{ Horseback Riding on the Beach! }

Cindy here!  I have wanted to share this with you guys for over a month now!  Whew, time just gets away from me!  This summer, while visiting the beach on The Outer Banks of North Carolina, Saige, my sister Christina and I did something we have wanted to do for many years.....horseback riding on the beach at sunset!  Since we knew it would be super windy on the beach, we all decided to braid each others hair to keep it out of our faces.  Christina joked that we looked like triplets, lol!  While Saige finished up Christina's braids, I decided to put a braid in the black horse's tail.....omgosh, it looked so cute! ☺

Saige chose her jet black horse, Jasper, for me to ride.  She said he would be perfect for me since he was a really laid back and easy-going horse, perfect for a first time rider.  He was such a sweet guy and I have to admit, I totally fell in love with him!  I hoped he'd forgive me for putting a braid in his tail.  At least I finished it off with a blue bow, right? ☺ Saige rode her other horse, Picasso and Christina got to ride Jackson. 

We had a blast walking and trotting down the beach and even into the surf!  All three horses seemed to love the sea spray and would snort and throw their heads as if they were giggling!  They all seemed to pick up their feet a bit higher too when the water broke against their legs.  Part way down the beach, Christina asked if we could stop to give Jasper, Jackson and Picasso a break.  She said if she had to carry 135 pounds on her back, she'd want a little breakie too!  Silly Christina!

 

During our little rest, Saige told me about some of the wonderful adventures she has had with Jasper.  She said he loves to go trail riding in the woods, especially in the fall when the days are cooler and all the leaves crunch under his hooves.  She also shared that some of his favorite treats are carrots and apples - I laughed and told her mine too!  However, I do like my carrots with a little bit of mayo on them and I bet Jasper would not like that at all, lol! 

  

Soon we were back on the horses and heading on down the beach.  Even though it was pleasantly warm, the wind was quite brisk coming off the ocean and I wished I had worn jeans.  Who would have thought to pack jeans to go to the beach?  As we rode along the surf, the sun was dropping quickly and the colors were simply amazing.  We all talked about how quickly the sun was disappearing behind the dunes and soon it would be gone! 

Even though we had been riding for an hour, it didn't seem like it.  The evening was quickly coming to a close - much to our dismay.  We all agreed that soon we were going to have to turn around and head back so that we could be back by dark.  We really hated to have such an amazingly perfect evening come to an end - but then, we were hungry and we were pretty sure Jasper, Jackson & Picasso were too! 

I bet you guys have had an activity that you didn't want to end.....what were you doing?  Was it with friends or your family?  I know that Christina, Saige and I are still talking about our amazing horseback ride on the beach and how we want to do it again on next year's beach trip.  But in the meantime, fall is coming and I'd love to see Jasper prancing in the crunchy autumn leaves!!  ~ Cindy ♥

18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Cindy & Christina are wearing shorts by Sparrow and Wren Merc - Formerly Janie Jumps
Saige is wearing American Girl of the Year Lanie's meet top American Girl® Doll

 

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{ A Chesapeake Bay Kinda Day }

Hello everyone!  Isabelle here!  I am so excited to share with you about my recent trip to the Chesapeake Bay for the day with Lanie and Trey.  If you remember, the two of them took a 'bay day' trip last year.....you can read Part I here and Part II here.  Now, when Trey and Lanie got back last year and went on and on and on about how much fun they had, I asked them to pleeeeeeze let me come the next time they go.  Well, two weeks ago they told me to mark my calendar for a very special day and I knew it was a trip to the bay!  So, Oreo and I counted down the days until our 'bay day' arrived.

As soon as we got there, Lanie had to pick out the best place to put her towel and cooler.  I forgot my towel (I know, right?) but sweet Lanie offered to share hers.

Being the outdoor-sie girl that she is, Lanie brought her sun screen.  Ugh, I forgot THAT too!  I guess I was so excited about going that I forgot some of the most important things to take to the beach.  But again, Lanie lent me hers to use...thank goodness, cause even though it was later in the afternoon, I really, really didn't want to get a sunburn and look like a lobster!

