Magical Merchandise: Disney American Girl Dolls

Happy Monday Friends!  It has been SO long since I've done a post about Disney merchandise.  Although I've saved photos of products here and there over the past year and a half, there's absolutely no way that I'll ever get "caught up" with them.  But I would like to get back into posting about merchandise more regularly.  So today I've made a special selection to get back into my Magical Merchandise Monday blog segment.

I believe I've briefly told you about my obsession with American Girl Dolls when I was younger.  Felicity was my absolute favorite, but I also had Samantha and a doll that looked like me.  I would spend hours pouring over the catalog when it arrived in the mail.  I always loved the little miniature foods and accessories.  Even as I grew older, my American Girl Dolls were very special to me, and I've taken extra care of them.

So you can imagine my surprise when one day, I opened my email inbox to discover that American Girl was making Disney Princess dolls!  It's like a dream come true!

In July of 2023, AG released three limited edition American Girl Doll Collector Series dolls to coincide with Disney's 100th anniversary celebration.  (I had every intention of posting about the dolls on here... and then a few weeks later my world came crashing down.)  The first three dolls released were Rapunzel, Belle and Jasmine.  Swarovski partnered with AG for the collector dolls and they had tons of sparkle and details on their outfits.  The dolls were limited to 4,000 of each design and they retailed for $300.

At the time, I remember thinking that $300 was a little more expensive than what I would want to spend on one of them.  But looking back, I wish I had splurged and gotten Rapunzel.  The intricate details on her dress are absolutely stunning!

But thankfully, I didn't totally miss out as this was only the beginning of the Disney and American Girl collaboration.  Since the original collector series, AG has also made more standard play dolls for little girls.  So when I saw these... I knew I had to get them.

In February of 2024, they released the first general dolls: Tiana, Ariel and Cinderella... along with other outfits and accessory packs (with sidekicks!) for each of them.

In July of 2024, they released limited edition versions of Anna and Elsa as part of their Frozen American Girl Doll Collector Series dolls.

In August 2024, I was pleased to see that Rapunzel was back, but it was a simpler version of the doll instead of the Swarovski collector design.  However, I didn't care because I knew she would be mine someday.  She also had accessories with her release.  The only disappointing part of her release is that Rapunzel didn't come with another dress option like the original three general dolls did.

Back in November they released Moana to coincide with the release of Moana 2 in theaters.  The doll is beautiful, but Pua and Hei Hei really steal the show!

And this was where I thought today's posts about new Disney American Girl Dolls was going to end... but I happened to check my email less than 5 minutes before I had this post scheduled to go live at 2:30 PM and they have literally just released a general Belle doll.  (Talk about some good timing!)  So after a few quick adjustments and additions to my post, here's what the Belle doll released today looks like!

Aren't these adorable?!?!?  I'm obsessed... and I'm confident that American Girl will be releasing more of the Disney Princesses as time passes.  I can't wait to see who is next and what other outfits, accessories and side kicks she'll have available!

The reason I picked this for my first Magical Merchandise Monday post back, is that I am now the very proud owner of two of these Disney dolls.  For Christmas this year, I asked Santa for a lot of smaller paints and crafting supplies... but my "big items" were Rapunzel and Cinderella.  So Christmas morning, I was transported back in time 30 years as I delicately opened Rapunzel (from my Mom) and Cinderella (from Jeremy).

The dolls are so beautiful.  I won't lie, even though I knew what they were when I was opening them, it still made me a little bit teary eyed.  It brought me back to being a kid and feeling all of the wonder when I first opened Felicity and Samantha.  And the two accessory packs I got took my breath away.  Rapunzel's little paint set is perfection, and Cinderella's pink dress tugged at my heartstrings.  That scene of the mice and birds making her pink dress will always remind me of my Nana.

