Scarce Toys: Cabbage Patch Kid theft, other stories of hard-to-find toys
Cabbage Patch Kids. Teddy Ruxpin. Tickle Me Elmo. This year's Hatchimals. There's always one toy that throws kids and parents into a frenzy.
Posted — UpdatedIt was around 1983. I desperately wanted a blonde Cabbage Patch Kid. And, for some reason, my mom decided I had earned one.
We waited in line at a Kay Bee toy store in Ithaca, N.Y., for hours with my heart set on that blonde doll (since I have blonde hair). Rumor had it that a shipment was coming in.
We waited. And waited. And waited. But finally, the shipment arrived. At this point, the store was humming. And I was near the front. That blonde doll was within reach!
And there they came. The workers stacked them up and let us choose. I rushed forward and pulled a box with a blonde doll from the pile. I was thrilled, looking at her. She was perfect with her two blonde braids. And then, as I stood in a daze of excitement and exhaustion, a woman ripped the box from my nine-year-old hands and marched toward the cash register.
My mom and I were dazed and confused. (And we both still have some words for that woman, wherever she is). Not wanting to cause a scene, I suppose, we reached back into the pile instead of running after her. All my mom could find was Peaches, the furry animal-like Koosas Cabbage Patch Kid doll, who I grew to love.
There is a happy ending to that story: Twenty years later, I finally got that blonde Cabbage Patch Kid when my sister-in-law gave my girls all of her old dolls.
I'm sure plenty of Go Ask Mom readers have stories about hard-to-find toys that they wanted for themselves or that they were searching for for their kids. Share in the comments!
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