Little House on the Prairie: The Story; Part #2

Later that day, after school, Laura came home before Mary, who was stopping to pick up additional paper tablets at the Mercantile. She had written so many different rough drafts of her story and wasn't pleased with a single one; to the point where she had wasted a whole paper tablet!

"Ma, what do you think about the writing contest?"

Ma, who had been checking on dough in the oven, spun around. "What do you mean?"

"Just, you know, what do you think of it?"

"I think it is a great opportunity for aspiring educators like your sister to get a nice start at such a young age. Why do you ask?"

"Oh," Laura smiled weakly, taken in surprise, "I was just wondering....Samantha wasn't sure if she should ask her Grandmary just in case writing contests weren't considered proper." Laura hoped she hadn't said everything too fast and made it seem like a lie, but she had already done it.

"Improper?" Ma asked, frowning, "Oh no - it's a wonderful thing." Laura could tell that Ma had her doubts about why Laura was really asking. However, not in Ma's wildest dreams would she imagine Laura entering.

Laura went up to her room sulking, Ma's words playing through her head; aspiring educators like your sister... Laura didn't want to be a teacher, but she still wanted Ma to realize that she too had an interest in learning and Mary couldn't take all the credit.

Laura mailed out her letter the next day. The mail was only in the next town over for the contest, so it would get there on time. After about a week of waiting, Ms. Beadle announced that the next day, she would be revealing who won.

That morning of the contest results, Laura said goodbye to Pa. "Just think, next contest time, you'll be entering - just like Mary." Pa smiled.

"Yes...yes sir." Laura was stunned. It was finally dawning on her that no one truly knew that she was entering. She began to feel a little sick to her stomach.

At school, Nellie was bragging about her entry and how she was so sure she was going to win.

"I don't think you're going to win," Laura smiled playfully.

"Well, with my sophisticated writing, I should win, but as my mother says, it would be nice for a poor unfortunate country child to win if there was to be any money for the contest prize. Then maybe she could get some nice clothes." Nellie eyed up Laura's dress while Laura focused on ignoring her.

"Okay, okay, let's settle down," Ms. Beadle smiled as she unfolded the envelope that incased the life changing results.

"First honorable mention," she read and then paused before continuing, "Nellie Olson."

"Are you sure?" Nellie asked desperately.

Ms. Beadle ignored her.

Laura, who was still fuming in the back of her mind about what Nellie had said earlier about the poor and unfortunate country kids, glanced back and stuck her tongue out and narrowed her eyes at Nellie who was still dumbstruck.

Mary quickly realized what was going on and smacked Laura on the knee to get her to turn around and mind the teacher.

Laura turned around - that smack had hurt and she didn't want another one.

The whole class was so silent waiting to hear the last three honorable mentions and then finally the official winner.

"Samantha Parkington," Ms. Beadle paused, "Rose Beacon, and......." Ms. Beadle paused and Laura and Mary - the whole class that wasn't in the honorable mentions before prayed. 

"Mary Ingalls."

Mary gasped. Laura gasped.

I knew that I wouldn't win," Laura sighed, staring down at her lap. She had made a fool of herself by sticking out her tongue at Nellie, because in the end, Mary, nor Samantha, not even Laura won. They were all just as bad off as Nellie. 

"You still did a good job, Mary," Laura whispered. She really did feel bad for her - but she also felt bad for herself. She had wanted to win so bad, even if she had only expected to be in the honorable mentions. While Ms. Beadle still hadn't announced the real winner, Laura just knew that it wouldn't be her.   

 "Shhh," Mary frowned, but she smiled a weak but grateful smile.

"The official winner of the writing contest is............Laura Ingalls," Ms. Beadle didn't know Laura had planned on entering. She looked shocked, but quickly recovered herself and smiled. "Will our winner please come to the front of the room?"

Laura rose shakily - she still hadn't recovered. Had she really just won the whole contest - had she really beaten a private school that was known for their writing?

Ms. Beadle hugged Laura tightly, both of them were nearly in tears. "Well congratulations, Laura! The prize of $5 is all yours! Would you like to read to the class what you wrote?"

"Of - of course," Laura stuttered. She was getting even more surprised as time went on. She had won! WON! WON!

Laura cleared her throat, took her story from Ms. Beadle's hands and began to read like she never had before.

"In the crisp, clear woods a poor girl, Kirsten, had become lost in her efforts to exit the forest during a game of hide and seek........." Laura continued, making sure to project her words and make sure that everything was spoken clearly in a way that everyone could understand. Finally, she read the end of her story, "So Kirsten learned in the end that maybe the Indians weren't so evil or mean and they in no way reflected what she had been taught from such a young age. So Kirsten waved goodbye on the top of that hill and looked down at the temporary family sprawled out across the vast plains that she had had for weeks and waved goodbye. It wasn't a sad goodbye. It was a happy one, for she had realized her luck to ever be in the care of such fine people."

