Monday UFDC - The Begining....

Sleeping has been my number one enemy, as I have grown older; add excitement to the mix and the problem compounds. Luckily, I brought toys to kill time. (Kindle, Nintendo, sewing) For the sake of this writing, let’s say I had some time to kill before going to my first event, the 7:30 breakfast entitled “Wild Geese That Fly”.
As all good people, event goers we filed in and grabbed up seats and began a round robin of introductions. I love to hear where people are from, what they collect, we had a diverse crowd at our table. There were a couple of costumers in the crowd, too. Delightful conversation. (Might I digress a bit? It has taken me a year to lose 65 pounds. I am quite the chubby miss and with a bit more to go, I was appalled when the plate set before me had pancakes and sausage. Let me tell you this. When you go somewhere like a convention, forget the diet. Make as good an eating decision as possible and enjoy yourself. Do not bother other people with your diet concerns. It is boring. I lapped up half the pancakes with all the syrup I could get my hands on, ate all my sausage and fruit, and enjoyed every minute of it.)
The Southern Illinois Doll Club hosted this occasion for us to look at the world of BJD’s. (Ball jointed dolls) with guest speaker Jill Kaar Hanson. Her presentation of BJD’s and Maxfield Parrish art kept me glued to the screen. The delightful souvenir was from the Goodreau Doll Company, my very first BJD. (I was going shopping after wards for my first, which would become my second.)
What fun that was, but I needed to hop to it and drop off my doll so I could go shopping at National Doll Festival at a nearby hotel. Elevator full, I took the stairs. Flapjack number one was gone. I waited on the bus merrily chatting with like-minded women. Arrived at the show and purchased a present at the first go. That felt good! Next stop; find a BJD. Did you know that they are thoroughly customizable? I did not. I said I wanted a doll that looked like this, and was this size and this hair, etc. No problem says the shopkeeper, off comes the wig, pop goes the head, out come the eyes, and 30 minutes later, I have the eyes I want and TWO wigs. Now is that service or what? She is taller than I like, but I have a plan. On to Luc, I need laces. One hundred dollars later, I am almost out the door and oh, no! Is that not the cutest thing you have ever seen? I need to do another picture for you all. I forgot to put the Cat’s Paw chatelaine in the picture. To die for! I got the last one. They can be ordered, of course. I am almost out the door; time is getting away from me. Oh, please, yet another beautiful display! I had to get her card as I was running out of time. There is currently no website, but if you need anything for your French Fashion like hose and other accessories, you must see Dollie-Wrap™. I will not bother to make stockings again. Pat and Laura Allen are from Phoenix, AZ. As soon as I get a pair, and I will, I will show you how beautiful they are.
Finally, I made it out without spending everything and there is no bus. I decided to walk! Go up the stairs, across the river, up another set of stairs, across the street and into the hotel, it is time for a quick salad. Say goodbye to flap jacks I just burned those calories walking. The salad was great, service impeccable, but I needed to get to my first workshop. The elevator was full again. Now I really am grateful for the lower floor as I needed to climb the stairs.
I picked up the dolls for competition and my tools for class and was on the way down again. I had never entered into a competition, it is a little hectic, but the method is down to a science so if you wait your turn and do as you are told you can be in and out in a jiffy. My Workshop was WONDERFUL. See my little Nellie’s Necessaire. The project is easy, especially since Nellie did the hard parts for us. I pictured my finished project, but there are no contents yet. I have not decided all that will go into the basket, but I will share when I do. (See Nellie’s original here: http://www.pnbdoll.com/store/Default.asp)
Are you tired yet? Well, it is just 5:00 pm and there is still more to do. I need supper! I found a deli around the corner; (Bockwinkels) picked up a basket and ordered my supper, a snack and breakfast the next morning. Walked back to the hotel and up the stairs, are you getting the walking picture here? Hint, hint, I lost weight while I was there. Never underestimate the value of walking. The opening ceremonies were sweet, too, with another presentation via screen about two best friends separated and brought together again in Chicago, such a sweet and funny story. I loved it.
Finally, the 2010 convention declared convened! Ladies and Gentlemen, the shopping was about to commence. Cheers heard upstairs I am sure. Lined up as lemmings to hit the salesroom, I waited patiently for about 15 minutes. I was petering out fast. I can’t believe what I am about to say, but I exited the line, grabbed the first empty elevator I had seen since I arrived and took it to my end of the hall and around the corner digs. I mean the very last room. I chatted with my husband and slept. I slept the whole night through!
Kathi