doesn't get more seasonal than this.

Besties Elisabeth Clara and Shelley Fred are ready to deck the halls...or they would be if we were bothering with a tree.  My goofy tree at the library is up, but both Mama and I are too crippled up to put a big one together, and Uncle Man-Child would be of no help if we tried.  So Elisabeth and Shelley are just chilling out, staying warm.  Elisabeth's left pants leg has the Grinch on it.

Everyone oughta love the Grinch! Unlovable as he's supposed to be, he's...pretty darn lovable.  

December 22nd.  Two radically different Barbie dolls.

Malibu P.J. is on the left and Isolde is on the right.  I think they're discussing the differences in their joints and how P.J. can sit comfortably with her legs outstretched. 

December 23rd.  Bae Day Monday is for Tri-Ang Pedigrees.  Again, I have one, my beloved Kitrick Randolph Fergus.

My friend from Newfoundland got her first Tri-Ang Pedigree doll a few days ago, and we had a discussion about Tri-Ang eyes.  Because the paint used was absolute crap, these dolls have very distinctive eyes.

Kit's eyes used to be brown, and the Newfoundland doll's eyes appear to have once been green.  Now both of them have...well, mud-colored eyes!

December 24th.  Failbook memory from 2020.

I apparently had just gotten Justine-Marie, because I showed this random headshot to everyone. 

December 26th.  This popped up in the mail.  Another gift from Mama. 

Nathan Hunter looks fine in his blue corduroy suit, but it's nice to change things up a bit.  This should hold him until the end of winter.

December 27th.  I took this in preparation for another series of posts. 

Barbie and Sindy.  Mattel and Marx.

December 28th, the not-too-smiley day that really wasn't that bad (for me, anyway).  Courtney got a new outfit in the mail.

Any of my balloon-headed Skipper dolls would've looked alright in this, but I love hot pink with dark hair.  Oh, and fringe.  I love fringe. 

December 30th.  Friend from Newfoundland needed a way to fill in the last Monday, so she declared it IC and UT Day.  These factories were both based in Taiwan, and Cabbies from there have their own special attributes.  In this case I have one of each; Shelley Fred is an IC3, while Elisabeth Clara is a UT2 and has the cheeks to show for it.

UT Cabbies have VERY rosy cheeks, and IC Cabbies have very pretty complexions when they haven't discolored (some of 'em do).  Shelley Fred is lucky and has not discolored so far; indeed, his face reminds me a little of porcelain.  This porcelain look is also common for IC kids.

Later that same day.  Fluff and Farrah cuddle.

Farrah is the younger of my two Malibu Barbies.  I unfortunately don't know where her older sister is.  However, I do have a rough idea about where to look.  I'm very fond of the Malibu Barbie line, so I'd like to have 'em all together. 

Still December 30th.  Two of my blue-eyed girls.

Danica and Martina, complete with That One Hair for both dolls.  By the way, it should be remembered that blue-eyed Furga dolls can look possessed if the camera's flash is wrong.  Martina, Caroline, Eva, and Gia have all fallen victim to this. 

I was restless on the evening of the thirtieth, and while waiting for Mama to come home I ventured outside with Martina. 

We were both in the mood to enjoy the last few hours of mild temperatures before a strong cold front pushed in.  The last week of December has been delightfully mild (with tornadoes for the south), and the first week of January is predicted to be "colder than a well-digger's butt," as my family puts it.  With snow.  Blaaaaaaaahhhh!!!!!!

And with that, the year has come to an end!  It was an okay year, free of a lot of tragedy and illness...well, for me, at least.  I know that people in Appalachia are still digging out from Hurricane Helene; that recovery is gonna take a long time yet.  But for me, thank God, all is well.  My family has a home, we're all alive and well, we've got enuff money to pay bills, that's a lot to be thankful for.  And the eclipse...that was the highlight of my year, and I hope I never forget it.  As to you, my dear readers, I thank all of y'all for popping in with comments or with views, for the gifts, for everything.  This blog would be pointless without readers.

I love y'all, and happy new year!

Cheers,
RagingMoon1987