Do you have a little girl? Do you know about American Girl dolls? I wasn’t familiar with them, but Mimi got the Ladybug one several years ago. We didn’t think much about it at first, it was just another toy. Then Mr. Fix-It and I went Christmas shopping together and saw Fishnet Stockings Barbie (Ok, that wasn’t her name, but that was what she was wearing.) and we knew we had to find a better way.

We think American Girl is a good alternative to things like Barbie, and even more, things like Bratz, and Monster High. (Honestly, I’m not even putting links in because it turns my stomach that we consider these childhood toys.) It’s not the whole answer, but we think it’s a good company.

Their mission statement says “At American Girl, we celebrate girls and all that they can be. That’s why we develop products and experiences that help girls grow up in a wholesome way, while encouraging them to enjoy girlhood through fun and enchanting play.”

And the whole company started local to us, here in Williamsburg, with historically based characters and stories. We started encouraging her to play with her American Girl doll, named Julia. We’ve encouraged her to get and read the books, we’ve made her doll clothes and a doll bed to play with, and when I found out that several of her friends from church also had dolls, we’ve encouraged her to take Julia (when appropriate) and play too.

Having said all that good stuff about them {BTW, American Girl doesn’t know me and this is not a sponsored post. This is just our experience as the conscientious parents of a little girl.} I would also like to point out that we live in a society of rampant consumerism and all good things can be overdone–which is kinda how I felt after visiting the store. (And supposedly, the Tysons Corner store that we visited is the smallest one!)

But the girls really enjoyed it. Here’s a few tips if you’re planning a trip for your little girl! (Especially if you’re little girl is a country girl and only knows American Girl through the catalog! {grin})

1. Don’t rush

The stores seem to stay open very late (ours was open until 9:30 pm!) so you have plenty of time to shop, take a break, and shop some more. We even went back to the hotel for a while and then came back.

2. Bring your doll

They’re welcome, of course, but it will also keep her hands too full to touch and reach for every. beautiful. thing. And all the other little girls all over the mall have their dolls, so it’s a great conversation starter!

3. Plan ahead

The Store schedules all kinds of free activities for visitors. We did a Kaya belt pouch craft. There was also a historic character scavenger hunt scheduled (we missed that), and some Stores do hair braiding classes or movie viewings.

4. It’s not all about buying

Or at least, it doesn’t have to be! The doll accessories and historic character stories are very detailed. Don’t miss the opportunity to see and learn. It’s set up almost like a museum with little vignettes in each of the cases. You can see how Kaya’s teepee is constructed. You can see Kit’s flour-sack dress. You can see Addy’s handmade quilt. The Ladybug was quite taken with seeing the character’s rag dolls.

Which goes hand-in-hand with #5…

5. Make a list

We didn’t do this, but I saw one Momma and her little girl who was so smart! She had a list of everything she wanted to see and/or buy while she was there and they were either crossing it off or circling it.

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6. Skip the food

It wasn’t that good. It was expensive. It was a strange mix of little-girl decor and only-adults-would-want-it food options. There’s plenty of other restaurants in the mall and surrounding area that you’ll enjoy more.

7. Consider dessert only

That would have been more fun, and less expensive.

 

8. Make appointment’s first

If you’re getting the doll’s ears pierced or hair done (yes, they have a doll salon!) make the appointment first thing when you get there and plan the rest of your visiting time around that. They don’t have a loud-speaker (not sure why?!) and you pay when you make the appointment, so if you miss them calling your name, you’ll end up at the end of the line waiting. Again.

9. Plan to buy something

I know, I know, I said it’s not all about buying. But you’d be crazy to expect her to go in there and keep her little wanter under that much control. So just budget for a purchase. (We let the family know we were taking the trip so they could send her birthday money early so she could spend it there if she wanted.)

And don’t forget there are lots of products besides the dolls and clothes–and they’ll all be available there too. They have a wonderful series of books for each character, craft kits, scrapbook kits, stickers, movies, and more. (I told you, they’re a marketing machine!)

10. Set a budget

This isn’t the time to start trying to teach your daughter about money management–she’s going to be too excited to take it seriously! But if you’ve already laid a good foundation, then make sure you go over the budget with her before you go in. Then look at everything first, maybe take a break away from the Store to think, and help her decide. I was very happy that we didn’t have any tantrums or melt downs with any of our girls–even though no one got the $350 car.

I wouldn’t introduce money management to her in the middle of the Store–but if you’ve already started that training, now would be a great time to illustrate financial discipline and help her stick to the budget! (You too!)

Honestly, I think you can lose perspective with these things easily. Our adventure was the whole girls’ weekend, not just the Store. And I think the Ladybug saw it that way too.