Trey caught up to us and plopped himself down on a log next to Lanie's towel.  "Sup girls?" he asked.   "Well, the sky of course, Trey!" Lanie chirped back, followed by a muffled giggle.  At first Trey just sort of stared at her and then looked up to the sky with a puzzled look on his face.  "Good golly, Trey!  It's a joke!" gushed Lanie.  "I, uh.....I knew that!" Trey shot back in the most confident tone he could muster.....but it wasn't convincing, Lanie and I both knew that he really didn't get it at first.  :)

After about an hour had passed, the sun was getting low so I decided to go for a walk along the beaches high tide line.  Lanie said that was the best place to find sea glass.  Even though I walked quite a ways on my own, I didn't find any sea glass or sharks teeth.  This was probably because I had to constantly keep my eyes on Oreo who insisted on not staying with me and running on ahead.  Still, the early evening was absolutely perfect so I was happy even though I didn't find any treasures!

When I got back from my walk, we all spent time talking and just hanging out together.  It was so relaxing and fun.  Oreo finally stayed beside me after I bribed him with a few treats.  Lanie and Trey were sorry I had not found any sea glass or sharks teeth but both agreed it sure was fun just hanging out together on the bay.

Turned out, Oreo wasn't satisfied with one or two treats.....ohhhhh no, he kept coming back for more and more and more.  He might be a silly dog but he sure is smart when it comes to his treats!  And it doesn't help that I am a total sucker for his cuteness, lol.

We spent about another hour chatting and telling jokes.....and I spent it handing out treats to Oreo to get him to stay with me and not run off down the beach.  It was just a perfect, perfect day and I didn't want it to end.  Now that I am back home at the dorm, I really cannot wait to go back.  I sure hope they let me go next year! 

I was wondering; are any of you going to a beach this summer?  Or, maybe you have already been to one!  I'd love to hear what you liked about it!  I know next time I am going to be sure to bring my towel and sunscreen!!!  :)

  18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Lanie is wearing the Floral Swim Outfit by American Girl®

Isabelle is wearing the Boho Beachy swimsuit by American Girl®
Trey's awesome outfit is by Minipparel ~ Etsy®

 

Be sure to visit us on YouTube!!!

{ Super Duper Doll Mag Award! }

Howdy to all our blog peeps....long time no see, right?  Seriously, we are so sorry about that!  Our girls have all been soooo busy with all the end of school year stuff that we didn't have any extra time for even a blog post!  BUT, we are finally out of school now so it's time for some fun!!

So, we are super psyched to share with you that we received an award from Doll Mag!  If ya'll don't know who they are, well, you had better go and find out!  Doll Mag is a cool blog and all though not exclusively devoted to American Girl dolls, it's got a LOT of interesting articles on AG and other brands of dolls!  Whats more, they publish an online magazine with all kinds of neat stuff in it.

The May-June 2015 edition was their first "Doll Blogger" issue.  They held a contest for various top blogger categories including; Most Stylish, Best Newcomer, Best Crafts, Best Photo Stories, Best Reviews, Best Photos, Best Non-AG Site and Best Posts From A Doll's Perspective.  The voting was open to all of Doll Mag's readers.  We didn't even know the contest was goin' on!  So, you can imagine our surprise and excitement to find out that the Doll Mag readers voted Dolly Dorm Diaries to receive the award for the Best Photos category! Yipeeeee-yaaa-whoooie!  We are SO honored!!!  And, congrats to the other category winners as well.....there are some amazing American Girl doll bloggers listed!

Below is the cover of Doll Mag's first "Doll Blogger" issue and here is the link directly to the online issue:  Doll Mag May/June 2015

Also, be sure to check out their blog as well!  

