STAR WARS FIGURES & MONSTER HIGH GHOULS

Sometime in the mid-1980s, I walked into the Hayward Toys R Us by myself heading straight to the back aisle. I knew exactly where to find the Star Wars toys. Darrin was in school but since the latest shipment of Star Wars figures was due to arrive about 10 AM, I was on my own. It wasn't the first time I was flying solo on the Star Wars quest & it wouldn't be the last.

Darrin was a huge collector of all things Star Wars. Our family room was home to an X-Wing Fighter, a Millennium Falcon, a Rancor, an AT-AT (All Terrain, Attack Transport), Ewoks & lots more. He was able to recreate many scenes from all three of the original Star Wars movies. The small action figures were often his primary focus since they were affordable & plentiful. I'm sure there were well over 100 of them but many were really difficult to find.

Being an involved, somewhat crazy mom, I embraced the search for hard to find action figures. That is what had me heading to Toys R Us after dropping Darrin off at school. It seemed we would never find a few particular figures. I recall the search for "Lando Calrissian in Skiff Guard Disguise" being the pinnacle of action figure nirvana. Months went by without ever finding that particular action figure.

We knew the days & times that new shipments of Star Wars stuff arrived at Toys R Us. It was so popular that often the store employees just put the cardboard boxes filled with various toys & figures in the aisles. That morning I was there sitting on the floor along with a long haired, nerdy teen-ager (not sure why he wasn't in school) searching through the boxes of action figures.

Many of the older teens & adults were collectors & kept the figures sealed in the original package. It was assumed that the resale value would be much higher way in the future if they ever decided to sell the prized possessions. Darrin, on the other hand, played with all of his Star Wars toys & spent countless hours setting up scenes.

As I thumbed through one box, I saw it!!! Lando Calrissian in Skiff Guard Disguise!!! OH....MY...GOD!!! I let out a shriek & grabbed the cherished figure. The long haired, nerdy guy turned & asked, "What did you find?" I exclaimed, "Lando Calrissian in Skiff Guard Disguise!" "Oh, man", he whined, "Are there more?" as he resumed his search. I'm not sure who was more excited when I picked Darrin up from school with the coveted figure in hand!

I just now checked on eBay & there are three "Lando Calrissian in Skiff Guard Disguise" action figures from 1983, unopened in the package. One is listed for $100, another for $129.99 & the other for $165. That doesn't mean anyone will pay those prices but the vintage figures out of the packages were going for $5 to $10.

Fast forward at least 30 years to Charley & Gaga heading to the same Toys R Us for another Monster High doll. To quote Yogi Berra, "It was deja vu all over again." Every time I go to that Hayward Toys R Us, I am reminded of the long ago search for Star Wars figures.  Last week we found a Monster High doll we didn't know about, "The Toralei Garden Ghoul". Neither Charley or I had heard of Garden Ghouls. Toralei had wings & was pretty cool.

The back of the package showed about 6 or 8 more Garden Ghouls & Charley saved it. She placed an "X" next to Toralei & told me she really, really, really wanted the Twyla Garden Ghoul. Gaga stopped at three stores on her drive home but there were no Twyla Garden Ghouls to be found. I did some online research & found that the Garden Ghouls are brand new. I could order it on Amazon but they didn't have a release date yet. Of course, Gaga ordered it!

Explaining the concept that it isn't manufactured yet to a child who is staring at the picture of the doll isn't easy. Hopefully, it will be shipped soon. Charley gets such enjoyment from all her ghouls - they sing, go ziplining, put on shows, do gymnastics, wear each other's clothes & have a wonderful time together. She feeds them tentacles & spider webs for a midnight snack, puts them to bed & reads them stories. Her imagination is endless when it comes to her Monster High ghouls. I just heard they are putting on a fashion show soon.

I am thankful to be reliving my Star Wars days with Darrin as I embrace the Monster High era with his daughter! Lots of fun for a 67 year old grandma - who knew?!!?!