My Elf on a Shelf

Elf on a Shelf.

Whenever I think of that Elf in a red onesie I roll my eyes.

And then I'm super glad that Elf didn't exist when I was a kid, because I'm better for it.  This Elf came to the scene in 2005, so heaven help the poor little souls of the next generation who's raised with that creature.  A venomous creature with no regard for privacy.  Apparently Mr. little elf hangs out spying on kids and then reporting to Santa whether or not the kids are good, and then gets into mischief while hiding and seeking.  Who's going to report the Elf for being naughty?

At the end of the book, which I haven't read for rebellions sake and learned on wikipedia, if you touch an Elf it looses its magic and can't return to Santa.  If I was a kid I would touch that elf and hide it myself so I can maintain my independence without outside judgement.

Suddenly that line from Santa Clause is Coming to Town becomes a whole lot more creepy: "He knows when you are sleeping.  He knows when you're awake.  He knows if you've been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake."

Serious Santa, what's the deal?

And I just admitted to owning a Legolas Barbie doll . . . -_-;;

Still, sexier than that little red thing.

The Indifferent Looking Disney Store Cinderella Prince Doll

Over the weekend I went to the Disney Store to peruse any new items they may have received, and I was excited to find new merchandise for the Cinderella movie coming out in less then a month.

I'm so excited!

Last night I was watching Ever After.  I'm such a huge fan of that movie (saw it in the movie theater 5 times back in the day), and, even though Cinderella looks gorgeous, it's going to have stiff competition in comparison.

Ever After is Epic.

It's always fun looking at Disney Store merchandise, trying to gleam any spoilers or sneak peaks when new movies are about to be released.

 Though, after looking at the dolls I was pretty amused and shocked to see how Prince Charming was modeled.

He does not look happy!

Here he is, getting married (spoilers for those that don't know the story!) . . . (really, does anyone not know how Cinderella ends?), and he looks seriously indifferent, as if this is an arranged marriage or something.  As if he's counting down the minutes in his brain until he can get away from his new princess and go off to do whatever Princes enjoy doing.

It's not romantic.

 Unlike the picture on the back of the box which is clearly romantic.

 There are three other dolls in the series.

 I'm somewhat mixed on how the Cinderella doll came out.  She's beautiful, but they didn't quite get her face right.  There's a whimsicalness the actress processes, as evident in Downton Abbey and the Cinderella trailers, that this doll is missing.

 Now the evil stepmother Lady Tremaine, Cate Blanchett, doll is absolutely stunning.

Seriously, she's gorgeous.

The best doll modeling I've seen in a very longtime.

 And the doll for the Fairy Godmother is very fun.

I liked her so much I got her for my Renaissance doll collection.

She fits!  Even though she doesn't look like a barbie clone.  Heh.

 Here's an image of more Cinderella merchandise the Disney Store is selling.

I'm getting excited for March 13! :0)

Barbie, The Muppets, and BYU

(Day 49 of the 365 day photo challenge 02-20-2012)

When the BYU barbie came out back in 1998, I didn't know it was so controversial, and that some people didn't like the skinny, skimpy doll posing as a BYU cheerleader.   At the time I was in High School, living in Porterville California, dreaming of attending the school, and surprised that the local Target had her in stock.  She was vying for a spot on the shelf with other notable schools.  Of course when I moved to Utah Valley about a decade ago, I had no clue how BYU was perceived, and the dynamics between all the schools here.  It was quite a shock.  

There are three top notch schools within 50 miles of each other: BYU Provo, Utah Valley University (which was Utah Valley State College when I moved here), and the University of Utah.  BYU and U of U have an extraordinarily loyal fan base here, and you're either a fan of one or the other; the football games between both school are a serious affair.  UVU/UVSC doesn't have a football team.  They have sports teams, but they pride themselves for focusing on academics, which is awesome.  I started attending UV, which I fell in love with, when I first moved here and was turned off whenever I visited BYU campus and had people tell me the school was nothing more then a continuation of High School.  And so I was quick to speak up and defend UV, and quickly lost all interest in attending BYU.  

Of course, thanks to my love of music, and knowing BYU had a more solid program back in 2004, I transferred, and I am proud to call it my alma mater.  It was harder adjusting to BYU then the other three schools I attended (Porterville College, College of the Sequoias, and UVSC), because there is an overachieving atmosphere of high stress at the Y, but I learned so much, and I'm glad I had those opportunities. 

The other item in the picture sitting next to Barbie is Animal from The Muppets.  My Dad had one just like it when I was a kid, and he would put the record of the first movie on the record player (I remember a life before CD players), and he would make Animal mouth the words.  I wanted my own, and so for my birthday last year he found one on ebay, and hid it in my closet a few months before my b-day, which I found within a month.  I was shocked when I found him.  Actually, I wondered if there was a chance my Dad's Muppet ended up in my closet by mistake, but it looked too clean to be his.  Running around the house I asked if anyone knew what was going on, and they were all clueless.  So in a panic I called my Dad, and he pretended at first that he didn't know what I was talking about, until he finally told me it was an early present. 

The first Muppet Movie will always be the best, with the Muppet Christmas Choral as an easy second.  I saw the new movie back when it came out last year, and as time has passed, I've grown less fond of it.  The new movie doesn't have the charm of the original, though I do appreciate the new film bringing the Muppet's back to the front of popular culture.          

Hope you're having a nice day!

Sarah