The Big Secret, Part 3

Daddy Steve:  Here in Gregoropolis, work continues at a feverish pace in preparation for the secret event at the end of the month.  Today, the girls were digging out some vintage Frido fashions from their wardrobe.

Oliver: What's all that noise coming from the girls' room?

Giancarlo: I think they're having a little disagreement about something.

Oliver: Should we go find out what's wrong?

Giancarlo: Oh, no, not a wise idea.  Best to let them work it out themselves.

Wyatt: Yeah, we should definitely stay out of it.

Holly Belle: Alright girls, you all have the outfits you will be wearing.

Daphne: I don't know, Holly Belle.  This is a bit farmer-ish for an aristocratic girl like me.

Holly Belle: Now Daphne, even Marie Antoinette liked to dress up as a peasant girl sometimes.

Daphne: Well...I suppose...

Daisy: You're quite sure this dress is pink, and not beige?

Holly Belle: Yes, dear, it's pink.

Daisy: It looks sort of beige in this light.

Holly Belle: No, it's pink.

Daisy: You know I don't wear beige.

Holly Belle: Definitely pink.

Daisy: Barbara Cartland always said that beige makes women look like baked potatoes.

Holly Belle: PINK!

Holly Belle: Oh come on, Rhoda!  Won't you cooperate just this once?!

Rhoda: No way!  I don't wear dresses!

Holly Belle: Oh, I give up!  This whole thing is a shambles!

Ann Marie: Calm down, HB.  It will all work out fine.  And I think I know a way to reach a compromise with Rhoda...

The Big Secret, Part 2

Daddy Steve:  The decorating committee is hard at work tracing, cutting, and pasting.  They're preparing for the end-of-the-month (secret) special event.

Ravi: It's hard to keep the paste from squishing out underneath.

Patrick: I think it dries clear.  Besides, everyone will be too busy eating fondue to notice.

Kaveh: The white circle should be a little off-center.

Sasha: Why?

Miguel: I think because it's 'art.'

Rhoda: What are you guys up to?

Kaveh: We're making decorations for the secret special party at the end of the month.

Rhoda: Oh, that's right.  I heard Frederick talking on the phone to Robin about it.

Sasha: Why would he call Robin?  We all live in the same house.

Rhoda: Not our Robin.  He was talking to some Robin in England.

Patrick: >sigh<  That blabbermouth.  I knew he would have trouble keeping a secret.

Patrick: So, Frederick, how many people have you spilled the beans to?

Frederick: Relax, it was just Robin.  You can trust him because he's a fellow redhead and we all have a code of silence.

Patrick: We do?

Frederick: Of course, he may have told his sister Saffron.  She's a redhead, too.  I don't know if that whole 'code of silence' thing applies to girls as well.  I wonder...

The Big Secret, Part 1

Daddy Steve: Anthony has been very busy in the kitchen this afternoon; he's not cooking, but planning...

Frank: Hey Tony, are you making treats for us?

Luke: Cookies?

Frank: Cupcakes?

Anthony: No, but there's some fresh fruit and carrot sticks in the refrigerator.

Luke: No thanks.  Well, then, what are you doing?

Anthony: I'm planning out a special menu.

Gavin: For Thanksgiving?

Anthony: No, for the very special event right after Thanksgiving.  You know, the special secret event?

Anthony: Here, look at this cookbook I'm reading.

Frank: "Fabulous Fondues."  What's a fondue?

Gavin: Oh, I've heard of those!  It's a big bubbling pot of melted cheese that you dip things like bread and meat in using funny looking forks.  It's a traditional dish of the...

Anthony: >AHEM<

Gavin: ...from the country of...

Anthony: >AHEM<

Gavin: Oh, wait, that's part of the secret, isn't it?

Anthony: >sigh< 

Luke: Don't worry, Tony.  You know how good we are at keeping secrets!

Anthony: Yes.  And that's exactly what I'm afraid of...

  

Election Day

Everybody in Gregoropolis is doing their civic duty today: they're voting!

Election judge Patrick helps Ravi get registered...

Election judge Holly Belle watches as Charles, Rolf, and Valerie all cast their ballots...

And Frank passes out "I Voted" stickers to Daphne, Benjamin Roy, and Kaveh.

Frank: Here's your sticker, sir.  Thank you for voting!

Día de los Muertos

Miguel: ¡Hola, amigos!

Miguel: ¡Lo siento!  I did not mean to frighten you!  Here in Gregoropolis, we are celebrating Día de los Muertos or, as you would say, Day of the Dead.  It is a holiday celebrated throughout my homeland of México.  Me gusta celebrar con una máscara de calavera...I like to celebrate wearing a skull mask.

Miguel: For Día de Muertos, we gather together to remember family and friends who have died and support them on their spiritual journey.  But that does not mean we cannot have fun, too!    Calaveras y esqueletos (skulls and skeletons) are a common symbol of the celebrating!  Oh, and there are candy skulls to share, too!  I know mi hermano Frank will like that.

