Conversation Hearts: 12:30 am

I was sound asleep when the phone rang ... I saw it was Caitlin, 12:30 am

This can't be good.  Now that she and Ray are parents, they are in bed early so this can't be a call looking for a designated driver ;)

They live 5 miles from me but their apartment complex is known for having issues.  Issues meaning it's morphed into a playground for trouble.  They had planned to move as soon as the weather broke, hoping to rent a house now that Mariah arrived.

The typical petty crimes go on there and they hear about trouble spots constantly. Caitlin had called me a few times last month, during the day, saying a nasty looking guy was knocking on her door. We'd talk until he left. 

More and more people are moving out and each building has several vacancy's.  Her building has 12 apartments, only 3 rented out.  Soooooo, after the fact, the local police think on this particular night, her apartment building was used as part of a set up because less occupancy, lesser chance of a witness.

A pizza was ordered, the poor delivery guy was badly beaten, robbed of his money and car.  Her and Ray's apartment address had been used to order the pizza, so the police knocked on their door.  Clearly they could see *bed-head and formula stained t-shirt* Ray and Caitlin were not waiting up to participate in a pizza sting.

Ray was called back to work this week and the thought of her being there all day with the baby and into the early evening when he was working overtime, freaked us all out.

Soooooo ... in ONE NIGHT they moved in with me.  Fortunately Mariah already had a nursery set up at my house.  I cleared out the extra bedroom that had become my Barbie room for Caitlin and Ray.

I repeat ONE NIGHT. Most went straight into the garage, the rest?  Well, a camera crew could use my house for the next taping of "Hoarders".

I'm sure by this weekend we'll have everything in it's place.  The best part, I get to wake up to this every morning:

P.S. A HUGE THANK YOU to her father for taking in Lola and to Rays sister for taking Puma ... two more animals in the house and I'd evict myself!

Barbie Turns 50

I've written about my love for Barbie.
(click link above for pics of my collection)

I've got the 1959 original logo tattooed on my ankle.


I've collected her for years.

Barbie Millicent Roberts, I still adore you.
Happy Birthday girl!

Barbie, I Still Like This Girl

It started with this:

I saw the 35th Anniversary Barbie set and remembered my long lost, played with Barbies and the many clothes and accessories I had for her. And so it began. Over 10 years of collecting.


It grew to over ??? I don't know how many. Every time I tried to count and inventory them, I'd get messed up, more so with the bottle of wine it usually took to attempt the task.


A few years ago, I decided to start selling some of my collection. I sold, and sold, and sold some more. I've shipped these babes to every country in the world except the mid-east and Russia.


This past weekend, I moved them to Caitlin's old bedroom and sorted them. There are some I will never part with but my intention is to start selling again. I still have some more I need to separate and sort, but I need to get a couple more shelves brought up from the basement.

I have boxes of vintage outfits and a couple vintage dolls that I don't display since they are out of their boxes. I have just about every Hallmark Barbie ornament and a pink Barbie Christmas tree, and everything else Barbie you can imagine. Thanks to my fellow collector Debbie, I even have Barbie martini glasses.

*some shelves have dolls 2 and 3 deep!

Wanted, Just so I Stop Obsessing

I really try not to be a pack rat.

I quit collecting Beanies and Barbies ...

Lenox Snowmen and Angels ...

BUT ....

Bombay Sapphire Gin has an annual martini glass in it's Christmas gift pack.



So it began:










I have been able to get some I missed from the years before I started collecting, on eBay.

The one I am obsessing over, is harder to find. If I see it on eBay, I am either outbid, or the price gets so ridiculously high I quit bidding.


Here it is. I think it is from 1994.

If you have one you'd like to sell, please let me know so I can get to sleep at a reasonable time rather than staying up way to late trying to bid on one!

Barbie, not Midge

In my March 18th post, I mentioned my Barbie tattoo and last night someone sent me an e-mail asking if I really have one. Yep, I do. I always wanted a tat, but it took me until I was 42 years old to get one.

I had started collecting Barbie a few years before. When I started to really look at the original 1959 logo, that's when it hit me to get the tat.

I have had over a thousand Barbie's, mint in the box, but I began selling them a couple years ago. I still have quite a few left, some that I will never part with. I'd guess I still have 200-300 hundred left.

Her white pearls have faded, they need touching up, and her red lips could use some new ink, but her hair has stayed Barbie Blond. And no, I won't be putting Ken on the other ankle.