The story had been about a poor girl who had been playing hide and seek and got lost but was saved by Indians. The Indians ended up being wonderful people, but when her parents found her, she realized she had to leave, so she did. It was a simple story, but Laura's use of words had been so amazing that it had won. 

Laura looked at Mary, who peered over her glasses and clapped. She wasn't really smiling, but she wasn't frowning either - she was emotionless.

"I suppose that with that, we can release class early," Ms. Beadle smiled. The group left. Mary didn't wait for Laura, and instead ran home. Laura fled after her.

"How did it go?" Ma asked Mary.

"It went....um, okay," Mary smiled shyly.

"Who won?" Ma saw the disappointment on Mary's face, which somehow signaled that Mary did not come out as the winner.

"Well, Laura," Mary looked at Ma's face to try and detect Ma's emotions.  

"Laura?" Ma asked, "Did she really? I didn't know she entered!"  

"I don't know how she managed to enter," Mary sighed, "She should be home soon."

Suddenly, Laura entered and closed the door. She stood in front of it with a sorry look on her face.

"Ma....I..." she began, her hands pulled behind her back in worry, "Oh Ma." Laura began to cry. She felt like she had somehow disobeyed her Ma and Pa by entering.

"Oh Laura," Ma smiled, running over to hug her. Mary awkwardly shifted from foot to foot staring down at her slate and paper tablets.

"Ma, I just....I just wanted to enter," Laura cried. "I wanted to prove everyone wrong!"

"What was there to prove wrong?" Ma asked.

"Samantha told me I couldn't, Nellie told me I couldn't, even Pa and you didn't expect me to enter - as though you figured I wasn't.....I wasn't good enough," Laura closed her eyes.

"Laura," Ma spoke firmly, "I'm proud of you - very proud of you. I do wish you would've told everyone you were entering, but Laura, I have to be proud of you - it is your first writing contest and you won!" Ma smiled. "Oh, but Laura, you never need to prove anything to Pa or me. We already know that you can do anything you set your mind to."

Laura smiled at Ma happily as her tears dried up and she began to realize that Ma and Pa had no reason to be upset about her winning a writing contest! Now Mary being proud was a different story.  

Ma went outside to help Carrie who was trying to teach Jack a trick. Mary and Laura were left inside alone. Mary walked over to her.

"You did an amazing job," Mary told her shyly.

"Really?" Laura asked softly, "I wasn't sure if you would be upset or not."

"Honorable mentions are good enough - why should I be upset?" Mary smiled.

"I just...well, I just thought you would be upset because now you're no better off than Nellie Olson," Laura sighed.

"But Laura," Mary smiled, "I am."

"How?" Laura asked.

"Because I have a talented writer for a sister," Mary smiled and Laura smiled back widely.

"Why don't we go celebrate by wading in the creek?" Laura suggested.

"Race you!" Mary smiled back and with that, the girls were off. Mary the soon-to-be teacher and Laura.....the writer.

 

 

American Girl Winter Release!!!! (released today)

Yay! All the Winter stuff was released today! I saw that a lot of people had been posting pics of it on their blogs and stuff like that, but I chose not to look at them (wow, that's a first), because I wanted to keep it a surprise (I'm usually part of the team uncovering the stuff before it's released, now I wanted nothing to do with it! XD).

I'm going to do my opinions on this stuff, like a lot of people do.

Pretty Carriage and Prancing Horse $395

Well, it is $395 for the whole set, if you took the horse out, it would be $275, but still, that is a lot of money! I LOVE this set, but I sort of think that Felicity & Elizabeth's carriage was better made and all that. I still love this one though and I do want it (though with the price, it makes me not really want it so much anymore! XD).

Pretty Pink Outfit & Helmet $24 - 66

I don't know how I like this. It is pink! Real horse riders wear that traditional navy riding suit for shows and other equestrian things. This just looks kind of fake to me. If everything had been a more professional color, I might buy it. I don't like it very much though, but it is kind of cute, so I guess I'm just undecided. Oh, wait, the outfit alone is $42! I think I've decided whether I'm getting it or not....

