Four years ago, we bought Jordan’s first American Girl doll. It was a Bitty Baby and I even let her pick out an outfit that matched her baby. She loved it SO much. But the very first time she put on the outfit that matched, she told me she wished she had two hands like her doll. Since then, I’ve tried to come up with ways that won’t destroy her American Girl doll but would give her a chance to enjoy a doll that really is just like her. Last year, Jordan got her first My American Doll. She loves her very much and loves finding matching outfits. We even have a Christmas outfit planned to match her doll this year.
I started sending email four years ago to American Girl’s media relations department to find out what it would take to create a limb different doll but I’ve been ignored each time I’ve sent a note. Other readers of Born Just Right tell me they’ve been told flat out that American Girl will not make limb different dolls. There just aren’t many options for our kids. There’s actual research from 1992 that found amputee dolls really help kids in communicating and sharing details about limb differences.
I’ve found a few sites that sell limb different dolls. It includes Karens Kids special needs dolls and there are Sew Able dolls with leg limb differences. When Jordan was a baby, we bought her an AmpuTeddy. It came with a teddy bear with an arm difference and a teddy bear prosthetic that slipped on top of the little arm. It is super cute… but the website says they don’t make the bears anymore.
So… What do we need to do to convince a major doll maker to help support the small set of kids with limb differences? I’m willing to pay extra. I could purposefully alter a doll on my own, but I am the least crafty mom out there and I’d hate to actually break a doll in an attempt to create a limb difference. Would a letter campaign help? A “Bald and Beautiful” Facebook campaign to create bald Barbie gained HUGE steam earlier this year. After a national campaign and hundreds and thousands of supporters, there’s a True Hope line of Moxy and Bratz dolls available at Toys R Us.
UPDATE: I was given the heads up on another teddy bear that is for sale. It’s the Sarah Bear – but for now, there is only a lower limb difference bear. The owner of a Sarah Bear and Born Just Right reader, Shauna, tells me they’ve discussed limb different bears with and without prosthetics but there hasn’t been enough interest so far. If you are interested, let the folks at Sarah Bear know!
I’d love your thoughts. Wouldnt it be amazing if limb differences were mainstream enough to create limb different dolls available for purchase at a mainstream store? That would be remarkable.
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Maybe an email campaign could be launched.
That’s worth a try!
I’m with you on this one Jen. I was very disappointed when they told me no earlier this year. Ella loves her American Girl doll and I agree with you that I would be willing to pay more if necessary to get something like this made for her. You have my support with whatever way you try to make this change happen.
Thanks Melissa!
I am on board. Let’s do an email campaign. I have a limb difference play group here we could all write in!
I’m with you on this. It’s hard, because we want our children to be confident in their skin, but manufacturers are making all dolls in one mold. I was slightly encouraged when I saw on AG that you could order a doll with no hair, if your child is battling Cancer, but still no limb differences. If it really is MY AMERICAN GIRL DOLL, then you should be able to do this modification to make my daughter feel special!!
@Jen – A limb difference play group? Oh my gosh. I want one of those!
I’m with you there, Carrie! There are very few things I do to modify Jordan’s life. But wow, it would be special to have a doll that is really just like her.
I have a great niece with Amniotic Band syndrome, and she has some missing and incomplete fingers and toes, and I am certain that she would be amazed to have a doll like her.
Our family is on board! I know there are times when one of the girls barbie’s arms fall off, and my youngest, Kimee, who does not have a limb difference, automatically starts telling me “she’s ok mommy, she’s like Bettany” (She’s 4 and LOVES the movie soul surfer.) Seeing just pictures of other kids who are like Caitlin, 6, affected by limb differences, doesn’t only help Caitlin, it helps her sister too. A doll, would be amazing! Considering the American Girl Doll company stresses (I just received a catalog with it on the entire cover) their hospitals, I don’t see why they can’t easily alter one of the dolls arms/hands/legs/toes to match a REAL American girl.
I agree. I would be interested in doing something!
My husband and I discussed this recently. We would be willing to pay extra for our little girl to have one doll in the world like her. I would join in any campaign to make this happen.
Okay everyone! I’ll investigate an email and a mailing address. I can’t launch a new Facebook page just because I have a job that’s pretty time consuming but I’m totally willing to back someone who wants to launch a Limb Difference Doll Facebook campaign!
Hi, My granddaughter has a lucky fin for her left hand. Small little hand w/nubbins. She calls it her baby hand. My daughters friends mom made her a doll from an old pattern like the cabbage patch that she made w/a baby hand like hers. My granddaughter is Gracie and she names her doll Macie. Gracie is 4 yrs old. I dont know how to post a picture here or I would post one. She is a cute little doll.
