Some fun June Memories

Hi girls! We had a blast celebrating Mia's 12th birthday earlier this week! Here's a fun video that has us both and piles of friends enjoying the day!


And here's a crazy video that my (Christa) brother put together to celebrate Father's Day. :) My dad is one of the rappers!



Have a great Independence Day weekend! We'll have an episode out in July and will announce the winners to the contest! :)

An American Girl Chat with Author Valerie Tripp

Hello American Girl fans! Christa and Mia here, with a very special episode of the Girl Doll Talk Podcast!

As you know, we love interviewing authors of American Girl books. It's so interesting to learn the stories behind the people who bring our favorite characters to life.

Well, in this episode we are excited to share a discussion we had with the one and only Valerie Tripp! Mrs. Tripp has authored over 50 books for American Girl and will tell us how it all started years ago. If you listen to the bloopers afterwards, you'll also learn about her soundproof recording studio at home! :)

We also talk to Dr. Mary Adam from Kenya, who is part of a very cool work there called Equipping Africa. Girls, make sure to take up the challenge to help orphan girls in Kenya by sending an American Girl book that you no longer need! All you have to do is to send one or more books to:
Girl Doll Talk
765 Pheasant Ridge Court, Suite 102
Lake Zurich, IL 60047

We'll take care of the shipping to Kenya. Thank you so much!

Finally, we loved talking to our friends Hannah and Emma from AGFun.

Girls, there is still time to send in a video or audio of you and your friends trying to say Humuhumunukunukuapua'a! Send your audio or video to girldolltalk@gmail.com and we'll select one of the entries to receive a free Girl Doll Talk tote bag! Come on, girls! Get your friends together and take your best shot! We'd love to send you a free tote bag!

Would you like to have an interview on our show about your site? You can learn more at http://girldolltalk.gotop100.com/.

Do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

12: An American Girl Chat with author Valerie Tripp

Would You Join Us in Helping These Orphan Girls?

Hi girls! This week we're recording our next episode and TOTALLY enjoyed talking with Hannah and Emma from AGFun!

We also interviewed Dr. Mary Adam, who lives in Nairobi, Kenya. Dr. Adam (who is also Christa's auntie who is here for Easter!) and her husband Rod run an organization named Equipping Africa. Dr. Adam had a great idea during the interview of how all of us could help an orphange over there in Kenya. Sending over an American Girl doll wouldn't make sense as it would be too expensive to ship and perhaps not be valued as much as here. BUT, the girls there LOVE getting books. An American Girl book would teach some history and be a fun way to learn more about being a girl and about America.

So, girls, you'll hear this in the next episode but start thinking about it now. Would you be up for donating a book to help orphan girls in Kenya? Do you have an American Girl doll book that you've already read and are not likely to read again? The books do not need to be new.

We're going to ask you to send your books to us in the Chicago area and then we'll package them all up and send them over in one shipment. We'll cover the cost of shipping it to Africa.

Wouldn't that be cool to see pictures of girls in a Kenyan orphanage reading a book that you sent? You'll hear more soon. Want to send some right away? Send them to:

Girl Doll Talk
765 Pheasant Ridge Court, Suite 102
Lake Zurich, IL 60047

Thanks! Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

Mrs. Tripp is Amazing!

We just got off the phone with Mrs. Valerie Tripp, and all we can say is she is awesome! We loved having the chance to speak with her. We feel like she's a friend already! We can see why so many girls love her and her books so much!

Mrs. Tripp talked about why Felicity had a horse, who inspired the Kit stories, the conversation that started the first American Girl book ever, how Felicity's story is similar to what was going on during that timeframe, what girls need to hear today, and much, much more!

We'll shoot for getting the episode out before the end of the month. We can't wait to share it with you!

Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

What Would You Want to Ask Valerie Tripp?

We are so excited that Ms. Tripp has graciously agreed to an interview!

So, girls, we're wondering.... What would you want to ask her?

As you probably know, Ms. Tripp wrote all the books in the Felicity, Josefina, Kit, and Molly series and three of the books in the Samantha series. Let us know what you would want to ask and we'll see if we can get the question in the interview.

Thanks! Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

Kanani Chat with Author Lisa Yee

Hello American Girl fans! Christa and Mia here, with another episode of the Girl Doll Talk Podcast!

