Marjorie and Saila go to Manitoba

Saila and I have returned from Manitoba, and it’s time to share photos!

I already posted a photo of Saila at the bus stop, which we rode to the ferry.  Here’s a beautiful photo of Saila on the ferry.  It was a very windy day!

We had some time to kill after the ferry docked, so we got a couple more photos:

We spent that evening in Seattle (and saw Beauty and the Beast!), then flew to Winnipeg the next morning:

Here’s a photo waiting for the shuttle to the hotel.  It was even windier in Winnipeg than it was on the ferry!

After checking in to the hotel, we took a bus to downtown Winnipeg.  Check out this bus stop!

Canada loves Marjorie, and Marjorie loves Canada!

We explored downtown Winnipeg, mostly in an area called The Forks, where the Assiniboine River meets the Red River.  From this valley they say we are going…

look, the sign’s in Inuktituk!

The next day we took off on a plane to Churchill.  Another two and a half hours!  That’s how long it took to get from Vancouver to Winnipeg!  This was greeting us at the airport in Churchill:

We met our guide, and took a little tour around town.  Check out this Inukshuk:

Did you know that the Nunavut Territory extends all the way to the shores of Hudson Bay?

So this photo is actually Saila in her homeland, Nunavut:

Our guide happened to be married to an Inuit woman, and he asserted that Saila’s outfit is authentic.  A waitress at the café had boots like Saila’s, our guide’s wife can make an amauti just like Saila’s, and I saw a handful of women with hats (nasaq in Inuktitut) like Saila’s!  Our guide suggested that Saila would enjoy climbing in the rocks, like many Inuit:

This is our guide.  His name is Pat, and he is a polar bear genius:

After lunch, we went to the Eskimo Museum.  The museum is changing its name because the Inuit hate being called Eskimos.  Pat told us that Eskimo translates to “eater of raw meat” and historically the name was never used with respect.  Here are a few photos from the museum:

Then I rode a helicopter (Saila couldn’t ride because there weren’t enough seatbelts), ate dinner, and went to a beautiful slide presentation.  Here’s a link to the website for the photographer that did the presentation.

The next day we were off on a tundra buggy to find polar bears!  Saila wore her PJs and was quite comfy.

We probably saw about a dozen polar bears each day (we went out from 8-4 on Friday and Saturday).  Here’s the link to my flckr album of 265 photos of polar bears: https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5butDb.

Random photo of Saila’s polar bear that came with her pajamas:

And one more photo of Saila in her Amauti:

The sun came out on our last day in Churchill.  We drove around town again, this time stopping for photos at the polar bear jail:

And at the national park to view the fort:

Stopped at a restaurant to pet a stuffed bear:

Then we flew back to Winnipeg, and the following afternoon I flew back to Vancouver.  Here’s a photo of Saila at the Vancouver airport:

And then I went into the city to grab some dinner and catch a train back to Washington!

The End

Goodbye Canada!  Au revoir! ᓴᐃᒧ  !

PS: here’s a link to the rest of my photos from the trip: https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5MQZHJ

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Time for another vacation…

…and this time Saila gets to come! Here she is at the bus stop by my house, the first leg of our journey.

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Forever Josefina

Josefina is from New Mexico.  New Mexico in 1824, which was still part of Mexico.  I think her clothing is pretty awesome.  I heard a rumor that she’s getting new outfits next spring, along with a Beforever journey book.

Group photo:

Kanani looks like una santa in Josefina’s holiday outfit:

Nicki in Josefina’s Spencer Jacket:

My mommy made this nightgown!  Here’s a photo of Chrissa wearing it while hugging Sombrita:

A Gwen le gusta el sombrero y el vestido del verano:

Kaya looks really nice in Josefina’s vest dress:

I can never remember if this dress is called the feast dress or the fiesta dress.  Either way, here’s Josefina and her oven:

 

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Forever Cecile. Forever Marie-Grace.

2 dolls, 1 story.  Cecile and Marie-Grace are special, and they were with us for such a short time.  But they are so elegant!  I’m going to miss them so much.  I really doubt their collections will be returning any time soon.

Enough sadness.  How about some photos?

Isabelle looks really really cute in Marie-Grace’s pink dress.  I took a lot of Cecile and Marie-Grace photos earlier this year.  Here’s a link to that post.

So I wanna know, does anyone else love Cecile and Marie-Grace as much as I do?  Word on the street is that the collection was retired after just 3 years because it wasn’t selling well.  What do you think of Cecile and Marie-Grace’s collection?

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A note about my doll names, featuring my My Twinns

I would estimate that 99% of my dolls came with names.  I don’t name them.  I know there are a lot of girls that change their dolls names.  I tried to change the name of one of my dolls, Australian Girl Emily, to Sheila, but it barely stuck.  Most of the time when I look at her I call her Emily.  I never thought I was the kind of girl who liked picking out names for their dolls.

But yesterday I got 3 My Twinn Adopt-a-Friend dolls.  They needed names.  Here’s what I came up with.

I got my first My Twinn a few months ago.  I named her Maria.  It was a simple, no-nonsense kind of a name, and just a little ethnic.  It seemed to fit right away.

Maria

I got my second My Twinn earlier this week.  When I thought about naming her, I wanted a name that was a little bit like Marjorie, because she looks a little bit like me.  I landed on Melanie, but it wasn’t an easy choice.