Western Plaid Outfit $30

This outfit is sort of cute. I kind of sort of, but not really, XD like it, but not what it is supposed to be for. First off, I feel like it is a little short, so my doll would probably wear leggings underneath this or at the very least shorts. Then, the boots, I hate the crisscross threads and all that. The only thing cute about it is the belt. The whole thing feels like a trendy outfit to me (I'm not a trendy person). Also, how is she supposed to ride a horse in this? If anyone one day soon goes to the stables and sees girls riding horses in things like this (or trying to ride horses), then we'll know who to blame it on! Ugh.

Sparkly Skating Set for Dolls $44

$44 for this? That is kind of scary - in fact, the outfit itself is kind of scary. The puckered seams in the chest area are just ugly and uncalled for and then it is scary tight at the stomach area (which is acceptable since that is how most skating outfits are). I don't know though - it may be realistic, but it, IMO is personally extremely ugly. What happened to the nice ice skating outfits where they weren't obsessed with trying to show off the dolls' bodies or encourage girls to show off their's in the ice rink? Gosh, maybe I should start a blog just to analyze all the outfits! XD

Winter White Outfit $38

This outfit looks like a remake of the past million white winter outfits AG has come out with, and to be honest, I'm not very pleased. It is all just a bit over the top, and the only thing I truly like from this outfit is the shorts. I probably will not buy this outfit unless it really grows on me (like some AG outfits tend to do).

Happy Holiday Dress for Dolls $36

I do NOT like this dress. The asymmetrical skirts - I don't like when on dresses you are able to see tulle. It just isn't very flattering. Also, what happened to AG making a Christmas dress? This blue is more for other holidays like Hanukah and things like that. In my family (probably most families) for Christmas dresses, you generally pick out a red or green dress, not a blue dress with sequins on it. I just do not understand why they didn't make a Christmas dress and it is disappointing. I will not be buying this unless it grows on me somehow (unlikely).

Silver Shimmer Dress for Dolls $36

I don't mind this dress for New Year's and stuff (even though I don't wear a dress on New Year's usually - only during the day for parties - while watching the ball drop, I wear my pajamas!). I don't mind the little sequins on the ruffles of the dress, and the shoes and headband are okay, my problem lies in the bodice part of the dress where it is covered completely in sequins. I am not a sequins person, and to be honest, the dress with all the sequins on it kind of makes her look like she is wearing a dress made out of tin (maybe she's the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz's sister?? XD). I guess it isn't that bad of a dress, but I will not be buying it.

 Holiday Accessories - $32

This is an outrageous price for a cardboard box of stationary chocolates (meaning they can't come out of the box - probably), a necklace, a crazy vest, and an ornament. The vest would be okay without the sequined sleeves on the side, but of course, AG had to find some way to ruin it. Besides, with the sequins on the sides of the vest, you'd have to buy the Happy Holiday Dress to go with it. Oh, I get it! AG put the sequins on the side so that it would only match that particular dress and then you'd have to go spend $36 on that! Ugh.

Fair Isle Pajamas for Dolls $24

I LOVE these pajamas - from the fabric they used for the top to the cute pattern around the neckline, this is such a cute set! I LOVE it! Plus, it is about the cheapest outfit out of all the new releases, so it's my lucky day! I will get my hands on these pajamas. Mwahahaha. XDXD JK

 

That's all I'm going to review now. If I missed anything, I'm sorry (I'm not reviewing Bitty Baby/Twin outfits currently). I'd love to hear your opinions on the releases!

 

 

 

The Sunshine Award!

Madi, from Delightful World of Dolls (www.delightfulworldofdolls.com) nominated me for the Sunshine Award!!! I am so happy and thankful! Thank you SOOOOOOOOO much, Madi, I love being awarded - this means a lot!!!! :)
For those who I nominated (you will get a comment on your blog telling you that I nominated you), please look at the bottom of this post for instructions on properly receiving your nomination! ;)

5 Random Facts!

1. I volunteer at an animal rescue shelter with my family and I go almost two times a week!

2. I love sailing and go on my grandparents' different sailboats often and can nearly sail one myself (that is how I am like Caroline)!

3. I am currently working on a sewing project! I'm working on a modern dress and a historical 1940s' dress! I'm so excited to get them all finished (though I am having fun enjoying the process - even if it is hard!)