You can find them here:  Doll Mag Blog

{ An Easter Rumor! }

Hello peeps!  Since many of us girls were going to church and then to visit family on Easter Sunday, we decided to have a little kitchen get-together on Saturday to celebrate together before we all went our separate ways.  Several of us either brought or bought baked goods and tasty tidbits to share.  And it was so sweet that Isabelle brought us a big bowl of Oreo cookies even though she couldn't stay to enjoy them.  Before leaving, she helped me make some watermelon punch and also set up an egg dying table for added fun!

Pretty soon after Isabelle left, Lanie arrived with her pet bunny, Lulu.  Oh boy did Oreo get excited! He ran up to meet Lulu immediately....I could tell he was super excited to have a play friend but I am not so sure if the feeling was mutual!

Hope and McKenna were already there before Lanie arrived and had pretty much set up camp at the egg dying table.  They were having loads of fun dipping and combining colors.

As soon as I had a quiet moment, I leaned into Lane and in a low voice said "I heard something exciting that I have been dying to tell you!"  Lanie's eyes widened as she leaned in. 

But just then, Oreo started pushing his food dish across the floor and he totally distracted me!  I walked around to see exactly what on earth was going on and saw something I totally didn't expect to see....Oreo was pushing his dish with his paw over towards Lulu. 

And just when I thought he couldn't get any more stinkin' adorable, he started using his nose to get it closer and closer to where Lanie had tied Lulu up at!  My heart just melted right there on the spot!

So much cuteness - too much to bear!  BUT, I remembered what I wanted to tell Lanie so I made my way back over to her as she was picking out a cupcake.  "Good golly, Saige.....tell me what you heard that is so exciting.....pleeeeeeeeze!"

"Well" I replied, "Come closer as I don't want to get anyone's hopes up if what I heard ends up being wrong."   I whispered the rumor in Lanie's ear and as I did she squealed with excitement.  "Shhhh!" I shushed.  But it was too late.  McKenna swung around and said, "What's so exciting, Lanie?"  And, McKenna's comment caught Hope's attention - who was now looking at McKenna.  Oh boy.  Now what was I going to do?

Hope immediately jumped on McKenna's comment; "What did Saige tell Lanie?  Did she mention a vacation?  Are we all going on a fun trip or something?  Should I go and start packing?  Is it far away?  Oh, should I pack clothes for warm weather or cold weather!?!?  What....."  "Hope!" I chided, "Shush and let me tell you before you have us traveling to Istanbul or some other far way land!"  Sorry but I had to cut her off as she was getting really carried away with this! 

So, in a low, soft voice I said; "Now you guys keep it down and no squealing like little Miss Lanie-bug did, okay?"  They all agreed, nodding anxiously.  "Okay, here we go.....I heard that Grace is going to be coming to live at The Dolly Dorm!"  They started to squeal and I reminded them; "Silent cheers please!!!!!" Thankfully, they tamed their squeals down to a whisper.  Lanie, McKenna, Hope and I were so excited about the possibility of Grace coming soon that we pretty much didn't talk about anything else for the rest of the get-together.  We all wondered if it was true and if so, then when would she'd be coming. 

Hope said she was so excited that she needed a chocolate bunny to calm her down.  Oh boy, that's a first. I thought chocolate hyped you up!  But hey, who was I to argue with her?  I decided to agree with her and chose a cupcake instead because it was the best of both worlds; chocolate, cake and icing!  Yum!

Even Oreo got in on enjoying the food.....somehow he had gotten his little doggy snoot on a bunny cookie and was giving it to Lulu.  Ack!  More cuteness overload!!! 

We all - including Oreo and Lulu - had a fun time and we speculated on when and where and how we might meet Grace.  We have heard that she went to Paris and was in some sort of baking contest.  It all sounds so exciting!

And in the end, I believe that Oreo definitely won over the affections of Lulu.  He showered her with food and friendship....why wouldn't she like him, right?  :)

How about you guys?  Do any of you already have Grace living at your house?  If so, I bet you are having fun with her!!  We can't wait!!

