Danielle Picks Up the Boys from Ian's (Photostory)

After leaving the bridal shop, the ladies stop by the coffee shop to have a quick cup of coffee and to discuss the wedding a little more.  Danielle then heads to Ian's place to pick up the boys.

"Hey guys.  Sorry I took so long."

"No problem. We have just been hanging out."
"Mommy!  Did you get a dress?"

"I tried on lots of pretty dresses, but I didn't buy one, yet."

"I see Uncle Ian fixed you something to eat.  Looks good."

"I'm fixing steak. Would you like one?"
"Oh no, thanks. I have to go home and make dinner for my man."
"Oh, excuse me." (Ian)
"How long has Jacob been sleeping?"
"I don't know. Maybe about an hour." (Ian)

"Jacob, honey. It's time to wake up."

"Hey my angel.  Time to wake up or else you won't be able to sleep tonight."

"Mommy, look.  Uncle Ian showed me how to use his boxing gloves."
"That's great, Julian."
"He's going to teach me how to box.."

"Your place is coming along nicely.  You need some window treatments though.  That will help warm up the place." (Danielle)
"I'm still working on it, but I'm in no hurry.  Did I tell you I have a new girlfriend, now?"
"She must be special if you are calling her your girlfriend.  What happened to Olivia?"
"Nothing happened to her.  She just wasn't the right one."

"Uncle Ian, can you show me the upper cup, again?" (Julian)
"Julian, put those gloves down and get your shoes and jacket on." (Danielle)
"Julian, it's upper cut, not upper cup." (Ian)

"Well, you will have to bring your new girlfriend over for dinner one day.  What's her name?" (Danielle)
"Her name is Raven and she is beautiful."
"Well I hope she is more than just beautiful."

"Bye, bye Goldie.  I'm gonna miss you."

"Thanks again for keeping the boys for me.  I'll be calling you soon to discuss your role in the wedding."
"You know I am there for you.  Just call me." (Ian)
"I sort of got wind of a bachelor party.  Did Rod call you about that, yet?" (Danielle)
"What? A bachelor party you say. I haven't heard a thing." (Ian chuckling)
"Yeah, right. You've never been able to hide anything with that pretty boy face.  Let's go boys."

A Sunday Morning Treat - A New Video!

As some of you know, Aunt Paulette is fashioned after Paulette from limbe dolls.  A couple of months ago she said she had some mini cookie cutters that she wanted to give to Aunt Paulette so that she could make cookies with the boys one day.  Well, when I saw her last Saturday she had the cookie cutters for me to take to Aunt Paulette.  This video is the result.

All the items on the table, except the cookie cutters are from Rement.

The apron is compliments of Debbie from Black Doll Collecting.

I am going to make doll Christmas cookies with these cutters.  Aren't they cute?

Rod and Danielle Finally Tell the Kids

Well the photostory turned into a video. That darn Frannie!  And all the others who kept saying "Can't wait to see the video."  Well here you go.  The first video using the new restaurant concept.  This isn't the layout I had initially, but it still worked out.  Due to time constraints and  threats I received from people patiently waiting for the photostory, I didn't get to decorate as well as I would have liked.  That's okay.  I will be gathering items needed along the way to make the decor better for future restaurants.  Here you can see the different floor and the different wall that wasn't shown in the previous post.

Please forgive the crazy eyes that Jacob now has.  I decided to give him an articulated body with his new jogging suit.  Unfortunately, I forgot that I hadn't sealed the previous pitiful eye painting that I had done.  So when I looked at the poor kid, he didn't have any eyes.  So I did a 5 min repaint job on him.  It's not terrible, but he looks a little scary.  When I get more than 5 mins, I will redo them.

In this scene you can sort of see the plexiglass windows that I placed on the left and right hand side.  I meant to put some signage on it, so you could tell it was there.  This is just recycled plastic from the many doll boxes that I had/have.  I am also using the plastic in Antoinette's french doors. 

I was able to get one of my favorite families, The Hart's in the scene as well.  Two of my bikers showed up to order some pizza.  Restaurants are definitely the place where all worlds collide.

Ever since I figured out that Only Heart toddlers can wear Kelly clothes, I have been ecstatic.  Those little pliable bodies are great for putting her in realistic poses.

Double-click to make the YouTube logo to make the video larger

New Video and Danielle's House Gets a Remodel

I was supposed to be doing a video with Darius and Nikki, but the three of us had some issues.  I never force a story and they were just not cooperating.  Needless to say, I have so many stories in my head, I can always just move on and that is what I did.

So here is a story with, who else, Danielle and Roderick.  I didn't want to shoot the video with the kitchen the way it was, so I totally redesigned her home.  The layout will stay like this, but of course the decor and accessories will be updated and added to as time goes on.

This is the view from the dining area looking into the living room.

This is Grandma's Kitchen, but I closed off the table area. It was taking up too much space. I will be painting the countertop and sink.  I may replace that table with a smaller table.  Can't wait to finish that laundry room!

Without further ado, here is the video. Double-click to see it in full screen.

Note: I did not make the lasagne in this video. It was made by a local woman about 5 years ago. She made the best food, but she stopped doing it about 4 years ago.  I did make the ravioli, but that was a while ago, before I really knew what I was doing. 

