Barbie is Back! (and you’re gonna be in trouble)

Hey now, hey now, Barbie’s back!  So the other day, I get an email from the GSUSA Shop with the title, “Barbie is Back!”  In case you aren’t aware, GSUSA has some kind of partnership with Barbie to promote Girl Scouts or something… blah blah blah. I would link to the Barbie campaign, but GSUSA recently revamped their website, and I have no idea where anything is anymore, and I’m too lazy at this point to try to find it. No, I’m never too lazy to attempt to find something on a website.  Here it is.

The whole partnership doesn’t really bother me as much as it does Samona (just ask her), but I do kind of shrug my shoulders about it.  I’d be interested to see what kind of membership response they get from the Barbie campaign.  Does it really work?  Does it actually draw girls in?  The cynical side of me says that it’s just another marketing campaign for both Mattel and GSUSA. 

I don’t plan on buying the GS Barbies.  My youngest daughter plays with them, but they all end up with no clothes on, and I’ve even found a few disembodied heads.  I’m not sure what that’s all about, and I’m afraid to ask.

My apathy may stem from the fact that I found Barbies incredibly boring when I was growing up, much to my mother’s chagrin.  She wanted a very girly girl, and instead, she ended up with me.  She would give me dolls, and they would collect dust. I was much more into playing with little trinkets, Weeble-Wobbles, my older brother’s Matchbox cars, and wooden Fisher Price townspeople.  I drew Richard Scarry’s animals and listened to hand-me-down 78 records.  Now that I think about it, all of my favorite toys were hand-me-downs.

At some point I asked my mother for an A-Team lunchbox – you know, the one with Mr. T on the front!  Mr. T was my idol and still is to this day.  My mother had the old “this toy is for BOYS, and you are a GIRL; therefore, you should not play with it” mentality.  So needless to say, the answer for the A-Team lunchbox was a big NO.  But – to my mother’s credit – she did buy me Mr. T cereal.  I suppose that was an okay compromise.

I think after the A-Team lunchbox request, my mother pulled out all of the stops to turn me into a typical girl, and Santa brought me a Barbie Townhouse for Christmas.  Now I mean this was the ultimate toy for any Barbie-loving elementary aged girl.  I’m guessing this was up there with Cabbage Patch Kids or something.  I have no idea – I just know when I’ve talked about this, many friends have said, “YOU GOT THE BARBIE TOWNHOUSE??  OH MY GOSH!!!”  But needless to say, this non-Barbie loving tomboy wasn’t all that into it.  However, my mother demanded I play with it because Santa went to a LOT OF TROUBLE to bring it to me, so I went to work.

First, I turned the Townhouse into the Hotel de Garfield.  Barbie was now the owner and manager of said Hotel de Garfield.  Girl led, baby!

Next came the remodel.  I drew my own backgrounds and taped them onto the back of the Townhouse.  Next, I created a driveway with valet parking.  Mickey Mouse was one of the valets.

I think at some point my mother was upset because I had used tape on the Townhouse, but at the same time, I think she was relieved I was playing with it so much.  And Barbie even got into the act!  Girl power!

Well, that’s all there is to that story.  I told you to quit while you were ahead.