  18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Lanie is wearing her Meet Outfit and Saige is wearing her Sweater Outfit...both by American Girl®

McKenna is wearing her Warm-up Jacket by American Girl®
Hope's adorable outfit is by QTPieDollClothing ~ Etsy®

 

Be sure to visit us on YouTube!!!

{ Dolly Dorm Diaries on YouTube - Whoot! }

Our friend Kit is super excited to share some news!!!  Dolly Dorm Diaries is now on YouTube!  Yep, you read right.....our very first American Girl Doll video shows what fun you can have making an Easter Basket for your 18 inch doll.  Pop over to YouTube and see the baskets we made for Cindy, Christina, Lanie, Faith, Sarah and Hope.....but shhhhhhh, don't tell cause it's gonna be a surprise on Easter morning!  :)

Whether you have an American Girl doll, an Our Generation Doll or any other 18 inch dolls, we promise you'll have boat-loads of fun making baskets like these for your special dollies!

Be sure to subscribe!

{ Snow Day! }

Hey guys!  Christina here!!  So, last week we had yet another snow day off from school - YAY!  It started in the early morning hours and by late morning, there were huge flakes falling from the sky.  It was so pretty!  Most of our teachers posted 'snow work' on their web pages so everyone spent the morning doing that.  Cindy and I finally got ours done by late afternoon and had to hurry to get outside before the sun went down.  We both put on our snow suits, snow boots and hats as quickly as possible. Then, we headed downstairs to the laundry room to get the sled and get Coconut and Salsa ready to go with us.  Both doggies love to go for a sleigh ride in the snow!  Soooooo, out we went!

It was so quiet as we walked through the snow.  Everybody else had already been out and were back in for the day.  It was actually kinda nice since Cindy and I have been so busy recently that we haven't had much time to spend together - just us two.  We talked about school and how we haven't had a regular full week since Christmas because of either holidays or snow days.  It's crazy!  Then we just talked about all kinds of other stuff that sisters talk about.....it was really fun. 

After pulling Coco and Salsa around for a little bit, Cindy had the idea that she wanted to make a snow angel so she could post it to Instagram.  She wanted it to be perfect so she asked me to help her lay down so her feet didn't mess up the bottom of her angel.  Of course, I agreed and held her hands tightly while she first lowered herself into a sitting position and then laid all the way down in a patch of snow that no one had walked through.  I was excited to see if she could do it and not mess it up getting back up. If so, it was gonna be super cute!

While Cindy was flat on her back with her eyes closed, I had an idea.....a "Crazy Christina" idea!  When Cindy wasn't looking, I reached down and drew a halo in the snow above her head.....hee hee, she didn't even see me do it and totally had no idea it had appeared until she got up from the snow!!!

I helped Cindy get up so that she didn't deform her angel.  She looked down at her handiwork and then her eyes fell on her new 'angelic topping', lol!  She looked right at me with that "what did you do?" look.  To which I gave her that "Who me?" look!  Then, she giggled and exclaimed that it was "the perfect finishing touch" to her creation.  Good thing cause it was headed to Instagram either way!

We pulled the doggies around on the sled a bit longer.  Salsa refused to get off and get into the snow but I really couldn't blame her.  I mean, my feet were cold and I had big, furry boots on.  We don't have those little doggie booties for her so her little feet would have been frozen stiff in seconds.  Cindy was able to get Coco off and into the snow.  Coco had a grand time bouncing around in it and trying to catch the snowballs Cindy threw.  That was sooooo funny!  Coco would run and try to bite the 'ball' and it would simply crush in her mouth.....poor girl was completely confused, lol!  Cindy and I decided it was a good thing that we put a hat and scarf on her or we would have lost her in all the white snow!  All though, it might have been fun to hunt for two beady little black eyes in the snow!

Finally, we were all starting to loose feeling in our hands, feet and the tips of our noses and then noticed poor itty bitty Salsa was shivering herself silly.  So, we decided to head back inside for some hot chocolate.  