Well, Kanani fever continues to spread! In this episode, we talk with Lisa Yee, author of Aloha, Kanani and Good Job, Kanani. Mrs. Yee is also the author of Good Luck, Ivy. She's not only a great writer. She's a REALLY fun lady! You have to check her blog out at http://lisayee.livejournal.com/. You can learn more about this wonderful authoress at http://www.lisayee.com/. Don't miss her pictures with Peeps! Here's our picture!


In this episode we also talk with the founder of a blog that is currently getting a high amount of traffic through the Top American Girl Fan Sites contest we have going: Australian Girl Fan (http://www.australiangirlfan.com/). Brittany-Amelia is a wonderful new friend from "down under" and she introduces us all to her love for both Australian Girl Dolls and American Girl Dolls!

We also talk to a sweet new friend Leana (also known as Le-Le) who, along with her mom, gives their best shot at the Hawaiian reef trigger fish name!

Speaking of that fish name, in our last episode we invited you to send in a video or audio of you and your friends trying to say Humuhumunukunukuapua'a! Well, in this episode we up the stakes! Send your audio or video to girldolltalk@gmail.com and we'll pick one of the entries to receive a free Girl Doll Talk tote bag! Come on, girls! Get your friends together and take your best shot! We'd love to send you a free tote bag!

Would you like to have an interview on our show about your site? You can learn more at http://girldolltalk.gotop100.com/.

Do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes. And how about some Girl Doll Talk accessories? Check out our store!

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

11: Kanani Chat with author Lisa Yee

The 2011 Girl of the Year Episode: Welcome Kanani!

Well, we've all been waiting to learn about the 2011 Girl of the Year and she's finally available! Welcome Kanani!

In this episode, we talk with Stephanie Spanos, who heads up Public Relations for American Girl. She tells us all about Kanani, including the creative and fun ways to enjoy this new doll!

Also, in this episode we talk with the blog that is currently getting the most traffic through the Top American Girl Fan Sites contest we have going. Currently our friends at http://aggossipblog.com/ are on the top so we loved having the chance to interview all the founders in this episode!

Would you like to have an interview on our show about your site? You can learn more at http://girldolltalk.gotop100.com/.

Don't miss the special Kanani challenge we talk about in this episode! Here's a summary: one of the many things we like about Lisa Yee's Aloha Kanani book is that she includes Hawaiian words and how to pronounce them. One of the biggest tongue twisters is the name of a Hawaiian reef trigger fish: the humu­humu­nuku­nuku­āpuaʻa. (Get the book to learn more. You can also read this on Wikipedia.) We want you to record a video of you and your friends or family trying to say that word! You can record it in audio as well, though we prefer video. Be as creative or funny as you want! Send us your video (or audio with a digital picture) to girldolltalk@gmail.com. Make sure to get permission from a parent. Let us know what questions you have! We can't wait to publish you and your friends in an upcoming podcast episode!

Do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

And how about some Girl Doll Talk accessories? Check out our store!

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

10: The 2011 Girl of the Year Episode: Welcome Kanani!

2011 Girl of the Year!

We are so excited to receive the press pack this week for next year's Girl of the Year! She is soooo beautiful. We'll have a podcast episode out about her really soon!

And we look forward to talking with you! Thank you for the many e-mails in recent weeks! We wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas!

Christa and Mia

Take a Leap of Fun! A Short, Crazy Video Podcast

Hello American Girl fans!

Christa's brother Barrett works with Rocket Launch Media, which does cool web videos for small businesses. Anyway, he thought it would be fun to put together this crazy little clip for Girl Doll Talk.

We hope your summer is starting well! We should have our next audio podcast episode out next week. In the meantime, have a great day!

Take a Leap of Fun with Christa and Mia!

Do You Have a Question for Jodi Goldberg?

Hello girls! On Friday we're interviewing Jodi Goldberg from American Girl. She is the Editorial Director at AG so if it's published, chances are she is involved!

We have questions for her but want to get your voice in as well. What questions do you have for her?

Do you get the American Girl Magazine and have a question about it? What do you want to know about how books are designed or developed? She was heavily involved with the Kit movie so maybe you have a question about that?