I love this idea and our kids would greatly benefit from this as would other kids by being exposed to it. I tried this a few years ago with Vermont Teddy Bear after I found out AmpuTeddy didn’t exist anymore…. I don’t want to be pesimistic but you’ll likely get the same disgusting response I received, that is if they ever respond…. But in all the toy companies sort-of-defense if they create a LBE doll, then they need a LAE doll, and right side, legs etc etc. So to just cover amputations they’re looking at between 4 to 8 different dolls. And that’s not including if you wanna get real crazy and have multiple appendages. So at this point the company has a pile of different types of limb different dolls, and then someone wants a doll with downs or a wheelchair or a back brace or whatever. The company isn’t going to make dozens of different dolls to make all of us different consumers happy and they aren’t going to make one group happy without trying to make others happy too and then not-in-their-defence: it’s simply not ‘cost effective’ for them.
Another option, take a deep breath and alter the dolls arm. AG claims they’ll fix or replace the doll if anything happens to it……. Make it have a limb difference and if Jordan ever wants it to have 10 fingers again, or if your craftiness is really, really bad, then just send it into the doll hospital to get ‘fixed’. (just don’t tell them you purposely amputated it……that conversation will not go well)
Penni – that’s such a great idea. Feel free to post a picture to the Born Just Right Facebook page: http://facebook.com/bornjustright or email me: jen@bornjustright.com
with so many difference in our great country – I see this perspective well. But I also see AG’s point, they only create dolls based on their books. You need to locate a writer who writes about the differences children have and push them to work with AG
Great idea. I hope American Girl will listen because I think it’s fantastic.
American Girl also has the My American Girl collection that is supposed to look like the girl who owns the dolls. If American Girl just made dolls for its books, I’d totally understand!
I recently repaired my old AG doll using a tutorial I found online. Molly’s leg had fallen off and her other limbs were loose. Their limbs are hollow, or, at least my old 1989 Molly’s limbs are hollow. If you cut off part of your daughter’s doll’s arm, there would be a hole. You might be able to put a baby sock or other tight material on the remaining portion of the arm, sort of like a cast. And then tell your daughter to leave the sock on so that dirt and junk doesn’t get into the hollow part. It would be hard to clean out.
You could also just take the entire arm off. That way it wouldn’t be damaged & you could put it back on again if you ever wanted to sell the doll when she’s older.
A third option would be to go to a craft store and buy that putty stuff that people who make dolls use. I can’t remember the brand name. It’s for people who get the “ball” doll head and sculpt the facial featured with the putty stuff and it hardens like vinyl. Then, you could cut off part of the doll’s arm and use the putty to fill it in & give the end a nice, rounded look and you wouldn’t have to worry about a hole or hollow arm. That doesn’t take much crafty skill. If you can make a ball out of play-doh, you can do this.
Thans for the ideas, Meg!
Thanks for this post and the discussion . . . even if AG doesn’t make any changes, I’m thankful for the ideas here. Perhaps a niche business for someone out there to do customized alterations for dolls and animals, in order to accomodate the many differences that Nina mentioned above. I think there could be fairly wide appeal there, even reaching into the far more commonplace (broken arms and legs, casts, crutches, etc.)
As for me, this discussion has made me think about how I might be able to alter a small bear or animal to be a friend for our little guy. (Our son’s left arm stops at his wrist.) We’re bringing him home through adoption in a month or so, and this website has been an AWESOME resource as we wait and prepare our home and hearts. Thanks so much.
I’m so glad. Megan! I agree… we can at least open the conversation. I’ve already gotten so many more ideas since I wrote this post.
Congrats Megan on your son !! My granddaughter Gracie has what we call a baby hand. You will see that he will lead a normal happy life. Maybe a few bumps on the way…but hey we all have them don’t we !!!
I was just thinking something like this a couple of months ago, however since Mighty Z is vent dependent I was think along the thoughts of a trached American girl doll.
Wouldn’t that be remarkable? It would be so cool if a mainstream doll company thought of the many different challenges kids face and creating ways to customize to match our kids.
There is a doll company which i beleve is still in business called My Twinn. Very si
ilar to AG. For an extra charge they will custo
ize a doll. My daughter was born with a partial arm and has a Twinn
Doll just like her!
Shanan – that’s so super cool. I’ll have to investigate.
I just went on a live chat with someone at this company and asked. She said that they used to do this but don’t do limb different dolls any longer.
Rats.
KarensKottage website sells special angel dolls that include limb different and prosthetic. They are soft dolls. She also has a line similar to the AG dolls so might be amenable to adapting those.
Thanks Kimberly!
I just emailed American Girl today. I was told very nicely they can’t make them for children who have differences. It is disappointing and sad that we can’t get them made. My daughter wanted one until she realized it won’t look just like her. I wish there was something that we could do. They also said they get requests like that all the time. I wish they would do something about it then.
It really stinks.