Appropriate Age for American Girl Doll

My daughter got Molly at 6 and Kit came to live with us when my 2nd daughter was 5.
THe girls are now 13 and 15 and pretty much the dolls sit on a shelf but they were played with quite a bit from the time they got them until they were about 10 or 11.
I think she is a perfect age. Be sure to get the books. My daughters loved them as well.

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Grandparents bought our girls their dolls when they were that age. They LOVED them. But our 13 year old no longer plays with them, the 10 year old still does. However there are other dolls that are a LOT cheaper. My 10 year old received on bought at Target for about $39 I think. She loves that one just as much. Here is a link. http://www.BFCink.com/ For the clothes, if you google "18" doll clothes" you will get many sites that sell clothes that fit American Girl Dolls and their clones. I do not think the kids know the difference at that age, so I would start with the cheaper ones if I had to do it again.

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I got my daughter the Bitty Baby when she was younger. She is 6 now and has a regular doll, that she got last Christmas. I do have rules for her with the doll, as far as not bringing it outside. I think it is appropriate for her age though.

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My oldest daughter is 12 & just gave hers to my 6 yr old - they enjoy them for a while but they are expensive. I asked my mother in law to buy my youngest a less expensive one last year which I 'm glad she did because she doesn't even know where it is! My oldest was about 5 or 6 when she got her 1st one.

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we got them their first when they turned 5. they got their 2nd for kindergarten graduation (almost 6). now they're asking for felicity because she will not be sold anymore, so they're getting her and some accessories for xmas.
i personally dislike the existence of such a doll. i didn't even know it exists until we moved to NY. now, that's all my 6 year olds talk about.
they do not treat those dolls any differently then any 5 dollar doll, but i cannot restrict their play with them just because they're so pricey. so i let them bring them with them when we go out and about.
yes, kids are ready at age 5 and up.
parents will never be ready.

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I got my first American Girl Doll when I was 6, and loved it until I was about 8. Kids will grow out of toys so quickly just because it's not hard for them to lose interest.

whats the difference?? a doll is a doll right?? im confused here...

My granddaughter got her first one at 4 years old. She has always been really good with her toys. Mom also laid down the rule that the doll was not to go outside! --R. H.

I think it depends on your daughter. My older daughter got hers at 7 and she's always treated Ruthie very well. My younger daughter got Elizabeth at 5 and she's been drawn on, stepped on, and scratched. She LOVES that doll and takes her to every overnight at Grandma's, puts her to bed at night, and loves to dress her up, so I don't regret the early purchase, but we won't be taking Elizabeth to the doll hospital until my daughter is a little older and I know she'll be treated better.

Interesting. my daughter (almost 6)knows her cousin has one cousin is 6 1/2. and my sil really works to push the doll on my niece and make her love it. IT's something they enjoy together teaparties and going on special shopping trips to buy outfits etc. I will sit can play boardgames and puzzles and help set up race traces adn do art projects but i don't think i would be able to hype the amg doll up that much. So far my daughter hasn't asked for one. so i was thinking of waiting to just see if she ever asks for one. I love to read outload but just haven't gotten into the AMG books, i think when my daughter can read them herself she might, but i guess i'll wait until then.

I did see walmart sold kits that have the fabric so you can sew your own doll clothes that sounded fun to me.

I asked the same question last year! If she is into dolls at all, go for it! The whole "8 and up" for the age seemed ridiculous to me too--b/c many girls are done playing with dolls by age 9 or 10. The woman at the store did say that even as they get older, they all seem to go back to playing with Bitty Baby eventually b/c of the motherly instinct thing.

When my daughter was 5 or so, she got the Bitty Baby and some accessories and loved loved loved it! Eventually she also got Samantha (around age 8) when it was all the rage with her classmates and they were all reading the books. We got a couple of good years out of Samantha - we would suggest accessories to family and friends when they asked for gift ideas - so accumulated quite a bit of gear. My niece (4 years older) was obsessed with Felicity, so I think my daughter wanted the doll mostly to fit in with her friends and cousin. I was disappointed that she lost interest in it so quickly. I have it carefully packed away, so hopefully one day she can pass it along to someone else. I don't regret buying it for her, just wish she'd gotten a little more mileage out of it since it was so costly. But some kids are like that, on to the next new thing before you know it! If you think at 51/2 your daughter is able to care for the doll properly, I don't see any reason not to get it now. With luck, she will play with and enjoy it for a LONG time! :)

My stepmother gets all her granddaughters a Bitty Baby for their second Christmas. She then gets them the Just Like Me (I think that's what it's called) doll the Christmas they are 3 (or 4 depending on how bdays fall).

If she likes dolls, I say get it for her. If she doesn't play with dolls, then no.

I just bought my 5.5 year old her first American Girl doll and she loves it. I don't think 5 is too young. I am actually going to buy my soon-to-be 3 year old the Bitty Babies for Christmas this year, too! Good luck, they are fun dolls.