I am a collector of things.

1. Bells:



When I was nine years old, I began collecting bells. My father bought me a bell that reminded him of me; that began a life of collecting. Since that day, my father has given me a bell on my birthday and Christmas every year. I've picked up a few on my own; my friends have picked me up one here or there. And now, I have quite the collection. Most of my bells are Fenton glass. But, I have several others also.

2. Frogs:



I used to collect frogs. I only have a few at my current home; most of them are at my mom's house. I have frog figurines, stuffed frogs, frogs in a bathtub, inflatable frogs, frog keychains, frog pajamas, frog slippers, etc. etc. etc. I really liked frogs when I was younger. Everyone knew it. My birthdays consisted of opening frog after frog after frog after bell after frog. I don't get so many frogs anymore... but when I see a cute frog figurine at the store, I can't help but want to pick it up.

3. Barbies:



I always loved Barbies as a little girl. If I wasn't playing tricks on my little brother, I was playing Barbies with my cousin. I had two milk-crates filled with Barbies... But no Ken dolls. (This would make an interesting post later. I really need to remember to discuss this). Soon, I started keeping the extra special Barbies in their boxes. This started with the Holiday Barbies that my uncle would buy me for Christmas. I collected them well into my teenage years (right up until I moved away for college). After I moved out of the house, my mother threw away my crated Barbies. I am still devastated over that. I would love to look through them. Aside from a few haircuts (remember, there was no Ken doll - I had to make "Ken" dolls out of flat chested, generic, skipper dolls), they were all in really great shape. It's too bad they're gone. :(

4. Bing and Grondahl Figurines:



Okay, so maybe this can't really be considered a collection... but it's the whole reason I decided to blog about this topic. I recently found the strangest little figurines and I am completely smitten with them. The little guy above is "headache." There are three others that go with this collection: "earache," "toothache," and "stomach ache." I found a vintage headache and earache on E-bay and had to buy them. I got a fantastic deal. I am currently keeping my eyes open for the other two aches.

I'm not really interested in the painted figurines by Bing and Grondahl. But, I'm enamored by these babies. They're strange and beautiful. So, my collection will probably be complete after I find the other two. But, I may extend the collection into "anything involving strange little babies."

I collect other things... but these are my favorite collections. Do you collect anything?