It's safe the say that American Girl has knocked it out of the park on these Disney dolls.  I am so happy they have partnered with Disney to bring these dolls to the current generation of little girls... and to those of us "big girls" who are still young at heart.  °o°

All photos are from the American Girl website, their facebook page or from marketing emails they sent me.  For more information, please visit their website.  (I also used American Girl Fandom Wiki to research information in this post.)

RunDisney Frozen Summer Virtual Series

This afternoon, I registered for the RunDisney Frozen Summer Virtual Series!  

RunDisney made the announcement about the races Monday, March 28th.  (They had teased the theme for this summer's Frozen races a few days prior.)  Registration opened today at 10 am, so I signed up as soon as I got back from my sewing class!

Photo Source

Eliot and I have signed up for the summer 5K virtual races the past few years.  We've come up with a system that works for us.  One of us registers for the event, then both of us do the mileage together and we share the medals!

Photo Source

Eliot and I still haven't actually done our mileage from last year, so we've also got those miles to walk this summer!  During the summer of 2021, Disney did a Lion King theme with the medals being themed to the original animated film, the Broadway adaptation and the live action remake.  It appears that they liked that general medal idea... 

Photo Source

This year, the first medal is themed to the original film, Frozen.  The second medal is themed to the sequel, Frozen 2.  The third medal is themed to the Broadway show.  If you sign up to complete all three of those 5K events, you also get the Virtual Challenge medal which is of Olaf this year.  (You have to sign up for the challenge in order to get the Olaf medal.  It ends up costing you $15 more for all four medals.)  Of course, I'm obsessed with Frozen so Eliot and I had to sign up for the challenge.   

Photo Source

Plus, signing up also made a lot of sense.  I haven't said anything about it on here yet, but over the past few weeks, Eliot has decided to do the Dopey Challenge next year along with his sister Sara.  These 5K virtual races will be stepping stones on his quest to train for the 48.6 miles he'll be undertaking next January!

Photo Source

Unfortunately, the medals appear to be a little plain... but they are all snow globes so I'm hoping that they'll look a lot cooler in person.  I tend to like the medals that are different shapes more than generic round ones, but hopefully these will surprise me!  I know they will look good displayed alongside all of our other RunDisney medals!

Photo Source

As of right now, I'm not sure if they'll be doing shirts for this event.  The event page mentioned a virtual race expo closer to the event.  I'm hopeful that there might be some fun Frozen themed running shirts.  Some of my favorite things at the in person race expos are the generic running shirts!  I'd love to get an Elsa, Olaf or Anna shirt!

Photo Source

In the meantime, Eliot and I will be making plans to complete our Frozen and our Lion King virtual 5K races this summer.  We probably won't get the Frozen medals in the mail until sometime in August, so we've got plenty of time to go log miles of magic!  °o°

Frozen 2 Limited Edition Dolls

Before I dive into this post, I have a confession.  The past two weeks, I've been holding my breath.  I wanted to post this recap the following week, but at the same time this was right when things were starting to get really serious.  As the days went on, I was terrified that we'd done something stupid and put ourselves at risk.  Thankfully, none of us have gotten sick (so far) and I feel like it's finally time for me to post this recap.

Just over two weeks ago, Eliot and I embarked on another journey down to the Disney Store in Burlington, MA.  As I mentioned before, we had decided to go down and meet up with my brother Jeremy to purchase the Frozen 2 Limited Edition dolls in person rather than try to get lucky purchasing them online.  With all of the news regarding the coronavirus changing by the minute, it was not a decision any of us took lightly.  We all knew what we could be potentially exposing ourselves to, but getting both of the dolls was really important to me.  Plus, the guys were both on board and wanted to go.  

