{ 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!!!

{ 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®

{ Snow Day ~ Inside Fun! }

Well, by now in the DC area, we are starting to get pretty tired of all this snow.  See, we are not used to getting this much snow and all though I do love to go outside and play in it, I'm sorta getting tired of not going to school to see my friends.  Course, that doesn't stop our teachers from posting "snow work" online for us to do.....my math teacher is quite fond of doing this to me every single time we miss a day of school due to snow.  Who ever heard of "snow work"??  I think we should all boycott it!  Anywho, I decided to take a break in between my math worksheets and play with my Julie doll and Cindy's Ruthie doll. 

I have been sooooo looking forward to playing with my dolls at their new table we got last week.  Our good friend, Echo, told us about this "Re-ment" table that was perfect for our dolls.  You can see more about the table and chairs and other Re-ment goodies by visiting Echo's blog - From Echo With Love. 

We already had some really cute dolly sized toys for our dolls;  My little Julie loves my "lucky pickle" charm and Ruthie is completely ga-ga about Cindy's "lucky cow carton".  We also have itty bitty scissors and a miniature pocket knife that the girls pretend was found at a civil war battlefield, and a mini Lego chihuahua and iPhone! Then there is just other random stuff we have found here and there for our dolls....Cindy and I are suckers for anything that is teeny tiny for our dolls.  We might break down and put our money together to get one of the Re-ment accessories to go with the table but for now, we're good with what we have! 

Just as I was really starting to get into playing, Hope heard Daisy whimpering up on the top bunk in my room and came to "save" her.  Daisy had wanted to be up there for a nap but of course she changed her mind when she saw Honey getting into the fun of playing with me and my dolls. 

"Poor wittle Daisy" Hope was cooing.  "Did that mean Chwistina banish you to the bed so you couldn't join in the fun?  Come here pwecious."  Oh brother, I hate it when Hope talks baby/puppy talk to the dogs.  I mean weally, wight?  LOL.

So, back to dolls...now Honey was into helping Ruthie play with the tiny brown mouse.  To me it looks more like a cross between a baby kangaroo and a rat but Cindy prefers to call it a mouse, so I'm sticking with that even though I think it's being a bit generous.  I prefer the little grey mouse, so that's who Julie gets to play with.  He's super cute with big ears and a long mousey tail.....♥ him! 

 

I'm thinking we are gonna have school tomorrow so I best get my butt in gear and go finish that math worksheet (blech!!)  I'm gonna sit here just a few minutes more with my girls and Honey-poo and then it's back to reality.  I wish I could play with my dolls all day long!  

Thanks for reading!!!!  ~Christina ♫
  

18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Christina's adorable by American Girl® 2011 Skate Board Set
Hope's Sweater by American Girl® and boots from eBay®
Rilakkuma table and chairs from eBay®

{ Valentine's Party ~ 2014 }

Hiya! Lanie here. I cannot believe it's been over a week since we had our Valentine's Day party!  We had such a blast! I so totally loved doing all the decorating.....it seemed to take FOREVER to get all the decorations out and up, but it was SO worth it!!

Look at these super cool garlands that Hope made! We hung them up just before the party started and it was a complete surprise to all of us!  Hope told us that she sewed them all by herself on her sewing machine and that Cindy was a big help holding them cause they got reeeeeally long! They just look SOOO cute hanging up, don't they?  They really made it extra festive!

And look at this super, super cute felt heart centerpiece!  Hope hand made this too!  The little hearts are puffy and Hope says the edges are done in a "blanket stitch".  Hope is super talented isn't she?

In preparation for the party; Cindy, Christina, and I went out to our local grocery store a few days before Valentine's Day and got little boxes of chocolates for everyone. I picked out a soccer ball chocolate box for Trey- when I saw it I knew it was perfect for him! Cindy picked pink rose chocolate boxes for the girls, and Christina made the flower decorations to stick on the candy boxes when we got home.  She used some really pretty Valentine's ribbon and silk flowers she bought at Michael's. Aren't they cute?? I'm not sure where that big chocolate Hershey's Kiss came from or who it's for but I sure wish is was mine!!

 

I even decorated the top of our fridge so that our noisy but awfully pretty parrot could enjoy the party too.  I had to make sure that he couldn't get to the stuff though cause he has a way of shredding everything that comes in contact with his beak!