4. I love selling things and am very 'money motivated!' XD I love lemonade stands, shops, bake sales, etc.

5. My favorite things to wear are my pairs of Liberty overalls (real overalls - not any of the crazy ones that are sold in stores today)
Now for the questions!!!
1. How long is your hair?
A: My hair is super long - I can sit on it, so it is a few inches past my waist.
2. Do you have any AG doll pets?
A: Yes! I have multiple dogs (Coconut, Julie's dog walking dogs, Kit's dog Grace, Kanani's dog Barksee, Kailey's dog Sandy, Chocolate Chip, and a few more), I have two AG horses (one is a foal), Caroline's Calf Garnet, Lanie's Bunny, and then two cats (Ginger and Licorice). Since I love pets, whenever I have money to spend or someone asks me what I want for Christmas or something, I usually choose an AG pet!
3. What is the weirdest moment in your entire life?
A: I have had so many weird moments in my life, it is honestly really hard to choose! XD I guess the weirdest one is when this little boy(I mean really little - like four), ran up to me in the kids section in Target, grabbed a Disney princess Barbie off of the shelf and reached up to shove it in my face before running off out of the aisle. I never saw him again, and there wasn't a parent in sight. It happened so quickly and came out of nowhere, so I was really caught off guard and I like, was just standing there wondering what had just happened and it was really, really weird! XDXD
4. Who's your favorite cousin?
A: I have a lot of cousins, and I hate to choose just one because I think are my cousins are cool, but I think that my favorite one is my girl cousin who is closest in age to me out of my cousins (there are a lot of other cousins close to my age though - but she is the girl closest to my age). When we get together, we are like sisters!!! :)
5. What is the most amazing accomplishment that you are  super proud of?
A: I think my biggest accomplishment that I'm proud of is when I really started mastering my three instruments (cello, flute, & piano) and I was invited to join an adult orchestra before any other kids were invited to join! It made me feel so happy to have been the first one chosen (I played with the adult orchestra for months before any of the other kids were chosen). I felt like they were so proud of my accomplishments to ask me to join the orchestra that I began to feel really proud too!
Thanks again for the awesome questions and nomination, Madi!
Here are the 5 blogs that I'm nominating (in no particular order)!
1. Vinyl Girls = www.agimagination.blogspot.com
2. Simply Dollightful = www.simplydollightful.blogspot.com
3. My AG World = www.myagworld.com
4. The Dolls of Maple Street = www.thedollsofmaplestreet.wordpress.com
5. Five Friends in College = www.fourfriendsincollege.blogspot.com (thanks for commenting so much on my blog, Allison!)
 Here are the 5 questions for everyone who was nominated to answer!
1. Where is your favorite place to shop for dolls clothes (besides AG, of course)?

2. Is there any doll that you regret not buying or receiving before she was retired?

3. What inspired you to create your awesome blog?

4. Do you mind taking risks with your dolls (taking them to the sandy beach, sticking their feet in a lake, doing photo shoots with them near pools while it is windy, etc.)?

5. If you could only look at one AG blog for the rest of your life (besides yours), which blog would it be?
The Rules: State 5 facts about yourself, answer the 5 questions given, nominate 5 people, and then give them 5 questions to answer!

Enjoy the questions and thanks once more for nominating me, Madi!









 

 

 

Little House on the Prairie: The Story Part #1

One afternoon, right before school was about to let out, Ms. Beadle had an exciting announcement to make.

"Girls and boys," Mrs. Beadle announced. Everyone got quiet.

"There is going to be a contest."

"With prizes?" asked Willy Olson. Nellie quickly quieted him down.

"Yes, with prizes," Mrs. Beadle smiled, which was unusual for her when people spoke out of turn. "It's going to be a writing contest. Your story must have over 300 words and be somewhat short and powerful. The competition is with two different schools - the private school in the next town over is even participating. But we can win, and I expect us to win. Unfortunately, we came into the competition a bit late and the due date is in four days. I will not be assigning extensive homework and the tests we were supposed to take tomorrow will be put off until the competition is over."

The whole class was abuzz with excitement and everyone stopped off at Olson's Mercantile on the way home, since Nellie said her father was giving away free paper tablets to everyone who wished to enter.

"What do you suppose you're going to write about, Mary?" Nellie asked once they were in the store that was crowded with all the school kids.

"I don't know yet," Mary answered truthfully. She wasn't used to Nellie being nice, but she could certainly handle it as long as she made sure not to give any information to Nellie.

"I'm probably going to write about the time that we went to that lovely grand hotel in the city - the nice city. Not the kind that people around here are used to. I bet it'll be the only story of its kind!"

"I bet it will be, Nellie," Mary nodded, trying not to laugh before dashing off. Nellie and her bragging! 

"Are you going to enter, Samantha?" Laura asked her.

Samantha nodded happily. "I went to the private school that Ms. Beadle was talking about. I only switched over to this school last year - like you did."

"I think I might enter," Laura smiled.

"Good, but be careful - Mary is going to be tough competition!" Samantha laughed and Laura knew that it was just a joke, but somehow, it made her feel like her best friend wasn't rooting for her to win. Laura supposed it was every man for themselves.