Let us know and we'll try to get your question in! Thanks!

Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

We Want to Interview You!

Do you have an American Girl fan site? We would love to interview you!

Nearly every week we get requests from girls who want to be interviewed about their fan site. Which ones to pick? Well, how about a contest?

Just add your site to Girl Doll Talk's Top 10 American Girl Fan Sites! Each month we'll see whose sites are in the top 10 and select one or more to interview!

We'd love to let the world know about your site! Click here, add your site, and then let your fans know about the contest so they can vote for you!

We look forward to talking with you!

Interview with Mary Casanova, author of Jess, Chrissa, and Cecile!

Quick note: Would you like to be notified by e-mail each time we have a new episode published? Just click here and we'll do that! Your contact information is never shared with anyone. Ever. Period!

A couple months back we asked our listeners which author they would most like to hear from. Since Chrissa is so loved, it was no surprise that Mary Casanova, the author of the Chrissa and Jess books, ranked very high.

What did surprise us is how many other books Mrs. Casanova has written! She was so kind to send us an autographed copy of her book Cecile: Gates of Gold. Girls, as much as we love Chrissa... we like this book even more! Make sure to get your copy today!

Mrs. Casanova is a wonderful woman--so nice to interview! Don't miss some of the fun bloopers at the end of the episode!

If you would like to learn more about Mary Casanova, we invite you to visit her website and blog at http://www.marycasanova.com/.

In this episode we also interview Hannah and Katie from AG Gossip Blog and a guy listener named Blake. Plus we read some listener e-mail!

Do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

And how about some Girl Doll Talk accessories? Check out our store!

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

08: Interview with Mary Casanova, author of Jess, Chrissa, and Cecile!

Do You Have a Question for the Chrissa Author?

Wow! We are SOOOOO excited about interviewing another author this Thursday! We're going to talk with Mary Casanova who wrote the Chrissa books! She also wrote the Jess book!

Do you have a question that you'd love for us to ask? Leave a comment here and we'll try to get an answer! The episode should go live before the start of next week!

Thanks for your help! Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

Lanie Mania! An Interview with Jane Kurtz, Author of the Lanie Books!

Quick note: Would you like to be notified by e-mail each time we have a new episode published? Just click here and we'll do that! Your contact information is never shared with anyone. Ever. Period!

So you know all about Lanie, the 2010 Girl of the Year®. But have you had a chance to read the books yet? We've read the first one and really enjoyed it!

We thought it would be fun to interview Jane Kurtz, the author of the Lanie books! In this interview you'll learn more about the author who worked with American Girl to dream up Lanie, Dakota, and the rest of the characters in the series. You'll also learn some insider facts you can find in the book, and some cool stories about Mrs. Kurtz life!

If you would like to learn more about Jane Kurtz, we invite you to visit her website and blog at http://janekurtz.wordpress.com/.

In this episode we also read some listener e-mail from Johanna and Regan!

By the way, do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

And how about some Girl Doll Talk accessories? Check out our store!

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

07: Lanie Mania! An Interview with Jane Kurtz, Author of the Lanie Books

Lanie, Girl of the Year 2010: An American Girl Interview

Quick note: Would you like to be notified by e-mail each time we have a new episode published? Just click here and we'll do that! Your contact information is never shared with anyone. Ever. Period!

By now enthusiastic American Girl fans know that the 2010 Girl of the Year® is named Lanie! Welcome to the family, Lanie! The American Girl company was very generous to send us a press kit ahead of time to learn about Lanie. Keeping it a secret was not easy!

Thankfully the word is now free to go out so we thought you would enjoy hearing from Ms. Stephanie, the Public Relations Manager at American Girl. In this interview you'll learn some inside scoop about Lanie and all the cool things American Girl is announcing along with her!

As of January 1, 2010 the AG site will be updated with all the cool Lanie stuff you'll hear about in this interview. Check it out at http://www.americangirl.com/girloftheyear.

In this episode we also read some listener e-mail from Julia and Whitley and talk with our new friend Mandy, who helps us introduce the show!

By the way, do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

And how about some Girl Doll Talk accessories? Check out our store!

Finally, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks! Happy New Year!

