Recently, I took my daughter to the American Girl store at the Mall of America here in Minneapolis.

This was no regular trip to the store. This was an event. We made reservations for lunch at the café, and the night before she readied her Kit Kittredge doll with a new outfit and hairdo.

I had no idea how big of a deal this was going to be, but I was looking forward to finding out what the fuss was all about.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) reported strong Q3 results but warned of softness ahead.
• Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) beat earnings expectations and lifted its full-year forecast.
• AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) Q3 results were worse than expected despite the iPhone's popularity.
• Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) beat expectations but lowered its revenue guidance.
• Dice Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DHX) reported solid Q3 results despite the financial crisis.
• E*Trade Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFC) widened its Q3 net loss and revenues shrank.
• Gannett Inc. (NYSE: GCI) just missed earnings estimates as advertising revenues declined.
• Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) posted solid Q3 results that topped analysts' expectations.
• Mattel Inc. (NYSE: MAT) missed Q3 earnings expectations despite popularity American Girl.
• McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD) easily beat Q3 earnings estimates and lifted its dividends.
• Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) posted strong Q3 numbers but warned of slowing subscriber growth.
• Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) Q3 profits tripled due to cost cutting and sales of pain pill Lyrica.
• Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) topped earnings estimates, sending shares higher.
• Reynolds American Inc. (NYSE: RAI) posted Q3 results that topped analysts' expectations.
• Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) slashed its earnings forecast on weakness in flat panel TVs and digital cameras.
• Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) reported better-than-expected Q3 results.
• 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) solid Q3 results topped Wall Street expectations and it offered full-year outlook.
• VMWare Inc. (NYSE: VMW) Q3 earnings surged on strong growth in services revenue.

For more earnings highlights from this week, see Apple, Boeing, Microsoft, Yahoo!, UPS, American Express and others.

Watch for upcoming quarterly reports from Verizon (NYSE: VZ), Estée Lauder (NYSE: EL) , US Steel (NYSE: X), Aetna (NYSE: AET), Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), Qwest (NYSE:Q), Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA), Kellogg (NYSE: K), Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT), MetLife (NYSE: MET), Moody's (NYSE: MCO), Office Depot (NYSE: ODP), Avon (NYSE: AVP), CBS (NYSE: CBS), CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA), Eastman Kodak (NYSE: EK), Motorola (NYSE: MOT), Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), Washington Post (NYSE: WPO).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

The new American Girl Doll, Nicki, costs $86, by far the priciest doll in the collection. Her dog will set you back $24. The horse is $62, but its accessories are another $34. So all told, you're talking about spending over $150 on a doll for a girl.

One of the the hottest items in the doll category is the Bratz doll, which costs around $9. Which would you rather see on your daughter's wish list?

According to a Wall Street Journal article [subscription], American Girl Nicki is athletic and loves animals. "She skis like a demon, rides horses, trains guide dogs, plans school parties, washes the dishes, battles popularity crises, and helps her little brother with his math homework."

Over at the Bratz webpage, we see Sasha: "My friends call me 'Bunny Boo' because I love the hip-hop thang."

A look at pictures of the dolls is also very revealing. While Nicki is dressed ready for activity and fun, Bratz Megan, Roxxi, and Sasha are dressed like ... well, let's just say they are dressed in a way that very few parents would want their eight-year-olds to dress.