On March 14th, the Disney Store was releasing Limited Edition "Queen Anna" and "Elsa The Snow Queen" dolls both online and in stores.  Worldwide, there were 8,500 Elsa dolls and 8,000 Anna dolls available.  We'd seen both of the dolls on display in the Burlington store when we went down for the Leap Year Tigger key and the Cinderella key.  They were beautiful with absolutely stunning outfits and details.  (I took pictures of some of the details so you can see- they're so pretty!)  Plus, not only were there the dolls, but if you purchased both of them you also got a free Disney Store Olaf key.  A lot of people are Disney Store key collectors and wanted the Olaf key, but I'm also a doll collector so this was a win-win merchandise release for me.

I don't think I've ever talked about it on here, but dolls have always held a special place in my heart.  My Dad's Mom, my Grammie, collected dolls and gave us a few through the years.  I have a few dolls from Grammie, but I also started to collect pop culture dolls when I was in high school.  I have an impressive collection of both Harry Potter and Twilight Tonner dolls that are worth a lot of money.  They mean a lot and are and priceless to me.  I've tried to collect some of the Disney Store limited edition dolls, but it's always so hard to get them.  We've never gone to the store to try before.  The few times I've tried online, they're sold out before I can even get them into my cart.  So this time, I was prepared to change that by going to the store in person.

Late that Friday night, Eliot and I packed up and took off for Massachusetts.  We'd decided to drive down the night before and to stay in a hotel across the street from the mall.  It was closer, and we realized that we'd get more sleep that way.  (We ended up getting just under 5 hours of sleep rather than only 1-2 hours if we stayed at home.)

Early on Saturday morning (at 5:00 am), our phone alarms went off and we bounced out of bed.  Eliot and I got dressed and packed everything up.  Thankfully, we had brought minimal stuff with us so it was quick.  We were in the elevator at 5:20, out of the hotel at 5:25 and in the mall parking lot at 5:30 where Jeremy was parked waiting for us.  I parked next to him and we talked for a few minutes.

The mall was supposed to open at 6:00 am, but more cars started to pull in.  We saw three women get out of their cars and rush towards the doors.  When the main doors didn't open, they headed to another one.  The three of us decided to gather our stuff and head over to the doors so we'd be ready.  Unfortunately, none of us saw where the women went and they disappeared to.  We assumed that they were also going to the Disney Store because no one walks that quickly into work or to go into the mall to walk.

We parked ourselves outside the main doors with our bags full of things to do and out camp chairs.  It was cold and we stood out like a sore thumb.  Thankfully, a nice older lady came over and asked what we were doing.  After explaining about the dolls and how we'd stayed in a hotel, she walked us over to the "back" mall entrance near security.  Before we knew it, we were inside the still technically closed mall, up the escalator and joining the already formed line outside the Disney Store.

We weren't sure what we were going to be up against with fears of the Coronavirus spreading, but it seemed like we weren't the only ones concerned with getting the dolls.  The three women we'd seen outside were there, along with another group of two women with children.  And the most welcome sight, the mall security guard who was talking to the others in line.  (I was so relieved that he wasn't upset with any of us being there early!)  Eliot, Jeremy and I set up our folding camp chairs and prepared to begin our four hour wait to store opening.  Thankfully, it flew right by...

I noticed that the woman directly ahead of us in line looked familiar.  I'd seen her at a few other key releases and told Eliot that I thought she was one of our mouse ear customers who I also follow on Instagram.  Long story short, after we saw her and her daughter last release, I was positive it was her.  I asked if she was who I thought and she said yes!  Eliot and I then introduced ourselves and said we ran Happily Ever Hatter.  (It really is a small world.)  I spent the next few hours talking to her and the other women ahead of us in line and making friends.  We talked about Disney closing, the Disney Store keys, collecting the dolls, Disney small shops and so much more.  

Time kept flying by.  At 8 am, Eliot and Jeremy left for a few minutes to go downstairs to get us Dunkin Donuts for breakfast.  When the Disney Store cast members arrived around 9:00 am, we talked to one of them (I think she was the store manager) before she opened the store up to go prepare with her staff.  She showed us a photo on her phone of a store in CA that had people lining up at 2:00 am for the dolls and we joked around with her about how dedicated we all were before she went inside.