06: Lanie, Girl of the Year 2010, An American Girl Interview

Video Podcast Interview with Jacqueline Dembar Greene!

Hello American Girl fans!

Did you listen to the podcast interview we had with Jacqueline Dembar Greene, author of the Rebecca books? We so enjoyed talking with her on the phone that day! She sent us a note earlier this month telling us she was going to be at the American Girl Place in Chicago and would love to meet us in person! You know what that means! Road trip!

It was such a pleasure to meet Ms. Greene. She is beautiful, smart, and was very gracious to spend time with us answering questions. Listen closely and you might even hear a sneak peek about an upcoming book!

Quick note: Would you like to be notified by e-mail each time we have a new episode published? Just click here and we'll do that! Your contact information is never shared with anyone. Ever. Period!

For our Jewish friends we trust you had a very Happy Hanukkah! And for those celebrating Christmas this week, Merry Christmas!

P.S. Tune in next week when we will be interviewing a person from American Girl about the new Girl of the Year! She is so beautiful and has a great story! We'll tell you more next week!

Video Podcast Interview with Jacqueline Dembar Greene!

Quick Update From Girl Doll Talk!

Hello American Girl friends and fans!

We hope you had a great Thanksgiving! We were crazy busy in November and didn't get an episode published. BUT.... today we went to the American Girl store in downtown Chicago for a very special event! We got some great video footage and will share that with you as soon as we can produce it!

Stay tuned! In the meantime, we pray you have a great start to your Christmas season!

Christa and Mia

Girl Doll Talk Interview with Jacqueline Dembar Greene, Author of the Rebecca books!

There are so many things we all love about American Girl, from the dolls to the accessories to the books and movies. But what about the people behind it all? Wouldn't it be cool to learn more about the people who dream up the dolls and their stories?

We are both big fans of Rebecca and love her stories. If you haven't picked up a Rebecca doll or any of her stories, check out our list of favorites here!

We thought it would be fun to talk with Jacqueline Dembar Greene, the author of the Rebecca books. We recently had the opportunity to have an extended conversation with Mrs. Greene and look forward to sharing it with you in this episode! She is such a nice lady! You can learn more about Mrs. Greene and her many books by visiting her website at http://www.jdgbooks.com/.

We also had fun in this episode talking with two friends that many of you know and love: Jasmine and Quinlyn. So, fans of American Girl, enjoy the interviews!

By the way, do you have friends and family members that love American Girls? Please tell them about our podcast! They can find it here or on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

Also, please write to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Let us know who your favorite doll is and why. Also, let us know if you have an American Girl doll related question. We might just be able to read your e-mail or even interview you over the phone! That would be fun to meet you! Send us an e-mail today! Thanks!

Quick note: Would you like to be notified by e-mail each time we have a new episode published? Just click here and we'll do that! Your contact information is never shared with anyone. Ever. Period!

P.S. It took longer to get this episode out than we originally planned. Christa is in Europe right now while Mia is home in the Chicago area. Here's a picture of Christa during a couple days of vacationing in London!

Another P.S. If you could hear from another author of American Girl books, who would you want? Answer our online poll to let us know. We'll see if we can get that interview in a future episode!

04: Girl Doll Talk interview with Jacqueline Dembar Greene, author of the Rebecca books

Here's the Birthday Idea--What Do You Think?

Christa's birthday is next Tuesday but we are celebrating it on Saturday night. Here is what we're planning to do: have an American Girl Photo Scavenger Hunt!

Each guest is going to bring an American Girl doll along with them (except for a couple friends who happen to be boys--they don't have a doll)! Everyone will be split into 2 teams and be given a list of things they need to get pictures of. For example: get a picture of a doll wearing a policeman's hat, which would require the team to find a police officer and convince them to give over their hat for a picture!

Each team will have an adult drive them to different places in our local town to try and get pictures of things on the list. Each picture needs to include the entire team and their dolls. And each picture will be worth a certain number of points. The team with the most points in the time allowed is the winner! In the process we all have a lot of fun!

What do you think? What are some creative pictures that the teams need to get? It would be fun to have some AG tie-in for the picture. For example, Kit has a tree house so one item could be "Get a picture of your doll in a tree house", with extra points given if there is a Kit doll in the picture.

