American Girl.

Even a mention of the American Girl dolls to women my age, and you either hear "Oh, I wanted one of those when I was growing up and never got one!" or, you hear, "I loved my American Girl doll", or "I had all the books and wanted a doll so badly!" etc.

It's true.  I've done an in-depth study of this in the past few weeks via facebook.  This study is rock solid.

Girls love American Girl.

Boys don't get it.

It's so a girl thing.

I was in the large, large pool of bright-eyed little girls who eagerly waited for the Christmas-time American Girl catalog to arrive so I could memorize every page and dream of getting one, and I'd leave the catalog out on the table just in case the hint got dropped- but I never got one.  And there was no chance I would.  And I knew it.

If you get a chance to re-live your childhood the "right" way via your child's childhood, then, why not?  Right??

Here's the deal- my three little ladies squeal over American Girl stuff.  They are 100% girly, and mature enough to treat their American Girl doll right.  Really, really right.  And they'll love the books.

The American Girl Era has begun at our house, and with three little American Girls, I don't see why we shouldn't just live it up.  I know we won't regret it.

Grace and Patience each picked out an American Girl Doll as a reward for being able to recite every Awana Memory Verse from their Sparks book word perfect by the end of the year.  We have a stack of well-worn note cards to prove it.  It was a big task to keep them in their hearts throughout the year.  They really do have them down- the other night someone asked Patie some of her verses when she was all hyped-up on sugar and crazed out and she was still able to throw down a few- though not all- I gotta give her a break- that was a tough task- being asked to focus when you're all sugar-fried.

And so, Grace and Patie's dolls arrived.  After waiting and waiting for them.  And talking about them.  A lot.  We opened the delivery box, and Lily, who is not yet in Sparks, and hasn't earned a big reward, looked at me straight and serious as a heart attack and said definitively, "I want an American Girl Doll."  (I knew she'd secretly been dying for one all along, but was keeping face around her sisters.)

After a little discussion on the cost (she had plenty of her own money for it, if she really wanted it- because I rarely encourage them to waste it) and a brief online search which ended in the perfect one, we ordered her.  She's on her way.  Lily is thrilled.  And yes, she knows how much money that is- and this means a lot to her.

We're taking a special trip to the American Girl Store in the Mall of America next month.  We'll be there for about, four hours.  We'll eat at the Bistro.  We will touch everything.  The dolls will have a blast.  We'll take lots of pictures, including a special photo shoot in the city, each girl with her doll.

And because delayed gratification is always rewarding, the American Girls will stay in their boxes until the day we leave for our trip.  Obviously they are super, super excited.  They've been busy making necklaces for their girls, and other little gifts, and we're even going to get fabric and make tiny pillows and blankets so we can convert the doll boxes into little beds.

We aren't frivolous people.  But this is worth it.  This is a big deal to them.  And every little girl loves the idea of a very special doll- who looks just like them.

If you're a boy, get over it.  You just don't understand.  My ladies out there- you get it.  I know you do. 

Here are their American Girls- Click the links to see them larger.  And yes,  they already named them.  On their own. 

Grace

Daisy Lanie

Grace's is a perfect match- everything is exact right down to her sparkly hazel green eyes.

Patience

Emily Rose

Patie's is adorable-with a huge head of strawberry blond curls just like hers.

Lily

Charlotte Lola

Lily's- let me tell you.  The moment I sat Lily on the counter after her haircut for these pictures, I thought, "She looks just like an American Girl doll."  No really- like an alive American Girl doll.  And then, later when the dolls came and Lily decided she wanted to get her own and we looked and we found this one- with the same haircut, and perfect green eyes AND freckles?!  It was too good to be true.  Lily is the only one of our kids who has freckles like mine.  The other girls have some freckles, but not across the bridge of their nose like I did as a girl, like Lily does now.  It was perfect.

  Lily was smitten, and it made my heart happy.

Look at me.  Just look at me.  I strive to write simple, pointed posts without all kinds of extra content, but, obviously, American Girl-talk gets me all disoriented and I went and wrote a ridiculously long post. 

It's just a girl thing.