Eliot and Jeremy packed the chairs up around 9:40 am and before I knew it, it was time to get our numbers.  The cast members gave us the rules and rundown of how it was going to work.  Due to the virus, they had changed their procedures and they were only taking 10 of us inside the store at a time.  They then handed out numbers for both the Anna and Elsa doll separately.  If you wanted both, they stapled the papers together to signify that we'd also get the Olaf key.  We ended up with doll numbers 4, 5, and 6.

Eliot, Jeremy and I were in the first group allowed inside, while waiting in line, I spotted the Jaq and Gus Cinderella mice plushes that I'd spotted the week prior.  I was having a few regrets about not purchasing them, so they somehow ended up in my hands before I was next in line to purchase my dolls.

Eliot and I went to the register together so I could look both sets of dolls over.  He was getting a set in case his mother wanted some.  (She's in California where you would have had to wait in line overnight outside to get them.)  I checked over all of the dolls and was satisfied.  We also purchased my Cinderella mice and a really nice Steamboat Willie tote bag that was a deal with a purchase.

After purchasing the dolls, another cast member was right outside the checkout area to offer us hand wipes.  We all cleaned our hands off.  Then, we grabbed everything and headed out to our cars to drop the dolls off.

Eliot, Jeremy and I went back inside to check out a few more things.  Jeremy headed towards Newbury Comics while Eliot and I went to the Lego Store.  We'd been waffling back and forth about getting the Lego Cinderella Castle set.  Ultimately, I left the choice up to Eliot and he decided we better get it.  It's been out since 2016 so we've been afraid that it would be retiring.  We've been talking about getting it with some of our tax refund money for years.  Luckily, we also got a few freebies because we purchased it when we did.  We also got a little Lego 40th Anniversary Train and a picture frame kit!

Jeremy met back up with us when we were checking out.  He actually had to put our castle in his car because we didn't have room with all of the dolls in my backseat.  (I'm not too worried about it... he'll bring it the next time we see him!)  We air hugged Jeremy goodbye.  He was afraid to give me a hug because I was going to see our parents and Nana the next day.  (Apparently, the girl behind him in line at the Disney Store was coughing her head off the entire time and he was afraid she was sick.)  

Eliot and I drove back over to our hotel to check-out.  We'd asked for a late check-out at noon in case we wanted a quick power nap after getting the dolls.  I was fully awake so we decided to just check-out and get on the road.  After leaving the hotel, Eliot realized he still had Jeremy's Nintendo Switch in his backpack so we called and told him to turn around.  We ended up meeting up at the mall long enough to drop it off.

After that, Eliot and I made our way back up to Maine.  We stopped at the McDonalds in Danvers (across the street from where I got my Alfred Angelo Disney Ariel wedding gown) and got fries and soda as a snack.  Then, we stopped at Michael's in Biddeford to grab a few things in case they closed due to the virus.  Ironically, Eliot's sister Elissa was coming into the store with a friend while we were checking out.  We talked with the girls for a few minutes before hopping back in our car and heading home.  We arrived at our house about 30 minutes later- totally exhausted but happy with our successful Disney Store Frozen doll mission!  

Eliot and I have had fun going down to the Disney Store over the past few weekends to get the dolls and the keys.  It's been really nice to see Jeremy so much.  But, we're glad that we won't have to drive all the way down to Massachusetts again anytime soon- especially with everything going on right now!  I'm relieved that we're all ok and that I can look back at this trip with fond memories.  Now, I just have to find a place in my office to display my new Frozen 2 Anna and Elsa dolls!  °o°

Into the Unknown

Hi friends.  I hope this post finds you safe and most importantly- healthy.  This past week has been one heck of a year, huh?  I've needed a few days to process and get my own thoughts and feelings in order.  I'm still reeling a bit from all of this, but each day I'm becoming more and more comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Text Edit by Me- Original Photo Source

It's been a week since all hell broke loose.  A week since professional sports were all postponed indefinitely.  A week since Disney announced closures of Disneyland and Walt Disney World.  A week since Disney Cruise Line suspended all sailings.  A week since colleges and universities closed and sent students home after spring break.