"Ma, there is going to be a writing contest," Laura told Ma when the two girls walked through the door.

"Wonderful," Ma smiled, "Mary, I expect that you are entering."

"Oh yes," Mary smiled, "I might already have an idea about what to write about, too! May I go up and work on my writing? I promise I'll do my chores later."

"Alright - I'll make one exception just this once. After the writing contest is over though, you're back to doing chores when you're supposed to. Do you understand?"

"Yes ma'am," Mary nodded before racing up the loft ladder to write.

"Laura, please get started on your chores or homework," Ma sighed, bending down to see if the iron was hot enough for ironing yet.

"Yes," Laura mumbled slightly before walking out of the house to do her chores. It wasn't fair! Ma didn't think that Laura was going to enter and she expected Mary to win already! Maybe Ma doesn't want me to enter. I couldn't outdo Mary's writing anyway; probably. Maybe I'll just forget about this whole contest," Laura kicked up dirt as she walked over to the barn to get started on her chores.

The next morning, bright and early, before anyone was even up, Laura raced outside to write. She wanted to write in secret now that no one expected her to win; much less enter. Even Pa had told Mary that his money was on her for winning. Laura also knew that in all fairness, no one in her family knew she was entering, so she tried not to take anything too personally.

Laura had come outside in hopes of finding some inspiration for her short but powerful story. Unfortunately, there was no inspiration to be found at first glance. Then, she got the idea to write about a runaway girl in the woods - climbing trees and surviving in any way she could. Wait, no! Laura would write about a girl like Kaya who had been separated from her tribe and survived in the woods on her own! That would be powerful, and she could try and make it somewhat short.

"Yay!" Laura whispered excitedly. It always felt good to finally conquer a writer's block. Laura had never really dreamed of writing a story, but now, she realized how fun it would be, and she decided to enter.

Suddenly, Laura's thoughts were interrupted when she saw a girl climbing the tree. Not just any girl though - it was Samantha!

"Hi," Laura smiled.

"Hi," Samantha smiled back, "Hey, what are you doing out here so early? I was just getting a really early start out for school and I heard someone up here in the trees say 'yay', so I came up to investigate!"

"Oh," Laura blushed. Had she really said "yay" that loud? She must've just been so excited. "I'm just....nothing."

"What's that pencil and paper tablet? You're going to enter the contest, aren't you!" Samantha cried out softly, as though she had just made a discovery that Laura was doing something illegal.

"Well, what's wrong with entering the contest?" Laura asked defiantly.

"Well, I don't know, Laura," Samantha sighed.

The girls climbed down from the tree. Laura wondered what was wrong with Samantha. Didn't she want to see her friend win the contest - or at least be an honorable mention - or even at the very least, enter?

"I'm going to write a good story - you'll see," Laura smiled at her friend, secretly hoping that Samantha wasn't upset for some reason.

"Laura, I don't want you to take offense, but there are a lot of good writers in the school - and the private school we are competing against has a whole writing team with a school newspaper and everything! Laura, you've only been writing for one year."  

"I think I can do good, don't you?" Laura asked worriedly. She didn't know why Samantha was so upset.

"Laura, Mary is a great writer and so is everyone else - it's tough competition," Samantha shrugged.

"So it is tough for me but not for you?" Laura asked angrily.

"I never said that!" Samantha told her.

"But you're still entering, aren't you?" Laura challenged. "You know what, Samantha, I'll enter any contest I want on my own terms and I'll do anything that I want and I'll not have you voicing your opinion on my every move and decision! I don't want to talk write now."

Samantha opened her voice to talk, but instead walked off in a huff. Hmph, Laura huffed, I'll show her!

The only problem was, Laura didn't know where to start with writing her story.

 

 

Quick Candy Corn Photoshoot!

First off, American Girl Place 1234, if you are reading this, please know that I tried to follow your sight, and it said that I followed it, but  went on your blog and it is not showing up that I followed you. I am really sorry that for some reason, it keeps saying that I follow you, but it is not showing up that way. I see that you also have over 25 followers, so I am very happy that you reached your goal - I will try to follow you again later. End of message for AGP 1234 :P :)
I'm still taking pictures for my next Little House on the Prairie episode, and I wanted to post today, so I decided to use some candy corn that I got at the grocery store yesterday as a the subject of today's photo shoot. Since I am working on improving my photos, I knew that a photoshoot with my favorite candy (that I only get in October) was the perfect thing! There are only a few pictures (like 3), but this is really just to get us excited for fall!

Felicity was excited to eat her three candy corn (which I earned for her! XD)

I am probably going to make this the header picture on my blog because it is getting sort of old looking at Samantha's face every time I come on here. I love Samantha, but I like to change things up frequently when it comes to pictures on my blog!

