The cafe

The grand finale of our time at the American Girl Doll store was
to have lunch at the cafe. Other than the really odd odor in the
restaurant (???) it was a great time. It is set up for the girls to have
lunch with their dolls, (they even advertise that the dolls eat free,
kinda hilarious) there is a high chair and tea cup for the doll.
We have a really fun time together talking and enjoying the food
and the dolls. What a fun memory.

Morgan and Steve pouring over the menu. Yes, in case you see
the disfigurement of Steve's hand, he had a bad burn. Long, kinda
humiliating story that he would love to share with all who are
interested.






Our desserts

The store

So this American Girl store is quite the place. It was on 5th
Avenue, right across from Rockefeller Square. On Monday, the
place was swamped with moms and girls and a few straggler
dads (way to hang in there, Steve!!). And we certainly saw all
sorts, people discussing their budgets and how many dollars
they had left to spend, the business man in a suit buying armfulls
of stuff, and the "spoiled girl" there to get one more thing to add
to her immense collection.

By far, the highlight of the store for my girls was the doll hair
salon. Yeah, can you believe they actually have such a thing?! My
girls stood there and watched for the longest time. I really
think they could have stood there for 3 days straight just
watching and watching. The ladies doing the hair were just
hysterical. But, how stinkin' cute to see a little doll strapped
in a mini salon chair with a cape on getting her hair done!!




A display of the Kit doll


A window display

The dolls

Our hotel

We had an amazing hotel while in NYC. We were literally
right in the middle of Times Square. These first 2 shots were
taken outside the front of the hotel.


A litte blurry, but me and my girls (Aaron was home with grandma)


The view from our window


Kind of a funny shot, but you can see the big Times Sq. clock
in the background. Ok, it looks like a wreath in this picture but
it was really cool from the window!!

Choosing a doll...

We arrived in NYC on Sunday evening and were planning
on spending the evening walking around the city and seeing
some sights. Well, it was pouring rain and we decided to head
straight to the American Girl store and spend the evening there
instead. The girls went knowing which doll they wanted, so that
part was pretty painless. They each had some extra money to
spend (thanks to their g-pa Heitland) so we told them we would
come back the next day and do that. Here they are choosing their
doll and getting to see all her accessories. I can't explain the
moment, it was so sweet. The lady helping them was such a dear,
she was just as interested and excited as the girls were.

In case you think Morgan looks a little drenched in this pic, yes,
she is, we walked in the pouring rain!!


Morgan has her goodies in this big ol' shopping bag!






Greta just chillin' with dad

NYC!!

We returned just a little bit ago from a big trip to the big
apple!! For a few years now, my girls have been wanting
an American Girl doll. Well, thank to a very generous
Uncle Jeremy and Uncle Seth, we were able to take the
girls to New York City and get their doll! In case you know
nothing of the American Girl dolls, they are a collection of
dolls based on a time in history and you can only purchase
then thru a catalog or at one of their few stores.
We had an amazing time, I have lots of photos and a few
stories to tell. I am wiped and will save them all for another
day. Just wanted to post this one quick of the girls and their
dolls. This was taken somewhere in Rockafellar (sp?) Center.
One funny quick story here, the girls are standing on a ledge on
the side of this fountain (the ledge was about 3 feet wide, so lots
of space to stand). Well, somehow in the process of climbing
up on the wall, Morgan slipped and tripped and she landed flat
on her face and the doll slid stomach first across the ledge,
landing just a few short inches from her first dive. Oh, what a
nightmare that would have been!!

Putting up the tree

In keeping with our annual tradition, we put our tree up last night,
right after Thanksgiving. We've gotten a lot of grief for having a
fake tree, but I told Steve that I think we have just as much fun putting
up our artificial one as those who go and get the real thing. And think
of all the money we save (I got this fakey at a garage sale for $1!!)
and all the needles that I'm not sweeping up. So, here are a few shots
of our evening.

Sissie lovin'


Claudia singing along with the Christmas music


Trouble


The grand finale