Local Toys R Us Visit! American Girl & Wellie Wishers Are In, Journey Girls Are Out?!?! :O

So this past Friday I stopped in our localish Toys R Us in Elk Grove, CA hoping to leave with the new holiday Journey Girl doll & to take advantage of the 30% off sale before it ended. I even checked the website to see if it was in stock at my store and it said it was. Upon arrival, much to my surprise, the Journey Girl selection was totally disappointing and there were no holiday dolls in sight. Instead there were Wellie Wishers taking over their former shelf space:

Wellie Wishers $59.99

Sorry the last photo is so blurry, other shoppers were coming down the aisle and I wanted to get out of their way! ^^;;

Luckily, the employees were super helpful and I was able to order the doll I was after at the store for the sale price and with free home shipping! While helping us, the store employee addressed the lack of Journey Girl selection explaining that they would be discontinuing Journey Girls there because they're going to be one of the locations that will be carrying the full sized American Girl dolls in store. Hopefully this means I can get my AG doll's ears pierced without having to drive for days!

Although I'm not exactly happy that this means the Journey Girls won't be there anymore. Also, I'm not sure whether it means the line is being discontinued just in this location or all together. Guess we'll see...

On another note, I would like to point out some other items that caught my eye in store. Many of these items are not listed as in-stock at this Toys R Us location. I guess the in-stock by location information on their website is pretty unreliable in general.

Adorable Hello Kitty items!

I'm loving that dollhouse... but not for $59.99. Hoping it goes on sale for the holidays!

Vintage style Cabbage Patch Kids dolls~

I've been eyeing this item on the website and after seeing it in person, I super want it! Online they have both a newer style and retro version of this house, but our store only had the retro one, which I prefer. The original Strawberry Shortcake items were a little before my time, but I love the look of the retro items anyhow and want all of them!!!

Hopefully the news of the Elk Grove location carrying American Girls is good news to some of y'all that live in or around the area! I'm pretty excited since the closest American Girl Boutique is light years away! Till next time~

2016 Chiffon Ball Gown Platinum Label Barbie~ Black and White Collection!

Hi, hello, hey there! Just wanted to finally stop by and share a doll from my mom's collection, her 2016 Platinum Chiffon Ball Gown Barbie!

A picture of her in the box. You might notice the crazy stray hair that didn't make it into the ponytail. There were actually several so we took her hair down and discovered we both liked that look better. Photo snapping ensued~

She's quite the model!

I think this doll is fantastic, aside from the not so perfect packaging. What do y'all think of her?! n.n

Barbie Collector Cherry Pie Picnic Doll - 1st from the Willows, WI Collection! Review and Photos!

Recently I decided to branch out a little and order a doll I was on the fence about from a seller I was also on the fence about. The doll I'm referring to is none other that the fabulously vintage Cherry Pie Picnic Barbie doll, the 1st in the new Willows, WI Collection. The seller I purchased her from, Amazon Warehouse Deals, sells "used" items that are often times new and unopened items but are in damaged packaging to various degrees. I was apprehensive about the condition of the item I would receive, but couldn't resist the lure of a 15% discount on a somewhat pricey doll, so I took the plunge and this is what I ended up with:

Here's a look at the front and back of the box. The doll I purchased was described as being in "Used- Like New" condition.

The back of the box came with a nifty little inspection sticker.

And in the above picture you can see the extent of the damage. It's basically just some dirty looking scuffs on the upper edge of the back of the box. I can deal with that for a 15 percent discount... especially since I debox most of my dolls n.n

Inside, Barbie is safe and sound with no evidence of tampering.

I was a little worried after seeing the Amazon sticker using the word "repackaged," but I feel sure that she has never been removed because all of the usual Mattel restraints and staples are still in place. Barbie has blue eyes, shades of gold eyeshadow, and cherry red lips.

Here's her picnic supplies consisting of a cherry pie with two removable slices, two plates, two cups, two forks, and two napkins with napkin rings.

and her beautifully detailed picnic basket!

As displayed out of the box in front of a human size picnic basket :3

It was my mom's idea to have the dolls picnicking inside our basket!

Cherry Pie Picnic Barbie has a cherry print blouse, jeans, and a patent red belt.

Her jeans are cuffed mid-calf and she wears red mules. My mom's brunette repro Barbie wears coordinating attire including denim overalls and a cherry print blouse as well.

Grab a slice!

All of the picnic items fit neatly into the basket and it easily snaps shut to hold everything securely!

Like I mentioned, I was on the fence about this doll before, but after seeing how well she photographs, and the extensive amount of detail in her accessories, I think she is honestly quite stunning. I'm looking forward to reviewing the next doll in the Willows series in the future! What do you guys think of Cherry Pie Picnic Barbie?!

Till next time~

2015 Amazon Exclusive Collector Draculaura Doll! Monster High Doll Review + Tons of Photos!

Thanks to my mom's new love of Tumblr, I became aware of this Amazon.com exclusive Draculaura doll and pre-ordered her as soon as I could! She has so many details that you just have to check out! Meet my new favorite MH doll!

I had to start with a black and white photo because her Victorian styled outfit demands it!

I absolutely adore her coffin box, I plan to display her in it because the box is almost as gorgeous as she is!

... almost...

I didn't get the greatest contrast on this photo, but the box reads "Draculaura" followed with "EST. 411 AD"

A lovely likeness of her on the back as well.

With the lid and stand removed.

 This is her stand. You'll notice that it's far more detailed than the standard MH doll stands.

Out of the box she looks great, although her hair needs some work...

But with some careful brushing her curls are soft and voluminous!

Close-up of her makeup and eye paint.

The full out of box look~

Details of the dress.

The delicate edging of her cape.

The center of the lace overlay features a vampire bat.

Her beautiful pink locks.

Her hat!

I would usually trim the staples holding the hat in place immediately, but I think I'll leave these in since her hat looks unlikely to stay on without them. I wish they would have used black staples to hide them better though u.u

 The umbrella~ more elegant details!

Her appropriately Victorian styled boots are very cute.

She also comes with this little booklet with notes, graphics, and fancy doll photographs!

A sample of what's inside.

Like I stated earlier, I really want to display her in the box because it looks awesome, however I was a little worried if she would look a mess without her restraints, staples, and hair sewn to the back... Much to my surprise I think she still looks fantastic:

She's still on her doll stand, which fits in the box with the lid closed, and I left the piece of plastic attached to the backing that holds the umbrella so I wouldn't have to worry about her dropping it. She has a hard time holding the umbrella because of the weight, and that's why in the photos it's resting on her hat for extra support:

I think the umbrella being too heavy for her is my only complaint, and honestly I feel like it's an extremely minor issue. I think this doll is fabulous and she's really priced well for a collector doll. Some of the recent collector Barbies I have purchased were well over double the price, had far less detailing, and were not even close as far as the wow factor this doll has in person. Definitely recommend this doll if you're a Monster High fan or even if you just love Victorian/Gothic clothing and dolls as much as I do!

Until next time~~~~