Since then, there's been a lot more of that.  Disney Resorts, Downtown Disney, Disney Springs and Disney Stores are all now closed.  Adventures by Disney has suspended their trips through April.  Most schools across the country are closed and some kids might not go back to school at all this year.  Businesses all over the country are temporarily closing.  Some counties and cities are forcing people (including both of Eliot's parents) to quarantine at home and not leave the house for 3 weeks.  While other businesses seem to want to push through this until they're forced to close.

Edit by Me- Original Photo Source

Let face it, this is pretty terrifying.  Officials are saying that this could last months, even until July or August.  I'm trying to stay optimistic through it all.  I don't really leave the house that often anyways.  My day-to-day hasn't changed that much over the past week... except that everything has changed.  I'm afraid to leave the house to get groceries and supplies.  I'm afraid every time Eliot goes to work.  I'm afraid the craft stores will close and I won't have what I need for our business.  Let's not get started with how terrified I am of making enough money to pay our bills during all of this.

The truth is that we're all Elsa journeying into the unknown.

Text Edit by Me- Original Photo Source

It's not a journey we chose to take, but it's a path we're all walking down regardless.  I have faith that we'll get through this if we stick together.  The fact that so many people are sitting at home putting their lives on pause is inspiring.  We're all standing together to fight against this virus.  This is unprecedented... and will surely shape our future.

We all need to continue to do our part.  Listen to the health professionals.  Please continue to stay home and protect yourself, your family and our fellow humans.  It's a small world after all.  Let's all pull together and do the next right thing.  °o°

Disney Pixar Blog Hop December 2016

Welcome to the Disney Pixar Blog Hop!

Disney and crafting are a magical combination, and we are so happy you joined us to day for this blog hop.  Some of the crafters participating in this event have been doing this together since 2011!  Over the years the hop has grown but one thing has always stayed the same . . . amazing crafting projects that feature your favorite characters from Disney and Pixar movies.

For 2016 we are going to have a hop every other month for the entire year!  If you missed one of the hops we already had this year, you can still go back and see the projects.  For February click HERE, for April click HERE, for June click HERE, for August click HERE and for October click HERE.  If you are on Facebook you can like the group page so that you can be the first to learn about each upcoming event.  Just click HERE to go the the Facebook page.

To make sure you don't miss any of the fun, be sure to start at Shawn's blog to see all of the projects.  Just click HERE to head over to Shawn's blog and then follow the hop line up at the bottom of the post to see everyone's projects.

Olaf's Winter Snow Sign

For my project, I wanted to make something I could use to decorate our house.  Eliot and I are still getting settled, so we've decided to leave a lot of our decorations in storage this year.  Instead of making something just for Christmas, I decided to make it winter themed!  Now, we can enjoy it from now through February/March!!!

Of course, when I think of winter, I think of my favorite snowman Olaf!  I've had the idea to make a sign with a fishbowl as the "O" for a while now, and this was the perfect opportunity to finally bring it to life!  I love how it came out!

Want to make your own Olaf's Winter Snow Sign decoration?  Here's how I made it:

Materials:

Wooden Sign Base (I used one that was about 23" long)
"S", "N", and "W" Wood Letters
Wooden Circle Base
Fish Bowl (make sure it's about the same size as your wooden letters)
Acrylic Paints (shades of blue and turquoise, white)
Fake Textured Snow Paint
White Glitter
Olaf and Snowflake Buttons (I used the Disney Mickey snowflakes)

Newspaper (to cover your work area)

Black Craft Foam (I used thicker 1/4" foam that I found at Michael's)

Paint Brushes

Scissors

Hot Glue Gun

1.) Select Your Materials

This project requires selecting the correct proportion of materials.  First, you need a wooden base that will fit all of your wooden letters and the fish bowl.  Then, you also need to find a wooden circle base that covers the top of your fishbowl without falling into it.  Here's an example of how I checked my materials in my local craft store.

