Dolls of My Youth
Gigi is with her dad this weekend and I am feeling a little blue. I got online and started looking around for dolls from my childhood on eBay. I actually found and am bidding on a new in the box, mint condition Happy Baby by Horsman dolls. It was sold in the mid-70s and I am bidding on it for my sister, because it was her absolute favorite childhood doll and she has no idea where it went,
I am looking for a doll made by Ideal in the mid 70s called Baby Dreams or Baby Sweet Dreams. She had this peach fuzz all over her face, arms and legs and the rest of her body was vinyl. I remember her eyes opened and closed. A lot of the fuzz rubbed off the face of the doll I had, so she eventually got thrown out. I’ve thought about her off and on for years and I would love to find one that is still in its box, as I am not keen on a dirty, used doll. You know? I did bookmark a couple of eBay auctions for the doll that look relatively clean, but one is a little pricey and the other is in Australia. I’ll have to hold out for a better deal.
I was also quite fond of the My Friend Mandy doll by Fisher Price. (The ones made in the 70s, not the 80s.) For some odd reason, when I was in second grade I was using a cotton ball and nail polish remover to clean up the skin on her face. The remover got in Mandy’s eye and erased it. I must have been crying about it in school, because my teacher Mrs. Maiden offered to take it home and repaint it. She actually ended up making the eye out of construction paper, but I was wildly appreciative anyway.
I also love the Sunshine Family by Mattel. My mom is actually onto me to find her mint dolls of the Grandma and Grandpa from this collection.
I could go on and on.
What was your favorite doll when you were young?
I actually had the Sunshine Family, complete with grandma and grandpa. I had their van and the house where they made pottery, and you could actually make the pottery on the wheel. It was one of my fave doll sets.
I miss it.
It’s cool what you can do on the internet now adays. Get in touch with things that you’ve lost touch with. Wonderful.