Ok, I may be learning about all this because my girls are just getting to the appropriate age for American Girl, but I had never heard of these until this year.
About 9 months ago, I was looking for some good books for my kids to read that they would be interested in. I came across "American Girl" books and they looked pretty clean and like a fun read.
Who knew what I was getting myself into. I do love that these books all focus on historical events and I feel like my children are learning history at the same time as they learn to enjoy reading.
I had no idea the explosion that would ensue in our home once they fell in love. I have recently discovered that there is an American Girl web site where you can play different games with the different girls. On this site they also advertise the movies that are out/coming out. Did you know there were American Girl movies? I didn't. Well, we watched our first one yesterday on the Hallmark Chanel. It was very clean and well done for a Hallmark movie. My kids loved it! Apparently there is one coming to theatres this Summer.
The other big merchandise that goes along with the books and the movies is the American Girl dolls. When I first heard that there were dolls that coincide with the books, I thought "how cute, my girls would love that". So, I suggested this as a Christmas gift to one of their grandparents. I then went to the web site to find the specific girl that my girls were infatuated with at this moment and discovered the price. Maybe it is that I am an extremely cheap person and refuse to pay full price for anything or maybe you will agree to the absurdness of this. I expected these dolls to be in the range of $30-$45. To my extreme surprise, they start at about $90!!! Then there are the outfits you can buy for each doll that cost about as much as an outfit I would buy for my real, live children.
If that's not enough, I was also informed of the "American Girl Hospital". Yes, you read that correctly. There is a hospital for these dolls. You ship your doll (the first indication that this is not a real person) to this hospital and they fix whatever is wrong, put the doll in a hospital gown and bracelet and ship her back with a certificate of health. Ok, I want this to be heard here. If my children receive these dolls for Christmas, I will NEVER pay for them to be sent to the hospital! If you ever hear me say, "maybe we should send Samantha to the hospital", hit me over the head and remind me of what I wrote here.
Next, I'm sure they will start offering health insurance and a college fund. Does everyone realize that what we are talking about here is a doll?!! I just wanted to clarify that point.
9 comments:
Did you know they have a few stores also? One was on Jon & Kate Plus 8 and they have a restaurant in the store. They had little highchairs for your doll and they bring out plates and stuff for your doll also. It was so adorable. I can't imagine how expensive though.
Heck yeah! That's like the hospital we went to for Cabbage Patch Dolls where they are "born". The people there are dress as doctors and nurses and takes their jobs super seriously! My dad almost got kicked out for making sarcastic comments!
I've always thought the dolls were super overpriced, but the books and movies look like a great clean hobby!
Bran
My girls have had American Girl dolls since Noelle was 5 so... 11 1/2 years! Always a relative would buy them for the girls as they were too expensive for my budget.
Noelle gave her 2 dolls to my girls when she got too old and then my girls (Kianni and Arianna) each gave one to neighbor girls who'd always wanted one, but couldn't afford it.
Let me check with my kids and see if we have an extra one now that Kianni is too mature for them. I know Arianna still plays with her Samantha. I know we used to have Josefina and Molly.
Now, about the hospital. I've sent Kianni's Molly to the hospital because Kianni was so rough with her and dragged her around, her arm fell off. Kianni cried and was devastated and I couldn't put her back together (even with all the king's horses and men). Yes, it sounds ridiculous, but she was so happy when Molly came home with a new arm. What else could I do?
:-)
I'll get back to you on a possible "gently-used" American Girl doll we can give you and let you know which one.
Christina,
You are hilarious!! Just wait. After all my fuss, I'm sure the day will come when I consider the hospital. How much do their emergency rooms cost these days?
Cassie
Yep I have to admit too that they are WAY expensive...but on the other hand those dolls can last!I still have mine from when I was a little girl (it is now about 20 years old) that ny daughters play with and it has never been sent to the hospita. Which, if I am paying $90 for a doll and the head falls off..you bet I will pay to have it re-attached lol. My oldest is 8 and for her 9th birthday she has asked for an american girl doll. We are planning on going to Chicago to buy the doll...but this is just my excuse to go to all the wonderful museums Chicago has to offer lol. One of the great things about homeschooling...turning everything into "life lessons" and "educational opportunities"! LOL
Angela
Hahaha...
I was TOTALLY into all of that when I was in elementary school... Felicity was my favorite, and I saved up my birthday money and allowance money to buy her. I'm pretty sure it wasn't $90 back then, though... They are precious, and I still have her!
But yeah, big fan of the books, I think they're probably the reason I kind of know something about history even now.... I don't know if that's really neat or really sad that AG books are my history reference. :-P
Hope to see you again soon! Love the Blog!!
http://www.target.com/gp/search/602-0016399-2283017?field-keywords=our+generation&url=index%3Dtarget&ref=sr_bx_1_1&x=13&y=14 Target has some dolls that look like the American Girl dolls for a fraction of the price - might be worth checking into...
clcomstock,
I've actually heard of those dolls. The problem is my girls have been reading the "American Girl" series and know each of those girls by name. They know everything about each one of them. That's ok, if they do get the doll, someone else will be paying the big bucks for them.
I have Samantha and I loved her when I was younger. I treated that doll with the best care ever because I knew how much it cost my parents and grandparents. You should check Ebay, I noticed that used they're selling for about $30. They really do hold up well. Their hair is the most delicate but I've heard that they improved it, it's all about what type of hair brush you use (metal bristles only). I'm saving mine for when I have a little girl someday.
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