Besides, this is sort of one of those "welcome to fall" sort of images, don't you think?

Lanie and Felicity got a little silly and started trying to feed each other candy corn after it got boring trying to eat it themselves! XD 

Felicity managed to take a huge chunk out of her candy corn!

Yes, candy corn is my favorite candy and I am thinking of (with my mom's help) creating a candy corn muffin or cupcake recipe. If I do come up with a tasty, successful recipe, I will give it to all of you (however, I doubt I will have the time to come up with one, and even then, I'm sure it will just be sort of an experiment and probably will not turn out good enough for me to give it to you, so please do not take this as a promise or count on it - the idea is just sort of a dream of mine, if you know what I mean).

That's it for this quick photo story!

Dolls Used: Felicity & Lanie

Clothes: Felicity: Julie's Calico Dress, Lanie: Random Easter dress (it came with a matching dress for me)

Camera: Nikon D5000

Doll Outfit of the Day & Idea #6

Today we're going to do something a little bit different for the doll outfit of the day and idea. Instead of creating an outfit for the AG dolls, I used a Hearts 4 Hearts doll! I don't talk much about them, yet I have 3 of them that I love so much! Since they are inches smaller than an AG doll, sometimes it can seem hard to make up an outfit for them out of all of your existing AG clothes. H4H does offer clothes for their dolls, but the clothes are not carried at my local stores (though sometimes there is the stray one at Marshalls or T.J. Maxx.)
Here is an idea for your H4H doll's wardrobe! The idea is not really said in words, you have to look at the pictures to see the idea and how to create outfits for your H4H doll(s).
First off, I LOVE the idea of H4H dolls! They are educational and a good idea for learning about the life of girls in other countries. I also like that some of the profits go to charities and all that, I think that is really special.

Here are the three that I own (from your left to right): Nahji, Shola, & Mosi! They came with these names, and I think that each one is so unique, just like their appearance. After nearly a year of play (I got Nahji & Shola last December for Christmas and I got Mosi in January for my birthday), their hair has held up extremely well and is still as silky and smooth as the day they came out of their packages, which is an amazing feat for a doll's hair! So yes, I think their hair may be a tad bit better quality than AG.  

Mosi's little feather is so cute (no I have not taken it out nor do I plan to).

Here are all three doll's hands together with Nahji's hena tattoo (I think that is what it is called). This is just such a cool symbol of peace between kids from different countries, don't you think?

Most Groovy Girls clothes fit on the H4H dolls (or pants at least - I haven't tried out shirts or dresses). These sweat pants are so comfortable looking and detailed!

Here they are actually on Mosi! They aren't too tight, but because of the elastic, they can form to nearly any doll body shape as long as the legs can fit through (it of course won't fit on an AG doll).

Then, a select few AG shirts actually do look okay on the H4H girls. Here, Mosi is wearing the owl graphic tee from Lanie's Nature Outfit.

It actually is pretty big, but if your doll is feeling particularly trendy on that day, they can always tie off the excess shirt with a little band. (My dolls rarely feel trendy, but Mosi agreed to model it anyway - in fact, it sort of looks cute here)

The AG berets look good on the H4H dolls, despite their heads being considerably smaller. Here is the back of the beret!

Then, this coat is kind of big on her, and it looks a little silly, but it still works if she is feeling kind of artsy. This jacket is from Lanie's Nature Accessories.

The little dragonfly on Lanie's jacket! So cool!

Here are all 3 girls with their hair spread out! All my H4H dolls seem to have darker hair, but each girl has a different hair color, though in this picture, it may appear as though they all have the same color.

Shola! I did a review on her much earlier in the year (I am not good with posting links in my blog posts but it is there in either the January 2014 posts or the December 2013 posts.)

Mosi!

Nahji (I never was able to get her nose ring back on correctly.

Well, the idea was just kind of how to create an outfit out of H4H dolls out of AG clothes. I know it isn't much of an idea, but I thought it was sort of interesting and this was the best category to fit it under!

Annabelle: Episode 3

One morning in the palace, Servant Molly was adjusting Princess Annabelle's skirt. It had just been sewn and Molly was making sure that it didn't need to be raised or lowered. Annabelle usually hated having to stand up on the little podium as servants fussed over her clothing, but now she thought it was sort of interesting being that much taller than Molly.

"Are you done yet?" Princess Annabelle had begun to grow a bit impatient.

"Well, I guess so...." Servant Molly shrugged. Servant Molly was barely that much older than Annabelle, so she didn't care much about skirts either. She'd never even had a real one of her own anyway, which Annabelle thought was sad, but it was tough to change her father, the King's mind.

