Nostalgia.

We ran to Walmart tonight for birthday gift for one of the kiddos.  I had a few things in mind, but had trouble finding them.  The idea I was really set on was this doll that had all these buttons, zippers, snaps, ties and velcro to practice dressing.  She will be turning 2, and is very into independence, so I was disappointed when I couldn't find the doll.  I almost got it for her a few months ago, but figured it wasn't going anywhere.  Oh well!  She is getting a little cloth house with 3 stuffed poodles that go in it.  She's only 2, she will just play with the wrapping anyway!

Missy was looking at this "Dance with Me" baby for her that one of the kids pointed out on TV.  You can plug your iPod into the doll, and it dances to the beat of the music.  How cool is that?  She loves to dance and "sing along" (she moves her mouth and makes a wild "rock-and-roll" face, but no sound comes out...it makes me laugh everytime!)

Dance with Me Baby is rocking some serious eye shadow!!  Is that what the toddlers are wearing now?!

When I was little (yup, that phrase still makes me feel old) I HAD to have a Water Baby.  They were rubber and squishy and...filled with water.  Some girls had patches on theirs, which makes me wonder how the hell they play with their dolls.  Recess (for you LB Alums) was in the "Little Gym" so I must have been in Kindergarten, and we would bring blankets and play dolls on the staircase.  You could only ply if you had a Water Baby...hahaha how lame.  Mine was a "mini" and I still have her in my garage.

In the late 80s/early 90s I think every kid had a Cabbage Patch Doll.  I had 3, one had short crazy brown hair and dark skin...I'm not sure if it was a girl boy or what ethnicity they were aiming for, but I remember thinking it was a girl and always playing with her extra because I felt bad that she had such an ugly haircut.  It's also in my garage, along with a cheerleading outfit and pompoms my grandma made.  Do you remember the CPK that had the hair that you could curl and crimp?  I wanted one SOOO bad!  My friend Abby let me play with hers and it was AWESOME!!!

Actually, mine is way uglier than this....

I also had a Baby Alive who pooed out powdered food, etc.  She was a new thing, so it was a big deal when I got her!  They have all kinds of Baby Alive dolls now that jump in their cribs, eat different things, talk and some that are supposed to be toddlers.  I still think they are fun  :)

I also had a baby who crawled.  My dad was always doing "surgery" on her, and I would cry and worry that she wouldn't be okay.  She was always broken!!!  Now they have lots of dolls that do that stuff, the kids even have one that swims.

Do you remember "My Buddy?" 

I wanted Kid Sister, and I think maybe she was hard to find due to popularity.  So someone got me a My Buddy...a BOY doll (big mistake..unless it's Ken.  Him and Barbie could kiss, you know.)  I just read that "My Buddy" was the top selling kids toy for 5 years.  Remember the song?  "My Buddy, My Buddy.  Wherever I go, he goes too...My Buddy and MEEE!!!"  


I think the one I got was a knock off.  It looked like Chuckie and I HATED IT.  I remember throwing him over the staircase, and hiding it in my closet so it wouldn't scare me.  It has crazy red hair that stuck straight up in the air and no hat.  It looked crazy!!  I don't know who gave it to me, or why I didn't get rid of it.  It was probably my dad, and I never wanted to make him feel bad so I just toughed it out and kept that ugly evil doll.  I found him a few years ago, and had a good laugh before throwing him away.

I won't delve into the topics on Barbies or other nostalgic toys in this blog (anyone else have a "Wrinkles" dog???), but does anyone else have a doll that they loved with a funny feature?  My Aunt collects Chatty Kathy's (she has soo many!) and my mom has a fondness for Chrissy Dolls.  What dolls did you (or your sisters) play with?

Noelle