Today is Barbie’s birthday and brings back memories because when Barbie debuted fifty four years ago today, every little girl in America wanted one. Everyone knew her, and her zebra striped bathing suit was iconic. My daughter was facing a tonsillectomy and yearned for a Barbie doll. I promised her one, and then found that there were none to be found anywhere. I ordered one from the Sears Catalog and instead, they sent us Mitzi. She was obviously Barbie’s older, more worldly sister. She wore a lot of makeup and we weren’t sure where she went at night. But Daughter had her doll, and we came to love Mitzi. It was two years till supplies increased and we could get a real Barbie and by that time, Mitzi had wormed her way into our hearts. After Barbie came, I looked into Daughter’s room and saw her playing with Mitzi. Not Barbie? “Oh, Mom,” she said wisely, “You don’t stop loving one baby because you get another. For more on Barbie’s birthday, here’s a page from Today in History: http://tinyurl.com/arzq9rz