 

After decorating, I helped with getting the foods prepared and set out. Yum!  I love cookies!  Cindy made us put out the "healthy" foods and says we have to eat some of the veggies before having sweets.  At least I like carrots & cheese cubes.  But celery?  Nope.  Not so much.....I do not like the stringy part at all.  Now, I will confess, I don't mind those pig-in-blankets one bit!  Those are one of my favorite party foods!!  I like them dipped in honey mustard....yummilicious!

Christina put all our handmade valentines into a big basket to pass out.  McKenna was so excited to find out which one was hers, that she immediately offered to help with the task! I cannot wait to see our special little felt Valentine envelopes; Hope has been working on these for months in and around school, homework and youth group.  She made them very similar to the puffy hearts centerpiece; with hand-embroidery and special applique's and buttons - one for each of us!  Golly, I have to admit that I wished I had offered to help cause I really wanted to see mine too!

Christina set the basket of our special Valentine's under the table and told Coconut to guard them with her life!  Coconut happily agreed and stayed right next to the basket, guarding it as if it was full of bones!

Just as I was getting my first cookie, Harper arrived!  She kept apologizing for not dressing up for the party but I assured her that it was fine!  The most important part was that she made it.....and that there was still food left for her! 

After about 4 cookies, I heard Christina call to get everyone's attention so she could start passing out the valentines. Needless to say, she gave McKenna hers first - since she was just DYING to see it - AND she was standing right there next to Christina! 

"Next is Harper's!!" Christina called out.  Harper nearly knocked me over to get next in line behind McKenna, but you can bet that I was right behind her!! 

"Patience, Lanie-bug." Christina smiled, as she handed me my Valentine. Ooh! Oh my golly! It's mine! I cant wait to open it and see who its from!! Maybe I have a secret admirer!!

I couldn't bring myself to open it right away.  I just wanted to sit and admire just how adorable these are! All the work and love that went into each stitch.....what a true gift these were.  Okay, so that moment passed in like, two seconds and I had to open it!   I pulled out my card and it had pretty glitter dots and a heart made of the same glitter.  Inside it read;  

"Roses are Red, Violets are Blue ~ You're Such A Good Friend and I Miss You!"  

Love, Isabelle XOXO

Awwww, that was sooooo sweet!  My Valentine was from Isabelle!  For a few seconds, it like totally made me sad cause it reminded me of how much I really do miss her ~ even though I have had such fun with my special Izzy doll that she sent. 

Right about then, Hope arrived and we all cheered when she walked into the kitchen!  "We love your special garlands!" everybody shouted. 

Since McKenna helped with the Valentines, I wanted to be the helper for handing out the boxes of chocolates.  I grabbed Hope's and handed it to her and told her that I admired her terribly.  "You are so talented, Hope. I wish I could be more like you!" I exclaimed.  "Oh Lanie, you are still young and learning but you already have a wonderful talent - you make us all smile each and every day and not everybody can do that!"  Hope replied.

"Thank you Hope.  I hope you'll always know that I love you like a sister!"  ♥  Then we hugged and posed for this photo. 

Just then, we heard a semi-familiar voice......"Hellooooo!  Hellooooo!  Is anybody home???"  I turned to Hope and asked her who that could be?  It sounded familiar but I couldn't quite figure it out.  Hope agreed, "Maybe it's Cindy's bff, Lily?"

Then we heard the voice again and this time, I was pretty sure I knew who it was!!!!!  We turned towards the direction that the voice was coming from to see if we could figure it out.....the voice was getting louder and louder......closer and closer!  By this time, everybody at the party had stopped talking because they were curious too.  We were all looking towards the door......

OH. GOOD. GOLLY.  I could NOT believe my eyes!!!!  It was Isabelle!  My little heart felt like it would just burst out of my chest and fly away!  I squealed with glee SO loudly that I startled poor Hope so badly, I think she might have peed her pants!

Can you believe it?!?!?  Isabelle was right there in front of us!  We all cheered cause we were all so happy to see her.....and then we all rushed towards her like a flash HUG!

This was the best Valentine's Day party we have ever, ever, ever had!!!!  Good golly, I am still walking on sunshine and it's been ten days. ☺