Dolls Are Okay for Your Baby Boy

Some social critics believe that inclinations to gender-specific toys are instinctive to a child. However, the results of a recent study conducted on babies contradict this long-standing notion.

A paper from the University of Sydney revealed that boys aren’t naturally fond of “manly” toys. The babies were shown photos of human dolls, cars, and stoves. The researchers then calculated the time the children took staring at the pictures. It turned out that dolls caught the baby boys’ attention more than cars and trucks did.

The Role of Toys as Imagination Boosters for Kids

She may be a mighty queen today and a fearless firefighter tomorrow. He may be a doctor, a painter, and a zookeeper all in the span of one afternoon. Children love to create and play inside their own fantasy worlds, a process that contributes greatly to the development of their creativity.

As parents, it is part of your delightful job to provide your little ones with toys and educational materials which will stimulate their imagination actively and safely. For example, toys such as wooden blocks let them build things, while stuffed animals have long been part of story time casts.

Toy Teachers: Eco-Friendly Toys Teach Kids to Care

Toys are your child’s constant companions, and they can also prove to be their greatest educators. For instance, My Sibling Dolls owner Loretta Boronat makes dolls that not only teach kids to look after the environment but also care for other people, particularly their brothers and sisters with disabilities. These dolls come with their own story booklets that revolve around certain themes and enable children to see the world from the perspective of their siblings with disabilities.

To help inspire kids to be more sensitive to Mother Nature, these dolls can be dressed in compatible 18-inch doll clothes recycled from real garments made in the United States. By choosing toys made from repurposed materials, parents can do their part in minimizing pollution.

There’s Nothing Wrong with Boys Playing with Dolls

As you may very well know by now, the best way for children to learn is through play. In that sense, there’s really no point in making toys gender-specific—girls can play with cars and boys can play with dolls, and both of them can learn real life lessons from the experience. After all, what’s wrong with portraying little boys as nurturers? If you’re raising a son, wouldn’t it melt your heart if he wanted to take care of a baby doll, knowing that it could potentially make him a great dad one day?

Caring for 18 Inch Dolls and Their Clothes

The decision is final: You’re going to splurge on an 18 inch doll for your dear daughter. After all, how can you resist all that pleading and begging going on for like forever? Consider yourself warned though, that 18 inch doll is just the beginning. Once she sees all the fabulous outfits and accessories available, you’ll be hearing more of that pleading and begging very soon.

Dolls and the Disabled Child: Best Friends

Children with disabilities don’t always find themselves with a plethora of friends. As a matter of fact, studies show that the disabilities they are suffering could even hamper their interaction with their brothers or sisters, much less their friends. This, in turn, leads to problems in socialization even as the child grows up.

Boy Dolls: Toys of Valuable Treasures

There is still the common notion that dolls are only for little girls. Though it may be true that majority of dolls are usually played by girls, it is still an undeniable fact that even young boys can benefit immensely from playing with dolls. There are a number of companies that create boy dolls, which are guided by the fact that all children, including boys, can discover treasures about life by playing with these kinds of toys.

How to Choose Toys for Children with Autism

Deciding what toys to give children with autism may seem challenging when you perceive that these children have “special needs.” However, a wide range of toys happen to be appropriate for their condition. If you’re aware of some autism concepts, you can find suitable toys:

Coping with Autism via Dolls

Autism spectrum disorder, known as simply "autism," is the fastest-growing developmental disability in the U.S. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate the number of children with the disorder at 1 in 68 as of 2010. At 1 in 42, autism is more common among boys.

Tips to Keep a Doll Collection Looking Brand New

More often than not, people purchase dolls so that their children have something to play with. For others, however, 18-inch dolls are valuable collectors’ items. If you fall in the latter category, you definitely want to keep your dolls in mint condition. This is a simple enough task if you follow the following tips:

Lose the Tan

Are you the type of person that likes to display his or her collection? If so, make sure you display your dolls away from sunlight. Direct sunlight is a doll’s worst enemy, as natural lights easily fade the color of a doll’s skin, hair, and clothes. The worst part is that the discoloration is uneven, making it difficult to repair.

Be aware of how the sun changes its movement patterns as the seasons change. If this proves difficult, you can always add treatments to your windows to keep your display area shaded at all times.

Smoke Outside

Cigarette smoke tends to cling onto a lot of fabrics, but doll clothes fabrics absorb the smell like nothing else. Removing the smell of smoke from dolls is very difficult, even for professionals. If you or a loved one smokes, do so outside your home.

Room Temperature

Take care to store your dolls in places where the temperature is regulated, especially if they are made of vinyl and other types of plastic. Very cold temperatures can lead to cracks along the body of your doll, while very warm temperatures can warp and discolor the body.

Repairing Doll Clothes 101

So you just bought a special 18 inch doll for your child. Along with customized accessories and clothes, your little one is sure to have tons of fun with his or her new pal. Hours of outdoor play, however, can take its toll on the doll’s clothes, resulting in torn seams or loose buttons. Before long, your child would come up to you, doll in hand, and request you to fix his or her buddy’s garb. Here are a few tips for repairing doll clothes you ought to remember:

Popped Seams

Taking care of doll clothes entails almost the same methods and principles as your actual clothes. Take popped seams, for instance; analyze the seam for the original holes and knot the loose threads at both ends. Sew in a thread of the same color as the original thread, with the starting and closing points a few millimeters off the edge of the open seam.

No Buttons?

The doll clothes you buy may include a full suit and tie get-up, or a buttoned dress. Regular dress-up games could eventually lead to loose or lost buttons. Considering how missing or loose buttons can make a doll look shabby, you’d want to sew these buttons back on as soon as possible. Simply grab a needle and thread, position the button on the fabric, push the threaded needle up through the fabric and through one hole in the button, and repeat the process until the button is securely in place.

A Few Tips when Choosing Toys

Toys are one of the things that characterize a child the best. Toys keep a child entertained throughout the day and help stimulate his or her senses. Children are always bound to radiate smiles upon the receipt of a new toy—whether for their birthday or during Christmas holidays.

This is why it is important for parents and guardians to surround their tots with the proper toys to help the latter have the ultimate childhood experience. There are several pointers that thoughtful adults should consider when buying toys for children:

Variety is king. Choosing toys that only function if used a certain way can easily bore any child. It is better to choose a toy that allows children to use it in different ways. A toy that has longevity on its side will make it a child’s favorite.

Use the child’s imagination to your advantage. A child is extremely rich in imagination, so a toy that aids the child in make-believe activities like playing house is invaluable. A girl or boy doll is a perfect example of a toy that mixes well with a child’s role-playing games.

Aim for cross-generation playtimes. Toys like puzzles that can be played by both child and adult will result to more exciting and meaningful playtimes than usual. Toys of this type allow the adult to spend quality time with the kids.