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Hi Teri,
Your post reminded me that I did the very same thing when I was younger. In the Year 1990 I bought a teddy bear for the sole purpose of giving it to my first born (which I was sure would be a boy). I know it was 1990 because he had a medalion saying 1990. Turns out I had a girl 8 years later and I did give her the Teddy but do you know, I don't even know where that Teddy is now.
Juliette
I bought a Ginny doll for my daughter when she was just under two to give her when she was older. I tried to give it to her when she was 5ish and it didn't stick. Then last Christmas my Mom gave her a 50's Ginny and just a few weeks ago she said she'd like another one. Lucky me I still have it. I also have bought AG stuff on sale that I like in case she might want it in the future when it isn't available or on sale. Last Summer I bought a Molly Girl sized Raincoat and hat in like new condition. It's too big for her and Molly wasn't one of her favorites but she is creeping up and I think it will be cool to give her the raincoat when she's into her a bit more. It was too good of a deal to pass up. I don't buy anything that I don't think I could make my money back on or that is just too impratical. I'm used to buying my kids clothes out of season and sometime a size or two big to get the best deals so it just follow through in some other areas as well.
Wow! What a varied bunch of responses. Really cool to see how you view the idea. [img]wink.gif[/img]
I have bought ahead, a year at the most, but it has been according to my child's tastes at the time. They were clearance toys only and yes, some of them were not played w/ or enjoyed, so I REALLY limit those purchases now. The old toys get weeded out & sold at least twice a year to cut down on clutter & make room for things they do love & play with...like AG, which btw, I would never sell. They do have special toys that we will always keep.
I have never bought what I liked/loved in hopes dd or ds would like it. If I like it, it guarantees dd will NOT. lol. I think Samantha is adorable & I love everything about her collection. DD's opinion on Sam? "She's o.k.".
Off season clothes? YES! I buy those BIG time. Just stocked up for ds5 & dd8 for next winter. Ds2 wears 95% hand-me-downs from his brother I am very fortunate that only a few items have been relegated to the "Mom, that's itchy, ugly, or I don't like it" pile. I resell all clothes that are still in good shape (Ebay for really nice stuff & children's consign. for the rest) & no tags are removed until they are ready to walk out the door wearing it the 1st time.
It is very sweet to buy a special toy or doll ahead of time for an expected (or just dreamed of) child. I was talking more of buying whole collections. That seems a little much to me. I do think it makes a difference though, if you have a baby who totes dolls all day. She will most likely grow into other dolls. I don't like the idea of kid's feeling obligated to enjoy what someone else does or relatives/friends disappointed when they don't.
I hope all the dollies that are bought are loved...as an idea of a future child (like Teri said, yes you made perfect sense to me [img]wink.gif[/img] ),for a growing little girl or for all the mom's & grandma's to play with.
Bren [img]graemlins/rose.gif[/img]
P.S. I followed my dd's lead on AG. If she had been waiting on direction from me, it wouldn't have happened. I didn't know much about them. I have loved all the phases dd has gone through..loving stuffed animals, Barbies (briefly), Wizard of Oz, Disney Princesses, baby dolls (at 7 1/2), and now AG. I get to be a kid again & enjoy all these "new" things w/ her.
My mom collected Ashton Drake porcelain dolls for me ever since I was little. I never cared one way or the other for them, I suppose because I couldn't play with them for fear they'd break! I still have them all. When my daughter was born, I HAD to get her a doll, I suppose since my mother collected dolls for me all those years. My daughter has grey eyes, and I searched forever for a PM Molly for her. Molly is also my favorite, not only because she resembles my daughter, but also because she reminds me of my grandparents. Somewhere in my searching for Molly I got hooked on AG, and in six months time have accumulated 14 dolls, outfits, and accessories. What I sell on eBay is simply reinvested into my collection! In any case; 'AGforAlison' really is a misnomer. It quickly became 'AGforMommy', but I hope someday she loves them as much as I, and if she does, they will all be hers, no questions asked. If not, Mommy will love them for her. She's only 7 months old, but I think we're on the right track. She loves to slobber all over her bitty baby, and she loves to be held up to look at the dolls on the display shelf. She looks from one to the other, gets all excited bouncing up and down and grinning!