2.) Paint Your Bases and Letters

Paint your wooden base and the letters in your chosen color.  I decided to paint mine turquoise since it matches so much of the decor in our house.  For the base, I stuck with a dark blue color that would pop a little more against the snow.  I painted two coats on the top and one coat on the back.  Let the pieces dry completely.

3.) Glue Your Letters and Fish Bowl to Base

Once your paint is completely dry, use your hot glue gun to attach the letters to the base.  I laid them on the base where I wanted them positioned before putting glue on the letters and firmly pressing them into the base.  Once the letters are in their position, put some glue on your fish bowl and attach that.

Note: If your letters aren't flat, like mine, you might need something else to "prop" them up.  My "S" wasn't going to sit flat so I took a small piece of black craft foam and used it to hold the rest of the "S" up.  I cut out a random peanut shaped piece, painted it white, then glued it to the S before gluing both pieces to my wooden base.

4.) Add Extra Glue
After attaching the letters, I was worried that they might fall over.  I wanted to give the illusion of snow at the base, so I decided to cover the bottom front of the letters with a little more hot glue.  I used about 2 small sticks just making "snow" piles.  This also helped cover the foam I had to add to my "S" making the snow pile look more natural.

5.) Add Snow and Glitter
When the hot glue was finally dry, I used the textured snow paint to create the illusion of snow piles.  It has a consistency similar to a frosting so I carefully spread it over the little mounds using my paint brush.  This was the perfect way to cover the hot glue from attaching the letters.  I also added some to my circle base using a circular swirl motion to create a fun texture for the top of the fish bowl.  Once I was finished with the snow, I sprinkled a tiny bit of white glitter over all of the snow.  (Pay attention to the drying instructions: my snow takes about 24 hours to fully harden!)

6.) Attach Buttons
I used my Olaf buttons to decorate the letters a little.  I had a few places on my sign where it conveniently looked like Olaf was standing in the snow so I went with it.  Then, I added a few Mickey Mouse snowflake buttons for some extra Disney magic!

7.) Decorate Your Fish Bowl
Finally, the last part is to decorate your fish bowl.  I originally wanted to put an Olaf figure inside mine, but I couldn't find him.  You could put a figure, tsum tsum, candle, small plush, miniature scene, basically anything inside of the fish bowl.  The sky's the limit!  And, since it has a top, you could place something on top of it!  I played around with a snowflake ornament inside and then my Olaf plush on top!  But, I might change it around every few weeks.  Or, as a variation, you could replace the "O" fish bowl with a snow globe.  (You can usually find plastic ones at the craft store this time of year.)

Once you're settled on how to decorate it, you're done!  Find a place to show off your creation and enjoy Olaf's Winter Snow Sign!!!  °o°

Before you go, make sure to enter to win our prize for this hop . . .

We have a prize from KatScrappiness.com!  This prize pack includes a die set and 5 packages of sequins of the winners choice!  Choices must be from the current inventory.  Winners must be in the continental United States.

- - - 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

- - -

Good luck, and enjoy the rest of the hop!

The full blog hop line up is below.  

Shawn

Ellen

Tammy

Melissa

Miranda

Cathie

SaveSave

Christmas 2015

So I know I've been all about the new year and closing the 2015 chapter of my life.  But before we completely move on to 2016, I've still got a few things to share from the last few weeks and Christmas 2015.  Hang in there for the next few days!

