Little Girl toy suggestions

[houseelf]

I need some input on a couple of little girl toys.

1. Does anyone's daughter play with the Lego kits extensively? I'm not referring to the generic box of Legos, but the kind that build a specific thing, for example Sponge Bob's house or Hogwarts castle. I'm interested in getting my 4 y.o. daughter into Lego kits because my son lives for Lego kits. He will spend hours creating these amazing things. (Let's just keep it on the down low that this sort of play enhances mathmatical & spatial reasoning without the presence of electronics or screens, which is a big lure for him.)

The vast majority of Lego kits appear to be marketed to boys' interests, with the exception of a couple of kits from the "Belville" line which are seriously overpriced. Thoughts?

2. My MIL is interested in buying my daughter an American Girl doll from the 'Just Like Me' collection. She is four and the AG site recommends these dolls for 8 and up.

I'm asking these toy questions psychotically early because I have Lego coupons that are about to expire and my MIL said that her experience with AG is that doll orders can take a very long time.

TIA,

Kelly

[Deebs]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

Does your daughter have Bitty Baby yet? It is great for a four year old. I don't think she's old enough to "get" the just like me doll, and that style of doll is a little tricky to dress, undress, etc. My niece got her first AG doll that was not a Bitty Baby when she was probably 5, and my sister had to eventually have the hair replaced because she completely knotted up the hair. Same niece didn't stop playing with her Bitty Baby until she was 10 or 11, so you would get a lot of mileage out of it.

We're not old enough for Legos yet, so no advice there.

[PrincessFiona]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

It's really hard to find girl lego sets, I agree. The girl section at lego.com has some unique offerings though:

http://shop.lego.com/ByCategory/Leaf.aspx?cn=44&d=412

As far as the American Girl doll goes. Amanda outgrew playing with dolls around the age of 9.... (unlike her mother who was still playing with dolls before she went to junior high <ahem>). I'd get the doll sooner than later just because they are spendy. They're totally appropriate and there are a lot of good things to go along with them.

Kris

[houseelf]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

Did/Does Amanda play with the Legos or did they largely go untouched? I've really only met one girl who was really into the kits. This is kind of my worry because these kits are not cheap.

Kelly

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

My 4 yo still plays with the duplo blocks from time to time. She likes to play with the regular legos at a friend's house. I'm not sure how she would feel about the goal of the kit. She might be more about the journey. I know they are expensive but could you just get one and see how it goes?

I'm not sure about the American Girl doll. We don't have those either. They like baby dolls to carry around or push in a stroller. They also like the Groovy Girls and the outfits for those (http://www.groovygirls.com/). Did she see Kit Kittredge? Waiting until 8 seems old to me. What kind of sharp parts or second grade themes do they include on those dolls anyway? Those dolls are expensive!

[Vanquisher]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

I doubt my daughter would touch lego kits, but she is as girly of a girl as they come. She loves Polly Pockets (and the Disney Princess versions of them) and she loves to draw and color and play dress up.

I agree that American Girl should be reserved for an older girl just because of the expense of the doll. THere are plenty of other dolls out there that would be great. DD has a doll that calls her momma and asks for her blankie. She really likes that. Mostly, though, it's all about the polly pockets here and reams and reams of paper.

[Phoebe]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

We're going to the American Girl store in Chicago a couple of weeks, as a weekend trip for the older girl's birthdays. DD#1 is turning 7 and wants an AG doll. DD#2 who is turning 5 will probably end up getting a doll, but really wants the dog. Both will be funded by MIL.

I hesitate getting these dolls because neither of my daughters have ever been interested in dolls except Polly Pocket and Barbie. There is a new Princess Barbie movie that comes out every fall right around my kid's birthdays and they usually end up getting something to do with the movie and the doll. Ella is more into this than the AG stuff. Avery wants the AG because her friends are into it. I hope they actually play with them.

Both of my girls play with legos and blocks. I am not sure about a kit. We have a small lego table.

[houseelf]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

No, not blabbing at all. DD is not into baby dolls all that much. She does enjoy good lightsaber play, however.

I think that the toys marketed for boys are just...better. Beyond the obvious arts and crafts that are marketed to girls, I think the legos, knex, playmobile, spygear, train systems are just more interesting. Clearly, there is some overlap between genders, like dress up and role playing, but on the whole, I find the girl toys to be uninteresting. :huh:

Kelly

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

We are AG doll fans here (me included.) Both of my dds have AG dolls. The oldest started getting them around age 5, and the youngest at age 2. They do play with them. I wouldn't worry about a younger child playing with the dolls b/c they're pretty durable. If you do have an accident, you can send the doll the the AG hospital to be repaired and she'll come back in a hospital gown with a Get Well balloon - something my daughter really liked.

We don't have any of the "Just Like Me" dolls, but shipping for the regular dolls only takes about one week.

There are book series and movies that go along with the dolls, and some of the dolls have best friend dolls that follow the story line of the movies. FYI - Ruthie is the newest doll and she's Kit's best friend, from the summer movie.

[KCwife]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

Do they still make "Ello"? My girls loved Ello and they were a GREAT girl Lego alternative.

[KCwife]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

Yes, they still do....
http://www.mattel.com/swap_feat/default_ello.asp

FWIW- My girls will still pull out the Ello's every once in a while. They are fun for me as well!

[Urowife]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

I loved playing with Legos as a kid, but I'm not sure that I'm typical of most girls. But, I loved making my own creations, as well as the kits. I would build houses, and use the little Lego people to play doll house with.

I think age 5-6 would be appropriate for American Girl. I got one when I was about 7 or 8, which was good because I could read the stories that went along with the doll. I think they are a bit more "fragile" than a Cabbage Patch kid, for example.

(side note: I can't wait to get back into toys again with my own kids! - I know, I know, I'm sure I'll take that back after about 5 minutes in Toys R Us )

[MDPhDWife]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

We have 2 DD's ages 4 and 7 and neither of them has expressed ANY interest in legos. We also don't have an American Girl anywhere near us so our DD's and most of their friend's haven't been exposed to them. We contemplated going to AG when we were in IL this summer, but decided against it just because we heard how expensive it can be.

One of the things that my kids LOVE is Build a Bear Workshop. That place has cost me a fortune, but I think they're really cute and it keeps them busy for hours. The other thing that they're really into is their Leapsters.

[scarlett09]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

I loved playing with Legos as a kid, but I'm not sure that I'm typical of most girls. But, I loved making my own creations, as well as the kits. I would build houses, and use the little Lego people to play doll house with.

FWIW, I also loved playing with Legos as a kid and had more fun with the regular bucket versus the kits. I also had the stable sets, and they got boring after awhile (although the horses were pretty cool).

I think it all depends on whether your daughter is more into the creation of a Lego car/house/Imperial Death Star or coming up with ways to play with the creation once it is complete. That might help you decide what kind of Legos/building blocks to get.

Mega Bloks has some pretty cool stuff too.

As for AG dolls, I have a couple of them and I did not get them until I was 9 or 10. I generally enjoyed dressing them and reading with them. But beyond that, they kind of sat around in their school desks. I would have probably preferred them more if they came in some sort of Lego version that allowed me to build their Colonial/Victorian/1940's style house.

[Michele]

Re: Little Girl toy suggestions

Tara, I don't consider myself old (28) but I have NO idea what an American Girl doll is. :huh: Maybe I should google it.