Miguel: Also to celebrate, I built an ofrenda for mi abuelo.  It is an altar to honor my late grandfather.  We decorate the ofrenda with things related to the deceased person: their favorite belongings and food and snacks.

Miguel: He was a very good handyman, so I put out his favorite hammer & nails.  He liked to watch NASCAR and Minnesota Twins baseball and play cards, so those hobbies are represented.  Also, his favorite drinks and snacks. I hope he likes it.

Miguel: ¡Feliz Día de los Muertos!  

Comes In Three Flavors, Part 2

Daddy Steve: Duncan is my third 'flavor' and, as you will see, his personality is quite different from Sasha and Frederick.  He's also what I call my 'second-chance' boy.  I first spotted him on eBay, wearing an old pair of pajamas.

He was not particularly unusual, and certainly not in pristine condition.  Yet...there was something about him that appealed to me.  I put in a sensible bid, but eventually lost the auction.  I wasn't terribly disappointed.  However, he must have made an impression on me because I saved his auction photos.

About six months later, he appeared on Sasha Doll UK.  This time he was sporting a much nicer outift (a combo from A Passion for Sasha and Dollydoodles).

I was suprised to see him again, but I didn't give in right away.  When his price was reduced, however, I knew he was meant to be mine.  Duncan is a waif; he's not beat up, but he has definitely lived a life and has the various dings and scratches that go with it.

Although his hair is not falling out, he has suffered what I call 'malicious hair loss.'  He's had a few chunks of hair cut very short, rather like a scrub brush.

It's really not all that noticeable, as his brothers have reassured him time and again.

Sasha: Honestly, you can't even see it.

Frederick: Seriously.  I would never in a million years have noticed it if you hadn't told me.

Duncan: >sigh<  You don't have to spare my feelings.

Although Sasha & Gregor dolls are capable of conveying a wide range of emotions, to me Duncan always tends to look a bit glum.

He's a very sweet boy, but he does tend to be a bit of a 'dismal Jimmy.'  Perhaps it's just due to the life he's led.

Giancarlo: I think it's going to be a nice day.

Duncan: Hmmm, I don't know.  Looks like it could rain.  Maybe even snow.  I hope a tree doesn't blow down and fall on our house.

Giancarlo:  >sigh<

Emile: Le garçon, 'e 'as no joie de vivre!

Sebastian: Definitely a gloomy Gus.

Ann Marie: He's like Eeyore in Winnie-The-Pooh books.

Holly Belle: Well, of course not everyone can have an ebullient personality like me!

It's true that we can only be who we are, and in some ways there is an advantage to not being a sunny optimist.  Because he never really expects things to go right, Duncan is pretty unflappable when they do go awry...

Blake: Whoops!  Don't worry, we'll clean this up.

Robin: And we'll get you a new cone.  No worries at all.

Duncan: That's okay.  I expect these things to happen to me.

Comes In Three Flavors, Part 1

Daddy Steve:  By now our readers are well acquainted with Sasha, my childhood doll and faithful companion for more than 45 years.  Sasha is goodness personified: sweet, innocent, and caring.

Sasha has two brothers who very closely resemble him: Duncan, a brunette and Frederick, a redhead.  I believe all three date from around the same time, probably the later part of 1968 (50 years ago now!).  They have very similar styles of eye painting and they're noticeably smaller than my other kids, even those from earlier in the same year.

My 3 Flavors: Duncan, Sasha, Frederick

Even though these three boys share similar looks, they definitely have their own distinct personalities.  While Sasha can be a little bashful, his brother Frederick is very social and outgoing.  He loves to talk, and will talk to anyone.  He'll talk and talk and talk....

Frederick & Daphne: >natter-natter-natter-natter-natter<

Mikko: Gosh he talks a lot!

Ezra: Well, Daphne isn't exactly quiet herself.

Mikko: Oh yeah, that bird loves to chirp!

Tyler: Daddy Steve says they were both vaccinated with a phonograph needle.

Ezra: What's a phonograph?

I got Frederick from his original person.  She was a big fan of Sasha dolls.  However, by the time she got him she was 13, so Frederick was never really played with, only displayed.  

All of that time spent with a teenager had its effect, making him a rather dramatic boy.  Everything in his life tends to play out on an epic scale. Fellow redhead Patrick, who is much more reserved, finds him incomprehensible.

Frederick: It's so involved being me!

Patrick: You're very illogical.

Like a teenager, Frederick likes to talk on the phone.

Kaveh: Good grief!  Are you still on the phone?!?

Frederick: I'm talking to Ragnor.  Before that I was talking to Finn, and before that I was talking to Rory.

If you notice that your family plan cell phone bill is unusually high, I'm afraid we might be to blame.

Although he can be a handful at times, Frederick is basically a goodhearted boy.  He's a kind lad who is always willing to lend a sympathetic ear.

Holly Belle: Oh my, what an awful day!

Frederick: Do sit down and tell me all about it!