Our Christmas 2015 was nice and relaxing this year.  Eliot and I went home to be with my family up in Bar Harbor.  It was the first time Jeremy and I have been home for the entire Christmas weekend since we were in college.  (The last time was probably Christmas of 2008!)  Once I started working in retail, that was it!  We've both had to rush back to jobs ever since.  I'm sure glad that wasn't the case this year!

It was difficult to face our first Christmas without Papa, but I was determined to make it a good one for my mother and Nana.  We did better than I expected.  There were certainly a few rough patches.  However, I know Papa was there in spirit, watching over us.  I know he would have wanted us to have a good Christmas together.

This year we decided to change up our Christmas morning routine a little bit.  We usually do stockings, open gifts, have breakfast and then watch the Disney Christmas parade.  Then the rest of Christmas Day, we usually just hang out.  Mom and I decided that we should eat breakfast sooner and push opening our gifts to after breakfast and the parade.  That way, our Christmas Day would be more spread out.

Once the "adults" were all in place, Eliot, Jeremy and I finally came downstairs.  We all opened our stockings and looked over the gifts from Santa that weren't wrapped on the couch.  That kept us pretty busy.  Santa brought us a bunch of things to look at.  Then, we had a delicious breakfast of waffles, eggs, sausage, and ham.  Yum!!!

Photo Source: Disney Parks Blog

Afterwards, we watched the Unforgettable Disney Christmas Celebration.  It certainly was unforgettable.  I don't think I'll forget how awful the "parade" is becoming.  There was about 10 minutes of "parade" throughout the entire 2 hour show.  I miss the old days when you actually saw the parade.  This year, we saw Santa less than 10 minutes in.  Way to kill the suspense element.  The performances weren't awful; I enjoyed a few of them like the Descendants, Colors of the Wind and Andy Grammar.  It just seems to be like Disney is trying to make the Christmas Day "parade" into something it shouldn't be.  There are plenty of awards ceremonies and shows these people can sing at.  Bring back the Disney magic!  Anyways... (steps off soapbox.)

After the "parade", we settled in to open our gifts from each other.  We all took turns handing gifts out.  Nana got Eliot and me a beautiful Frozen jellybean machine while Jeremy got a Star Wars one.  Jeremy got me the entire Cinderella tsum tsum set from Target!  He had no idea what to get Eliot, so while we were at Wal-Mart on Christmas Eve Day, I suggested the new "We Love Disney" music CD.  Eliot loved it!

Speaking of Eliot... he completely spoiled me rotten this Christmas.  I had known he's been buying things on eBay over the past month.  I was told I wasn't allowed to buy any tsum tsum items.  About a week before Christmas, he had me open one present because he couldn't take it anymore.  I was pleasantly surprised to see a Hong Kong 10th anniversary Duffy.  Christmas morning, I had a few more gifts from him.  Eliot got me a Duffy and Shellie May wreath and the Mickey and Minnie New York exclusives!

As if that wasn't enough, he still had two more packages.  I guessed one of them was the Olaf edition of Operation since when I'd mentioned it prior to Christmas he told me I wasn't allowed to go to Toys R Us to see if they had it in stock.  Ironically, my parents had also seen it and bought him the same game!  Great minds think alike!  (We're going to leave the second game there so we can play it while we're visiting them.)

What I wasn't expecting was the other gift.  Eliot wrapped it in a pretty large box and I had absolutely no idea what it was.  I opened it to find a beautiful Elsa night light.  She sings "Let It Go" while snowflakes, hearts and tiaras are projected to swirl around on the ceiling.  I've always had a thing for different types of lights.  I can't wait to put this on my side of the bed once our master bedroom is done!

I wasn't sure what to get Eliot.  I have had a million ideas but I was being really picky.  I was going to get him the plush baby Sven that he wanted, but we ended up buying it in Chicago.  Finally, I settled on Disney Cranium- something we'd talked about getting to play together.  He liked it and we're planning to play it sometime soon!