Let us know what ideas you have! Thanks for your help!

Just Finished Some Great Interviews!

Wow! It was so fun to talk with Jasmine and Quinlyn tonight! Thank you for letting us interview you!

We also interviewed our surprise mystery guest tonight! It was incredible! Here's a clue: Their initials are JG. We hope to have the podcast episode out some time next week!

Any ideas for an American Girl birthday party at home?

Hello! Christa turns 9 years old in a couple weeks and we're thinking about having an American Girl party at her house. Any ideas on how to have a fun birthday party with our dolls?

Please leave a comment with you ideas or e-mail us at girldolltalk@gmail.com.

We'll let you know what we do! In fact, we might just make an episode out of it and give you credit if we use your ideas!

We have a really fun idea for the next episode, interviewing a very special person that we think all of you will know! Ah, but it's a secret until we publish the next episode!

Your American Girl friends,

Christa and Mia

Our First Video Podcast! Taking Care of Kaya's Bad Hair Day!

Hello! Thank you for listening to Girl Doll Talk, the podcast for fans of American Girl dolls!

We normally publish audio podcasts but we thought we would try a video podcast episode this time! Christa's Kaya has had a bad hair day and everything we do to fix things seems to make it worse! What's a girl to do?

Well, why not take a road trip to the American Girl Place in Chicago! In this episode you'll get to meet us and some friends as we go to get Kaya's hair fixed at the store's salon. Along the way you'll hear some interviews of fans at the store. In addition, we call some podcast listeners who contacted us, including Hannah, Lily, and Joelle! You'll hear about their websites and even a giveaway!

To watch the podcast here on the website, we've included it below using YouTube. If you want to watch it on your iPhone or iPod, just add our podcast to your iTunes list and it will automatically be downloaded. You can find us on iTunes at http://bit.ly/GirlDollTalkoniTunes.

We invite you to subscribe to our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/GirlDollTalk.

Here's an insider hint: try to find a guest appearance by an American Girl doll in the video! Which one did you see? We're not talking about Kaya! This one is more sneaky!

Quick follow-up: in our last episode Liz asked how long it takes American Girl to design a new outfit. We called American Girl and asked! They said it can vary but in general it takes about 18 months. Wow! We're sure it must be a lot of work to come up with the ideas and then make them available to the world!

Please leave a comment and let us know what you think of our first video podcast! Also, please send us an e-mail at girldolltalk@gmail.com. We'll try to read it in a future episode!

Taking Care of Kaya's Bad Hair Day!

Girl Doll Talk interview with Liz, founder of AmericanGirlFan.com

Hello! Welcome to this episode of the Girl Doll Talk Podcast! Thank you for listening!

There are so many fans of American Girl dolls everywhere! And there are so many cool places on the Internet that we can visit to learn and play and talk about our dolls!

In this episode we introduce you to a great website called AmericanGirlFan.com. The site is packed with cool things for girls who love their American Girl dolls. We had the opportunity to interview Liz recently and share our discussion in this podcast. Make sure to check her website out!

We also read some e-mails we received from Girl Doll Talk listeners. We even call Madison from Long Beach, California!

Hey, we would love to have you on the show! Send an e-mail to us at girldolltalk@gmail.com. Include your first name and where you live. We would love to hear who your favorite American Girl doll is and why. Also, you'll hear a special question from a listener in this cast. If you have some advice for her, please tell us in your e-mail!

Each episode we will select one person to help us introduce the next show! We would love to talk with you so send us an e-mail at girldolltalk@gmail.com!

Thank you for listening! Make sure to tell your friends about the show! They can listen hear on the website or on iTunes!

From your American Girl friends, Christa and Mia

02: Girl Doll Talk interview with Liz, founder of AmericanGirlFan.com

Welcome to Girl Doll Talk!

Welcome to the first episode of Girl Doll Talk! This is a podcast made especially for girls like us: fans of American Girl dolls! Thank you for listening to our podcast!

In this episode, we introduce ourselves and talk about this year's Girl of the Year: Chrissa. We also take a couple calls. If you have a question for us or a comment about the show, please send us an e-mail at GirlDollTalk@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you!

Thank you again for listening! Here's the show!

01: Welcome to Girl Doll Talk!