Rachael's Surprise

So, apparently many of the girls in our new neighborhood have American Girl Dolls. Now remember if you will, I grew up playing basketball, not dolls. So when Rachael mentioned that she wanted one of these for her birthday I drew a blank. Luckily, a few helpful moms in my ward gave me the 411 and to my surprise, most of these dolls were gifted for their daughters 8th birthdays (it being a special age). Not only are these dolls very popular, but they cost a pretty penny as well. After doing some investigating online and discussing it with Keith, we let Rachael know that if she wanted an American Girl Doll for her birthday, that she would receive nothing else from us, no friends party, no other gifts...nothing.

What Rachael didn't know was that our first day in NYC we stopped by the American Girl Store on 5th Avenue and not only did they have one of the dolls she said she liked best on sale, but it also came with the DVD, the CD, extra accessories and the books that tell the particular dolls story for free. We couldn't pass up the deal. I secretly shipped the present to my mom's house and the fun began for me and Keith.

Upon our return from New York we constantly asked Rachael if that's what she really wanted. We made every effort to remind her how much this doll cost and told her we didn't know if we could afford to get it for her. Then I came up with another idea. I hope you don't think I'm too mean of a mom. Since her doll came with all the extra things, I decided to wrapped each of them up individually and have them sitting out on her birthday and let my mom bring the actual doll to party later that night. I knew that if she saw more than one birthday gift, she would assume that she wasn't getting the doll she wanted. I was right!! I wish I could have captured the look on her face with a camera when she came into the room, saw the 4 wrapped up gifts and asked, "Mom, what are those?" I instantly put a big smile on my face and replied, "These are your birthday presents, Rach!!!"

Needless to say, she was majorly bummed (her words, not mine). I made up for it though. That night once my parents arrived I pulled out a treasure hunt that I had made up with help from Aunt Miquelle. The last clue lead to my mom's car where her BIG present was waiting. Even as she carried it inside I don't think she had a clue! Aren't I sneaky! Here's Rachael with her new Kit Kittredge doll! They look alike, even down to the freckles!