The entire Dahly Crew went to American Girl today to see, and eventually decide to buy, (as if there was ever a question) Gabriela McBride. During the drive home, safely buckled in next to Melody, (who came along to celebrate both her and my birthday) she came up with her own way to say hello to everyone. I hope you enjoy.
A new place
A new home to call mine
Where they appreciate my rhythm
Where they respect my rhyme
A new home
Where they love me for me
From the color of my skin
To the rhythm of my feet
A new spot
With my story to tell
Where they know I'm not just Saige
Not "just another Isabelle"
A new girl
One that might not look like you
But our species is a rainbow
And I should be celebrated too
New hair, new hue, new face, new race
I think I'm going to like my new place
Okay, so real talk. Negatives first. Compared to past GOTYs her collection just seems tiny. We knew this already, but it was more apparent when we saw her trying to fill up the space that Lea was in. I know that the rumors say that more will be released for her later in the year, but her release made what little effort AG put into her more apparent.
I hate the boxes. Truly hate them. We obviously buy to play as well as collect, but we keep our boxes for neat, organized storage, and that just isn't possible with the way these are set up. Not just for Gabriela either, but the clothing and accessories too. Not to mention that I hate the way the clothes are attached to the boxes, and I hate the extra waste that this packaging creates. As a family we really try to limit our waste, and there is an absurd amount with the items that we've bought. (We did not get her entire collection today. We'll be collecting it throughout the year, being super conscious about sales of course.) I try not to grumble about "the little things", but this new packaging is really, really a downgrade that I'm not happy with.
Notice that none of my negatives have addressed Gabriela? That's because I really don't have any. She's gorgeous! I love her. I love her meet outfit, I love her hair, I love her! I fully admit that her hair intimidates me a bit, because we don't have any super curly haired dolls. She is our first, but it came out of the box adorable, so I think I'll leave it down (at least for a day or two) and admire it. Her meet outfit, that I wasn't wild for at first, is actually really cute. We've found that it seems to take a little more effort to stand her up, and aren't sure if it's the shoes or maybe we got one with slightly wobbily limbs, but the clothes suit her. Her accessories are adorable, and I am hoping and preying that they release a girl (or adult) sized version of her little "boom box bag", because I will have it for my own if they do!
I am really excited for several of her other accessories too. Her tiny drumsticks and a drum pad are absolutely amazing, especially considering that my own little Dahl with speech issues is also my drummer. Her headphones, microphone, and barre are must haves for us, as is her little kitten, Maya. The fingernail polish is a really, really neat idea too, and I look forward to getting it for our Gabriela. I want her earrings, because I think they are really cute, but I am not 100% sold on getting her ears pierced, so we'll see how that goes. Overall, I love what they do have in her collection, though that makes the disappointment over what they could have done if they wanted to all the more pronounced. I can only hope that they will continue to work on her throughout the year, especially since she is set to be here past 2017.
Did you go to her release? Did you get her? What do you think? (Check out my Instagram @dollywollydoodleblog for some more pictures from the release.)
~Mrs. D
