Going Home Barbie

With all the Barbie movie watching lately, I pulled out a special doll for Madison to take a peek at. It is a rather rare doll, the "Going Home Barbie," which was given to us at the White Swan Hotel in Guangzhou, China. It is a Barbie that comes with another doll of an adopted asian child, and the only way you can get this type of Barbie is by either adopting a child from China and staying at the White Swan Hotel - or paying for it from someone else.  Just out of curiosity, I looked up how much someone was selling our "Going Home Barbie" for on eBay. Ready for it?

This is the sixth edition of this particular doll, and the most recent going price I just looked up is $240. You read that right. That sort of price reminds me of the Cabbage Patch Kids, where seemingly insane collectors spend hundreds on a particular doll. This Barbie is really no different than any other Barbie - it's all in the packaging, and I guess the fact that it is really rare.

Obviously, this is a special doll that isn't for sale. And it isn't going to be opened any time soon either. That's a pretty pricy Barbie!

We can get plenty of other Barbie dolls for Madison, but this one will stay up in a high place for quite some time. Actually, we've got this Chinese New Year Barbie up there too - it's on top of the cabinet with her television set. I'll have to go look that one up too to see how much it is worth! Mom just reminded me that we also have these Hula Barbie dolls from our wedding gift (we went to Hawaii for our Honeymoon). Add those to the original Barbie doll that Mommy has, a 1962 version with a bubble cut. Don't we sound like collectors or something? The truth is, we're not really that into Barbie. But if Madison wants to start collecting, she's got a little head start I suppose.

Anyway, we watched a Barbie movie this morning. It was "Barbie - Swan Lake," which Madison enjoyed for the dancing. It was a slow morning, mainly because the rain and cold. That sort of weather forces you inside. Add to that the fact we had a busy Sunday, and it made for a perfect morning of lounging about watching television and being lazy. But that's enough Barbie talk for now!

Today, a little later, we walked down to the lake again. After the rain gave way, it was overcast and grey, but warm enough to go for a walk - so long as we were wearing our heavier jackets. The weather has been outstandingly cold as of late, so it was refreshing to have this opportunity today.

As was our custom, we stopped along the way and picked up a whole bunch of tiny rocks to put in the stroller's cup holders. Then, Madison and I went down to the boat dock and sat at the water's edge, tossing the stones out onto the water for a time. It was an overcast day, and boats were moving this way and that across the lake, their fishing rods lined up along the sides. The dreary weather and trolling boats reminded me of some sort of New England port. Everyone should have been wearing yellow slickers, and there should have been an old mariner sitting nearby on a pier, with perhaps a cob pipe his mouth, puffing away.

On our way back home, we ran into Nana walking her three dogs, so we joined her in a walk through the park as well. All in all, we were gone about two hours outside. We may have said this already, but the park is deserted now, overgrown with plants and abandoned like the opening of Prince Caspian, when the four children discover Narnia hundreds of years later and in disrepair. Together, while walking the dogs, we traveled through Narnia again - this time with Madison on foot. She explored and herded the dogs along. It's a pretty little park at the end of a peninsula. Not sure why it is closed off, but you can get to it on foot, and it is typically empty - just because it takes so much to walk there. Madison didn't want to ride on the stroller the whole time while in Narnia. In fact, she walked all the way home too. She's a big girl now!