Annabelle hopped down from dressing podium.

"I have to go out to the market now," Servant Molly told her.

"Okay - bring me back anything you see that looks interesting!" Annabelle smiled. She didn't often have a key to the outside world, so getting things from the market was always a welcome treat.   

Annabelle wandered down the long hall that she'd wandered down so many times before. Just then, she came to a room with a tiny light pouring out of the half-open door. Annabelle leaned her head next to the door's opening to see if she could hear what was going on in there. Was it the King with her older sister Clara that she had recently discovered? The King was having her stay in a guest house until he could ask her questions and do all sorts of things that Annabelle thought was just plain nonsense.

Annabelle heard the slightly muffled sound of voices. "It is Annabelle's birthday in just a week. Should we ask her what she wants?" Annabelle recognized her mother's voice. It was rare that the King and Queen were even out of their normal throne room.

"I think we should. I've already arranged for a few different guests - other princesses - to come on Friday," The King spoke. "It will be such a surprise to Annabelle."

Annabelle began to feel terrible. Now she had ruined a surprise - something that even Annabelle the spy and problem solver didn't like to find out.   

Just then, Servant Molly tapped on her shoulder, making Annabelle jump a bit. She sighed in relief when she saw that it was just Servant Molly.

"What are you doing, Princess?" Molly asked. "Who are you eavesdropping on?"

Annabelle's face blushed slightly, she didn't always like getting caught in the act of spying - especially when she knew she shouldn't be; not that there was ever a time that she really should be.

"I was...just wandering," Annabelle looked away.

"Anyway, I brought you back something from the market," Servant Molly presented Annabelle with a flier. Annabelle took it from her hands eagerly.

 

"Attention! City Festival!

 Fun, Food, and Friends

Stunning Performance from the Royal Bros. Magic & Acrobatics Co.

9:00am - 10:00pm

Free Admission!

Join us!"

"Wow," Annabelle was breathless. "A real magic show and acrobatics show? Food, fun and friends? Oh I wish I could go - maybe I can; if I get up enough courage to ask."

"Maybe," Servant Molly's lips were in a tight, thin line. She wasn't sure if it had been a good idea to bring home such an exciting flier. She didn't want Annabelle to run off like Clara had.

"Your father wants to see you," Servant Kirsten came in.   

Annabelle went in to where her father had been speaking. "Father," she curtsied rather unsteadily. "I have been asked to see you."

"Yes, you have. Your birthday is coming up - your tenth birthday. It is coming up this weekend. You know how important a ten year birthday is for the royals. Well, we want you to choose something that you would like to do over your birthday weekend. Do you know anything you might like to do?"

Annabelle's mind suddenly swarmed with ideas, but the one that stuck out the most was the possibility of going to the festival. She didn't feel comfortable saying something just yet, so she just shook her head, "I will have to think about it."

"Very well. We will decide on Friday, that way we can do it on Saturday," The King motioned for her to leave and she left thinking that Friday was going to be the day of her party.  

In her room, Annabelle read a book, even though it was very hard. She just had to get to the festival! She also had to ask her father, and that was probably going to be the hardest part. He was sometimes hard to work with - sometimes even hard to just speak to.

Friday came, and Annabelle still hadn't gotten up the courage to talk to her father and mother about what she truly, truly wanted. It was also the day of her party though, so she wore her special blouse and her brand new skirt for the occasion. She was kind of busy, and she sort of forgot that she was still in the process of mustering up enough courage.

The two princesses of India; Nahji & Josefina came to see her. They were Annabelle's best friends, so it was very nice. They didn't completely understand her, since they were content with being princesses; or so Annabelle figured.

"Happy birthday!" Nahji and Josefina greeted her happily in the entrance hall of the palace.

"Thank you," Annabelle hugged them and then they went off to Annabelle's room to play. Soon, dinnertime came, and it was a huge banquet feast, just for Annabelle's birthday!

As they finished up the meal and the plates were cleared after the dessert, the talk shifted from different topics onto what Annabelle wanted to do for her birthday tomorrow. Josefina and Nahji would not be able to be with her on Saturday, unfortunately.

"Have you decided what you'd like to do?" the King asked.

Annabelle took a deep breath and prepared to speak, "I would like to go to the city festival - it is tomorrow, it starts at 9 in the morning - and ends at 10 at night. We could even just go for an hour - twenty minutes even!" Annabelle quickly silenced herself, hoping that she hadn't sounded too desperate.

"The......what????" The King asked.

"The city festival," Annabelle answered simply.

