A Trip to the American Girl Store

Again, sorry about the sideways pictures....

Ava earns money for completing chores around the house. She has a bank which helps her save, spend and give the money she has earned. For several months, Ava decided to only sort her money into the give and save portions of the bank. We told her that we would match whatever she saved and take her to the American Girl store to buy clothes for Lily and Joey her Bitty Twins. She saved almost $30! Impressive! So, with her money and our matching, she was able to buy each doll an outfit and get Lily's hair done. It was a hard decision, but she decided on the Hawaiian outfits for each! Lily got pigtails with ribbons to match her new outfit. They let Ava comb Joey's hair while they worked on Lily! Ava made a list of new clothes she wants for her twins and new dolls she wants for her birthday and from Santa! The trip was great! Dad even had a good time! I am sure we will have to go back to Dallas sometime to visit again...Ava wants to take her cousins! Maybe then we can eat at the bistro....Dad wouldn't, he didn't want any "doll sandwich." We were in Dallas, so he wanted Mexican food from Chuy's!

Getting ready to shop!
This place is huge!
Joey deserves a new hairstyle too!
How cute!
Checking things out and making Christmas and birthday lists!
Playing a little!

I know that these are expensive dolls. But, the one thing Ava has consistantly played with since she was a toddler was baby dolls. When we were at the store, Micky and I were so impressed at the ages of the girls interested in the dolls. There were girls well over 10 years old picking out dolls and accessories - still excited about them. Micky commented that he would spend whatever it takes to keep Ava a little girl as long as possible! It seems our little girls are growing up so fast. Teaching third grade for 7 years, I started to notice that there are two types of girls around 9 years old....those girls making the transition into the pre-teen years and those still interested in playing with dolls and being a young girl. I hope Ava takes her time getting to those pre-teen years! There is plenty of time to be grown up!