My DGD's are 5.5years and 6 months. I just fell in love with AG last summer and we have 8 dolls now. 7 of them stay at my house, but the 5 year old got Kaya for Christmas and it lives with her. Since I keep her every afternoon we get to play a lot with the dollies.
The 6 month old received the crib, high chair and changing table for Bitty Baby for Christmas. She inherited all the clothes and toys from her cousin so there is no need to invest in baby things. When she gets old enough she will have the good stuff to play with. Bitty will probably be a 2nd birthday present if she is "into" dollies by then. That is based upon experience with her cousin.
The mother of the 6 month old collects Ginny dolls. I collected Madam Alexander and doll house miniatures for years. My daughter-in-law prefers new dolls, so the 6 month old will inherit 2 new historicals I have bought and have in the closet. Occasionally I buy an extra outfit for them, but we really play with all the new stuff I have bought.
My biggest complaint is that most of the new things I buy from AG won't fit my PM dolls. It is usually the straight sleeved things. The arms are just way too big on the PM dolls.
I have told my D-in-law that she can either keep the AG things or sell them. At least the baby will have an inheritance from her Nana if I am not here. I want to be fair to both granddaughters.
The only things I have collected for a future child is the AG Angelina Ballerina. I thought it would be a nice starter doll for a future daughter to learn to appreciate and take care of things without too much pressure. While doing my time at AG, I got Angelina, her winter coat and 2 outfits. Since then I have snapped up as many Angelina Ballerina books as possible on sale. I may do the same thing with the Hopscotch Hills books as well.
I figure a little girl will play with a stuffed animal like Angelina. She'll be exposed to AG through my collection, but she will not immediately inherit it. If she digs one of my dolls, she can earn it (like I had to) or she can earn the money to get whatever doll she wants. Then she hopefully appreciate the doll more.
My luck is I will have all boys, and my husband will be so mad when he catches me giving them Angelina to play with out of desperation. [img]tongue.gif[/img]
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">LOL! My 2 year old son LOVES his sister's baby doll. My dh rolls his eyes & grins as he goes to get "Wose" (Rose) for him to sleep with. Boys can play with dolls too.Quote:
Originally posted by shuffar:
My luck is I will have all boys, and my husband will be so mad when he catches me giving them Angelina to play with out of desperation. [img]tongue.gif[/img]
[img]wink.gif[/img]
Bren [img]graemlins/rose.gif[/img]
Originally posted by trvnbrn:
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">This reminds me of my littlest brother - when he was around two years old he was obsessed with one of my baby dolls. I didn't want him to play with her because I was afraid he would wreck her, so he would always sneak into my room when I wasn't there and steal her. He would carry her all over the place and it was really quite cute. And at the time, when you asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would say "a mommy!" Not a daddy, but a mommy. [img]wink.gif[/img] I guess he was practicing for his future occupation...Quote:
My 2 year old son LOVES his sister's baby doll. My dh rolls his eyes & grins as he goes to get "Wose" (Rose) for him to sleep with. Boys can play with dolls too.
Bren, I thought about my response even more as the day went on. My Mom gave me things she collected for me when I was teen. I remember thinking what in the world would I want that. I now as a adult cherish those items because they were from MY MOM.
I collect Precious Moments. I have at least 200 in my collection. Each time I get one I put a piece of masking tape on the bottom and who I want them to go too. My daughters might not even care for them right now but I know they will cherish them some day.
Even if they pack them up...LOL..
BTW they love PM as much as I do.
Nope. My mom and MIL do enough of that.
If I have daughters I'll buy them their own dolls. They are not touching mine. ;-)