"You want to go associate yourself with the commoners?" The King asked in a low, surprised tone. "Then GO to your ROOM!" The King roared.

"All I did was ask," Annabelle whispered, but her mother ushered her off. Annabelle could feel Nahji and Josefina's eyes burning into the back of her head as she fled the room.

She ran to her room and sobbed.

All she'd wanted to do was go to the festival! That was what she truly wanted on her birthday - she didn't want diamonds, or a new dress, or multiple new servants like other princesses might want. She just wanted to simply go to a festival. No one understood her. Even the servants wondered why she wasn't happy with her spoiled life. But Annabelle was everything that a princess was not. She didn't want to have a princess party or anything like that.

Servant Molly came in and hugged Princess Annabelle. Annabelle knew that it wasn't exactly proper for the servant and royal to be in the same room together this close, but it didn't matter to her. Servant Molly wiped Annabelle's tears away. "Annabelle," she whispered softly and gently.

"I just want to go," Annabelle sighed. "Why can't I? Why do I have to be cooped up in this palace without any connection the world - the real world! I can't even do simple things like attending a city festival!"

"Miss, I don't want to steer you in the wrong direction but....well, never mind," Servant Molly shrugged.

"No! Tell me," Annabelle insisted.

"Well, if it were me, and if I was in your position, I might go ask again. Now it isn't as much of a surprise," Servant Molly whispered. She didn't want to be responsible for Annabelle's thoughts and actions, but Molly also really wanted Annabelle to get what she wanted for her birthday.

"Your right - I have to go ask," Annabelle wiped her tears away and smiled at Molly before leaving the room to approach her father once more.

"Father, I request your permission to attend the city festival," Annabelle curtsied to him.

"Is it that important to you?" he asked her.

"Yes, Father," Annabelle nodded solemnly.

"Very well then," The King nodded, "You can go. The servants will deliver your peasant clothes for the festival and you will leave along with Clara and Nurse Mary. Your mother and I cannot go because we are too recognizable. We will do something special with you for your birthday on Sunday. We do truly love you Annabelle."

"I love you too," Annabelle smiled broadly. It was happening! She was going to attend the city festival and not have one care in the world or feel as though she didn't belong! She was going to be "Commoner Annabelle" for the day!

The next morning, just as the sun came up, Annabelle shed her princess clothes and changed into the commoner society rank that she had always been rather fascinated with.

Annabelle came out of the dressing room in her brand new outfit. She knew she wouldn't be expected to wear it again, but it was still exciting. She was officially going to the festival!

Clara came out in a commoner outfit (which wasn't hard for her because she owned several having lived as a commoner for years). "Happy Birthday, Anna," Clara hugged her tightly. "The commoner look suits you, you know. You look beautiful!"

"Thanks," Annabelle smiled.

"Let's go," Nurse Mary guided the two girls out to the carriage that would take them there. They would be dropped off one block before the festival street so they would not be seen in the royal carriage.

Annabelle and Clara made their way to the Royal Bros. tent. One of the men was already doing magic tricks while the other few swung skillfully through the air on acrobatic bars.

"Wow, look at them!" Clara smiled, "Wow!"

"Wow is right!" Annabelle agreed and both girls quieted down so they could watch along with the rest of the spellbound audience.

The men continued to swing through the air and soar like birds. They were amazing and the crowd would gasp every so often whenever they did a dangerous looking trick.

At the end of their performance, Annabelle was sure that she had clapped the loudest - maybe louder than the whole stadium put together. She had seen an acrobatic group and a magician before when they had come to play in her father, the King's court - but they hadn't been nearly as good as the Royal Bros.

"Weren't they amazing?" Annabelle asked excitedly.

"They were," Clara agreed.

Both girls shared some icy drinks that were sure to take over the whole city they were so good and new! Clara and Annabelle giggled as they took turns blowing through the tiny straw into the fizzy drink causing bubbles to form.

Then they shared ham kebabs with ham and tomatoes and cheese and even bread! Then they played a few games like ring toss. Annabelle knew that it was the best day ever!

Soon, just as both girls had reentered the arena to watch yet another Royal Bros. performance, Nurse Mary came and found them, "We must go, girls."

Both girls were quickly ushered back down the street and secretly into the carriages. Annabelle was sad to leave, but was glad that she had at least had the chance to go - even if only for an hour or two.

Annabelle went to her room to rest and ended up falling to sleep for the night. It had been the best birthday ever. It had been the best day ever. Each moment had been the best moment ever. Annabelle was back to being a princess, but she was going to get to go to more commoner events, she knew. Because Princess Annabelle never gave up her dreams.