With more snow predicted this week, I think we'll get yet another chance to enjoy the snow - after we do the dreaded 'snow work'!

What about you guys?  Have you missed a lot of school because of snow too?  If so, tell us how many you've missed in the comment section!  ~Christina ♫

  18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Both Cindy and Christina's snow outfits are by American Girl®

The doggie sled was an eBay find.

{ Valentine's Day Party - 2015 }

Ooh, we had such a fun time at our party this year!  We were all worried that we might not be able to even have our party this year because of all the make up classwork we had been assigned due to so many snow days off from school last week.  I mean, as much as we all like school.....none of us like it when we have to make up tons of missed work!  So we all worked really hard to get it done by Friday night at bedtime so we could focus on the party on Saturday at noon.

Saturday morning was spent decorating the kitchen.   I helped hang the heart garland that Hope made for last year's party.....it's just so perfect, isn't it?  Lanie helped Cindy bake cookies and got them all put out on the punch table while I straightened the main table.  

We were all excited to meet Hope's friend, Ester, from southern Virginia.  They have been friends for many years and we had heard all about her but never actually met her.  We couldn't wait for Hope and Ester to arrive!  Then, knock, knock, knock....she was here!

We could see how happy Hope was that Ester was here and so she took great joy in finally getting to introduce her to us;  "Everybody, this is Ester, my bestest friend in the whole wide world!"

There was a chorus of 'Hellos' and 'Welcomes' from the rest of the girls and me.  It reminded me of when I arrived at the Valentine's Party last year!  Back then, everyone was so warm and welcoming that I wanted to Ester to feel the same, even though she was only visiting for the party.

Here is Hope and Ester....they tried unsuccessfully to take a selfie so I offered to do it for them.  I think it turned out great!  Of course, my silly little Oreo jumped in holding a Valentine that he swiped out of the basket!

I thought Oreo was so cute with that Valentine in his mouth that I put him back over next to the chair with all the goodies to get his photo.  He looked so cute and it turned out that he had actually picked out the one we made for Ester!  Hmmmm, do you think he knew that he got the right one???  If so, that's really creepy!

All us girls had such a good time hanging out and eating sweets.....we talked about school and friends and youth group.  Ester is home-schooled and she is very involved in her youth group.  It was so interesting to hear about all the different kinds of things she does with her youth group.  She has helped at the elder care home in her hometown and she helps serve food at her local soup kitchen that her church runs.  She told Cindy about the hundreds of biscuits the church makes every week and Cindy said she was tired just thinking about it!!  Ester sure was super interesting and so sweet too!

I was glad to have a few minutes to talk to Ester on my own cause I was really interested in what Ester's youth group does at the elder care home.  She said sometimes they sit and play cards with the residents and sometimes they just sit and talk with them.  Ester said there are these two really old ladies that are, like, in their 90's and they are twins.  They share a bedroom at the home together.  She says that these two ladies just love to have her sit on the end of their beds and and tell them about what she did at school or what errands she ran with her mom that week.....just the little stuff in life.  Ester says they tell her that her visit is the highlight of their week.  OMGosh, isn't that just the sweetest thing you have ever heard?  Ester shared that sometimes they even get tears in their eyes when it's time to leave.  That really broke my heart!  I decided right then that I want to talk to my youth group leader about our group going to our local elder care home.

After we finished talking about the elder care thing, we started talking about Ester's home schooling but Oreo would simply not leave Ester alone and kept carrying her Valentine around and around and around the kitchen.....and especially around and around Ester's feet!  Finally, I begged Ester to open it so Oreo would go and lay down.  

"Awwww, how sweet is this?" Ester cooed to Oreo.  This made Oreo's tail wiggle back and forth wildly with excitement!  Oreo's tail can actually hurt your legs when it gets going that crazy.  Trust me, I've been whipped by his wild tail more than once! 