New Video: Auntie Paulette Visits Danielle and the Boys

Yeah, a new video is ready. It is a nice simple one.  It will give you a glimpse into the redesign of Danielle's home, which is so far from being done.  Now that I am leaving rooms up, I will actually make and install doors and windows.  I have to do a total overhaul of Danielle's kitchen.  Parts of it will get repainted.  There is a laundry room just off the kitchen which is being worked on.  I still have to put up pictures, put in some area rugs, add some more greenery, add some tables, etc.  All in due time.  Danielle and those boys are getting quite a bit of camera time lately.  Hope you enjoy the video.

Double-click to see Full Screen view

Wig shown here is by limbe dolls

Julian Had New Friends When I Got Home

Well I am back from my wonderful vacation.  Everything went off without a hitch.  My Godson is such a fabulous young man and it was great spending so much time with him.  While away, I did work on organizing my storylines and I made great progress.  Thanks to everyone who got in on the suggestions.  I will be posting the results in the next couple of days.  When I returned home there were lots of goodies waiting for me.  It felt a little like Christmas.  There were outfits, little dolls, doll heads, dishes.... OH MY!

Here's Julian with two of his new school friends.  I found this Asian doll and redhead on line before leaving.  I have no idea who they are. The Asian girl has white legs and the redhead has yellow legs.  This was my first time seeing this variety in this size.  So I had to have them.

Danielle would be flabbergasted to see Julian standing on that couch with his shoes one.

 

Of course the new kids have parents.  The mom, Barbie Basic 1.0 #5, is one of the heads that arrived while I was gone.  I put her on a LIV body, which was perfect considering she has a short husband.  He is GI JOE height.

They will officially be named when they make their video appearance.  No they will NOT be attending the Daddy/Daughter dance.  Who asked that silly question? LOL! 

The second family has one of our avid bikers, Samantha, who is married to Kurt.  I bought Fashion Fever Kurt from Ms. Leo. 

Kurt rides too, but not as much since their daughter arrived on the scene five years ago.  This little girl will definitely not be following in her parents footsteps.  She is all girl.  There will be no bikes in her future. Samantha doesn't understand how she got such a little princess.    

So, I am glad to be back in the saddle.  I missed talking to you guys.  Actually, I did talk to you guys, just not through pictures.  Next on the agenda.... that darn Daddy/Daughter dance.  LOL.  I hope to start shooting part 1 by Thursday.  Everyone is dressed and ready to go, except me.  I still have to put up all the decorations.  Everytime I pass them in my studio, I hear them yelling at me.  They are so ready to get out of those hot clothes.  After all is has been mid 90s in Atlanta for about 2 weeks straight now.  So I will put them out of their misery real soon.

Sorry about the pitiful pictures.  I am experimenting and you know what they say, "sometimes it has to get worse before it can get better."

The New Video is ready. Danielle finally meets Nicole



Well that faithful meeting between Danielle and Nicole finally takes place. It didn't go at all like I planned it.  But I'm finding that the videos are taking on a life of their own.  For weeks now, I had imagined what this meeting would look like.  So much for my grand plan.  I also discovered as I was working with Nicole, that she is not 12, like I originally thought.  She is more like 10, so I am revising her age.  I am also revising Julian's age from 6 to 5. 



A New Video!!! The Kids Go Swimming!

I had the best time shooting this video. I needed many more hands than I had, but I made it work. I felt like I was at the beach at times.  I had sand all over me.  I had to remember that my camera wasn't waterproof as water was going everywhere at times. This is my favorite beach video thus far.  I hope you like it.

Bedtime at the Harpers

Danielle and the boys are getting ready for bed.  Let's take a peek and see how things are going.

 

Bedtime at the Harpers

New Family: The Harper Family

Meet Danielle and her 2 boys Julian, 6, and Jacob, 2.  Danielle works full-time as an editor at the magazine, Working Woman.  Tragically, her husband was killed in a car accident over a year ago.  Danielle mourned for 6 months.  Then she realized that she had to pull herself together for her boys.  She attended a few counseling sessions to get back on her feet.  She has done very well and the boys seem to be adjusting, day by day.  Julian has bad moments, occasionally, but overall he is a happy kid.  He just recently entered the 1st grade and his teacher, Ms. Wilson, says he's a joy to have in class. Now Jacob is another story all together. He is quite the handful. He keeps Danielle more than busy.  He's too young to really remember his dad, but Danielle thinks that those 6 months when she mentally checked out, allowed Jacob to become a little terror.  Danielle is slowly getting him under control.

Danielle recently started a support group for single mothers. She knows there are other single mothers out there that can use some support.

Stay tuned to learn more about Danielle Harper and sons!

New Kid from Sisters In Style

Yesterday I stopped by Walmart with my former sister-in-law. I had decided not to go by the toy section, because I had spent enough money for the day. Unfortunately (or fortunately), when I went to look for my sister-in-law, she was in a section right near the dolls. You know I just had to take a quick peek. Doll addicts just can't help themselves. I scanned the shelves and was surprised to see some new items. Some of the Walmarts and Targets do not carry up-to-date Barbie items. The Sisters in Style has a few new dolls. As I looked further down, I saw this cute little guy from the S.I.S. line. I couldn't help myself. I had to have him. I have learned over the years that if you see a doll or doll item that you really like, you better get it, or you spend time months or years from now on ebay trying to find it. [I still have nightmares about some of the Happy Family stuff I missed out on].

So here's Julian. He's a cutey. He has already been assigned a new family.