Mom and Dad outdid themselves with our gifts, just like they do every year.  I was really excited to see all of the Disney books I'd asked for!  They got me the Frozen and Disney Princess Art Therapy adult coloring books.  They're really stunning.

I got the Marty Sklar books I'd asked for.  (I actually caught Daddy reading one mid-afternoon Christmas Day.  I guess it's was a good book!)  I was also excited to see the Disney Book.  Eliot grabbed that pretty quick to flip through it.  He was impressed.

Eliot and I also got a few Art of Disney books.  I'd asked specifically for Frozen and Tangled, but I mentioned on the phone that Eliot liked the Inside Out and Wreck It Ralph movies.  The books are incredible and we're planning to collect as many of these books as we can!  This is a great start!

Mom and Dad gave us a head start on spring at our new house!  They bought us a Minnie Mouse solar lantern, and a Mickey and Minnie garden statue.  Finally, Eliot's last big surprise was the large Mickey Mouse fountain Mom and I had bought back this fall when it was on sale.  (We were eyeing it all last summer.)  He loved it!

Eliot had a few other surprises too!  Mom and Dad got him the San Jose Sharks Oyo lego like toys I'd suggested.  He really enjoyed those.  They even have the special 25th anniversary jerseys the Sharks are wearing this year!  They also ordered the Disney Knex I'd suggested.   Eliot grew up playing with Knex and he loves them.  We found a Space Mountain and a Dumbo set on Amazon.  He loved them!

I also got a few toys.  I was excited to open a box filled with Build-A-Bear stuff!  Mom and Dad found the Frozen Fever Elsa bear, the outfits, and a Patriots bear!  (They're planning to order me the Frozen Anna bear online since they couldn't find her.)  They also got the cute little Olaf pjs and slippers!  They're all so cute!

We got some Disney accessories.  Eliot got new Stitch socks (which he opened before I could even take a picture) while I got a Wall-E bow and Olaf fuzzy slippers!

I was also really excited to get all of the Once Upon a Time DVDs.  I'd gotten the first season for Christmas a few years ago.  Jeremy then got the second season the next year.  Mom and Dad said we could "share" them but that's difficult when you're 1.5 hours away from each other.  I had given Jeremy my first season to borrow indefinitely since I could go on Netflix to watch them.  A few days before Christmas, Dad and I were in Best Buy trying to get a few more gifts for Jeremy and he bought Jer seasons 1, 3 and 4.  Then, Daddy asked which ones I needed and he bought them for me as well.  Now we both have all of them!  We have the best parents!

One of the last gifts I opened was a small gift bag.  Mom and Dad gave me a few gift cards to the craft stores so I can buy some new supplies.  They also included an Acadia National Park season pass for Eliot and me.  Then, I spotted something I wasn't expecting- my Alex and Ani bracelets!  I'd asked for the Walt Disney World and Disneyland 60th bracelets, but I definitely wasn't expecting them!  I absolutely love them!  It's the perfect start to my collection!

After we were finished with gifts, we spent most of the weekend relaxing at my parents' house.  It was nice just to hang out at home together.  We didn't have to be anywhere at any certain time.  We watched the Snoopy Christmas special, Wheel of Fortune, and a few Christmas movies.  Dad, Jeremy, Eliot and I watched Inside Out Saturday night.

Sunday morning, we ended up getting a snow storm so Eliot and I decided to drive back home Monday morning instead.  (He was able to work a half day and make up the hours later in the week.)  While the roads weren't too bad, Dad took Eliot, Jeremy and I up to AT&T so I could buy a new phone.  That was really exciting for me since it was about 2.5 weeks since my other one had died.  I was happy to have a smart phone again!  (I really missed Instagram!)  We got pizza from our favorite local place that night for dinner.  It was the perfect way to end a great Christmas weekend!

I am so blessed with a wonderful family.  While I appreciate all of the wonderful gifts Eliot and I received, I am truly thankful to have spent so much quality time with them this holiday season.  And that's what it's all about.  °o°