After she opened the envelope and saw the handmade Valentine, Ester looked right at me; "Oh Izzy, you guys made me such a pretty card!  You have really made me feel like I have known you girls forever!  Thank you so much!"  I could tell she really loved the card but even more so, she loved being with us all.  The two hours passed way to quickly and even though we only spent a couple hours with Ester, we loved her so much!  We are totally looking forward to the next time that she can come and visit with Hope.....and the rest of us too!  Here we all are right before Ester had to leave.  Her mom came in and took this photo for us so we could all be in it.   

How about you?  Do you have a friend that you only see every once in a while?  What do you do when you get together?  ~ Izzy ღ

  18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Ester's outfit by Forever18Inches ~ Etsy®

Hope's boot toppers by SewUrbanDesigns ~ Etsy®

Hope's flannel shirt by LoriLizGirlsandDolls ~ Etsy®

{ Cello Practice Interupted }

Hello everyone.  It sure has been a long, busy winter so far.  Christmas seemed to come sooo quickly.  We all had a super time but it was oh-so-busy.  Now that we are into the New Year at school, I got assigned new music for our Spring Orchestra Concert in March.  I was super excited that one of the pieces is "Somewhere Over The Rainbow".  I just love that song.  And, what is really cool is all three grades are going to play it together.  I sure hope the 6th & 7th graders can keep up with us 8th graders!  So, yesterday afternoon I decided to get out my new music and get started.

Just as I was finishing up my third run through, Alden walked in the family room and asked me what I was doing.  "What's it look like, silly?" I shot back.  (I know, I know, it was a bit sassy but I couldn't help myself...it was pretty darned obvious since I was holding a huge cello!) 

He got a big grin and laughed and then sat down beside me on the couch.  "I'm practicing my new music for the Spring concert.....do you recognize the song?"   I held my breath hoping he'd recognize it even though I had only run through it a few times.  "uhhh, well, hummmm.  No, I'm sorry Mia, I don't."

I could tell he felt bad that he didn't so I laughed it off saying it probably sounded more like dying pigs.....to which he busted out laughing and replied, "Yeah, sorta but I wasn't going to say THAT to you!"   We both had a good laugh!

"I know, play it again for me and I'll turn the pages when you tell me to.  I promise not to look at the title and this time I'll listen really hard to see if I recognize it." Alden suggested.

"You're on!" I replied.

 
"Ohhhh, I know it, I know it!  It's from that old movie with the Wizard of Odd!  Ummmm....darn it....oh, oh, oh!  It's Someone Over The Rainbow!!  Right?!?!"  He blurted out.

By this time I was rolling...Wizard of Odd?  Really?  SomeONE Over The Rainbow?  Seriously?

Alden!  You have to be kidding me, right?  Just then his lip quivered and he couldn't fake it any longer.....bwahahaha, he busted out laughing!  "Oh my gosh, you are so funny, Alden!  I thought you were being totally serious dude!"

Alden just winked at me and flashed that smirky little smile that he gets when he's chuffed with himself for fooling someone....he is such a fun guy-friend!  He always brightens my day when he visits the dorm.  All at once he stood up and as he put his scarf on said, "Hey, lets go for a quick walk before it gets dark outside...come on, grab your hat cause it's fairly cold today!"

I was happy for the break from cello practice so I pulled on my beanie and headed out with Alden.  Sarah looked up, "Have fun guys!  Mia, don't be long as we all have to pitch in and get dinner ready and it's a school night so we gotta be on time to bed!"

"No problem Sarah!  We aren't going far!" 

What about you?  Do you have a girl friend or guy friend that always makes your day a better one?  If so, what is it about them that cheers you up?  Are they funny?  Are they a good listener?  I'd love to hear about your friends!  ~Mia ❄

  18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Alden's jeans & Mia's hoodie by Minipparel ~ Etsy®

Alden's fleece pullover by Sew Fun Doll Clothes ~ Etsy®

Alden's knit scarf by Little Froggies ~ Etsy®

Mia's linen shirt by Janie Jumps ~ Etsy®

Mia's orange knit beanie by Bella and Hoot ~ Etsy®