Melanie

With two M-names locked in for my My Twinn dolls, and a lot of recent viewings of 19 Kids and Counting, I decided that the rest of my My Twinn dolls were going to have M-names too.  The first name I picked is Mavis.  It’s a name I’ve been in love with since the line in Saving Mr. Banks, when they’re discussing what to name Mrs. Banks.  “It should be something warm, a bit sexy.  How about Mavis?” Decidedly unsexy+a little bit funny=perfect for a doll=something I’d never name a human.  I then assigned the name Mavis to the doll that seemed most fitting.

Mavis

The next name I chose by looks.  This doll had such a simple beauty, so she needed a simple name.  Megan came to mind, but Megan is just too common in my generation, so I decided that she is a Meg.

Meg

The last doll name I chose was a bit trickier.  Her look is very complicated, so I wanted a complicated name.  So I took to the internet looking for M-names.  I didn’t get very far down the list, and I stopped at the name Marceline.  It’s a weird word…I’ve never known anyone named Marceline.  But I know Marceline, Missouri is Walt Disney’s hometown, so I love it!  On this particular website I was searching, there was one simple description next to the name: “I could call her Marcy”.  I’ve never liked the name Marcy.  I don’t know anyone in real life named Marcy; the only person who comes to mind is Marcy Darcy from Married With Children.  I was a bit too young for Married With Children, but I remember that Marcy Darcy was a bimbo.  I think that makes Marcy a fitting name for this unnaturally blond doll.  So she will be Marceline, sometimes Marcy, depending on my mood.

Marceline, sometimes Marcy

I really love my new My Twinns.  It’s so much fun to open their boxes, because by the time they arrive I forget what they look like.  Their hair is a surprise, because those little tiny Adopt-a-Friend mugshots have no description of hair length

Gorgeous.

yikes.

But their clothes leave a lot to be desired.  I’m pretty sure my friend Sue wears this exact same look.  Sue is 64.

dressed like a reasonably active grandma

And Maria’s sweater is cute on its own, but not attractive for the shoulder structure of these dolls

  linebacker shoulders

Though their clothes are not my style, they are quality pieces.  The shoes are pretty great.  Seams are finished.  Jeans have realistic metal.

What I love most about the dolls is how many facial possibilities there are.  I will close with a family photo:

And with 18-inch Melanie:

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Another New Dolly!

I found it impossible to resist a sale at My Twinn on their 18-inch Adopt-a-Friend dolls.  I named her Melanie.  I can’t believe how long her hair is!

The adopt-a-friend dolls are a bit of a gamble because you have basically no idea what their hair is like, so I feel like I hit the jackpot with Melanie’s hair!

The outfit she came in was pretty lame (like most My Twinn outfits), so I immediately put her in an American Girl outfit.  Fits her really well–Melanie is just a tiny bit more petite than her friends from American Girl.  But her price was significantly more petite!  If you’re interested, just keep checking the My Twinn website.  It seems like some of their dolls are always on sale.  Today the larger 23-inch adopt-a-friend are $59 (I ordered 3 that should be here tomorrow).  And the custom 18-inch dolls are only $79.  Did you know that now you can choose the face mold yourself, or you can still send in a photo and let the artists choose?  Or you can get the semi-custom My BFF doll for $69.  Or you can wait–I got Melanie for $49.  As far as American Girl substitutes go, I don’t think you’ll find one of this quality for less money.

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Maplelea Monday!

It’s been a while since we’ve had a Maplelea Monday, and Monday is almost over, but it is a bit of a special occasion!  Meet Portia!  She’s a Maplelea Friend doll (Friend #12).  I bought her on amazon.

Her hair is textured like Addy’s and Raven’s

And she has a face mold that’s a teeny bit different from the rest of the Maplelea Girls

And I took her outside in Alexi’s Market Magic outfit.  Adorable.

Hope everyone survived their Monday; I’m super-glad I survived mine!

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Forever Kirsten

Cuteness follows.  Here’s Julie in Kirsten’s school dress:

McKenna gets to be Santa Lucia:

Lindsey is ready for a journey across the plains:

Marie-Grace looks quite angelic in Kirsten’s birthday dress:

Molly loves Kirsten’s Nordic winter wear (I love it too):

Emily in Kirsten’s traditional Swedish dirndl:

Jess in Kirsten’s baking dress:

And Kirsten is wearing the striped summer dress that I bought on ebay last week:

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Forever Addy

Sorry it’s been a while.  I was in Disneyland.  It’s time for Addy!

Ruthie in Addy’s Nightgown, Marisol in Sunday Best, Kit in the new Addy outfit, Nicki in the new school suit, Kailey in winter coat and hat, Caroline in Christmas dress, Elizabeth in Flower Picking dress, Felicity in Plaid Summer Dress, Samantha in Addy’s dress, Addy in her birthday pinafore, Gwen in the striped dress, and Nellie in the summer dress

Here’s more!  Kit is having trouble pulling off Addy’s new bonnet:

Nicki in Addy’s beautiful new school suit:

Caroline looking gorgeous in Addy’s Tartan Christmas Dress:

Marisol in Addy’s purple Sunday Best Dress:

Elizabeth and Felicity:

I think Addy is a lucky girl because she has a mother who is a dressmaker.  I doubt many escaped slaves had clothes as nice as Addy’s.  But they are gorgeous, aren’t they?

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