anatomically-correct dolls

[holliam]

So, crunchy-wannabe mama here purchased a lovely little Waldorf doll for her girlie who seems to think it's a puppet! LOL Yes, I think it is too unrealistic for her not-quite-2 mind and she keeps stuffing her hand up her shirt wondering why she doesn't work!

Then DH comes home from a children's museum with a picture of DD giving a doll a bottle! He said she LOVED it! We had no idea she did that because she doesn't like our dolls!

So, I'm swallowing my pride and finding her a doll. However, if she wants realistic, she's getting realistic so I want to find an anatomically-correct one for her.

I have seen BabyBottoms and I think Corolle makes one. Any tips?

Holli

[elliput]

I just got a good laugh out of your post. No suggestions on an anatomically correct doll. But I did get DD this Corolle doll a couple of weeks ago. http://www.corolledolls.com/corolle_catalog/product_detail.php/pid=536~subid=117/index.html Soft body and flexible face. Less than $15 too! :-)

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/33198.jpg

[annasmom]

We have a Furnis doll, which is anatomically correct, but it is not a baby doll. Here is a link:

http://www.oompa.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?&category=search&query=%5Ebrand%2Esql&q-1=Furnis&pageTitle=&start=16

[ellies mom]

Arghh!! Holli, you are breaking my heart! I think you have finally put the nail in the coffin of my waldorf doll dreams. My DD basically ignores the waldorf doll I made for her with love but carrys around the ones they have at our play park all the time. I'm finally getting to the point of sucking it up and getting her a regular doll also. I haven't found one I like yet though. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up on the waldorf dolls completely, I'm just going to admit that the next one I make is for me. Good luck on your quest. I know how hard it must be.

[holliam]

LOL! I have to tell you that I was half-expecting an anatomically-correct puppy or something! I knew Furnis made adorable animal puppets and when you said it was not a baby doll...well, I couldn't help but make that leap!

Related to that, anyone remember the TV dog star Benji and his gal Tiffany? I actually had a stuffed Tiffany dog that UNZIPPED and about 5 puppies came out of her--some looked like her and others looked like stud Benji. I loved that silly thing, but the whole idea of it just makes me laugh so hard now. She was awfully floppy when the puppies were removed!

ETA: I did have a stuffed Benji too, in case you were concerned about Tiff caring for all those puppies as a single dog!

Holli

[tarynsmum]

I had the same thing! As I recall, the fun (I guess) part was that Tiffany could have 3, 4, or 5 puppies. I remember I was over the moon when I unzipped my Tiffany and got my five puppies!

Now that I'm thinking back on it, that was a crazy thing. Who in their right mind would market a dog that unzipped and had little puppies stuffed inside? lol...

Ah, the good ol days...

[annasmom]

Oh my, an anatomically-correct puppy! That is quite a visual image! You probably thought I was NUTS!! Actually, my dd would probably like that better than a doll, she loves her animals but we haven't had much luck with dolls. I refuse to give up however and am about to purchase her a waldorf doll from the co-op. Is this more for me than her, lol!?!?

[american_mama]

Here are photos of the Baby Bottoms infant dolls. Based solely on these photos, I'm a little disappointed in the realism of the girl dolls.

http://www.tendertreasures.com/catalog/childrens_gifts_accessories_and_toys/baby_bottoms_dolls.html

And the toddler doll with potty, although these photos don't really show the anatomical parts:
http://www.tendertreasures.com/catalog/childrens_gifts_accessories_and_toys/baby_bottom_dolls_with_potty.html

Eileen on the boards and someone else have these dolls and can describe it to you, if you need more info. than the photos.

www.tykiediapers.com has the best price on the dolls.

I ended up getting a Corolle doll instead of the Baby Bottoms because my DD didn't seem to respond to any of the stuffed dolls. I got Babipouce African-American and really like how it has a stuffed head and feet, so it's light and soft. The vinyl face is softer than a lot of vinyl. However, it's not anatomically correct and I don't recall seeing any anatomical Corolle dolls.

Holli, Corolle is supposed to be coming out with their first medium-skinned multiethnic doll any day now (but not anatomically correct). It is a Calin doll called Calin Charming or Calin Darling, as I recall. I am attaching a photo that Corolle customer service sent me in early March, saying it would be out in April. Northpoletoys.com said they will carry it. Hope I got that website correct.

[ellies mom]

Thanks to Erika's Corelle link, I found this one this morning. Do you think this is the one you are talking about?
http://www.corolledolls.com/corolle_catalog/product_detail.php/pid=441~subid=93/index.html
http://corolle.cataloglibrary.com/corolle/images/detail/116_d.jpg

It is one of the cuter ones I've seen and I think I'll be getting Ellie this one. Now if only I can find good curly hair dolls for the future.

ETA- Karen, I completely missed your link earlier but it is hard to tell if it is the same doll.

[pritchettzoo]

I am curious as to the reasoning behind the anatomically correct dolls. My DD doesn't seem to be upset by the perpetually-onesied dolls she has (or the stuffed critters with no nethers)... Just curious here! :)

Anna
Mama to Gracie (Sept '03) and Eli (July '05)

[mudder17]

Hee, hee, I've been where you have, although Kaya hasn't tried to use the soft doll as a puppet. But, sigh, she definitely prefers the vinyl-faced, more realistic dolls that she can give a bottle to. Yes, my exclusively-breastfed-refused-the-bottle-and-pacifier baby is obsessed with giving her friends and dolls bottles and pacifiers. Sigh.

She has the correlle doll that goes in the water and she has another one that I picked up at a secondhand shop. And she has a tiny one that I got from a local toy store for something like $2.99. It has an outfit and a hat, although the hat has disappeared. And that cloth BabyBottom doll? Well, she plays with it occasionally, but it mostly sits on the bookshelf.


Eileen

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/candle.gif for Leah
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_sapphire_24m.gif

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/t/catcatcvi20040222_-6_Kaya+is.png
Kaya will be a sister, ~11/14/06!

[Marisa6826]

Yeah, I gotta say that I don't get the compulsion over the anatomically correct things.

Sophie doesn't think any less of the basic babydolls she has. It's not like a normal baby would have a vinyl face or stuffing inside, so why would it make any difference if it didn't have 'real' parts?

Isn't it all about imagination anyway? I'm not trying to be rude, I just don't get it.

-m

[holliam]

Lots of reasons, and I certainly do not expect her to be upset if I didn't.

Holli

[holliam]

Wow, it's certainly not a compulsion.

And really, I don't expect it to have functioning parts, but those vinyl faces do have eyes, nose, and ears.

Holli

[kath68]

Seriously -- I am curious, too. I confess total ingorance on this one. Is it a Waldorf thing? Is it something to do with potty training? Is is to teach comfort with all your parts? Is it an attachment parenting thing? You aren't the only person to post about it, so I don't mean to single you out or make you uncomfortable. I am legitimately interested. If you don't want to respond, that's cool; I just find it interesting -- the different choices parents make.

FWIW, I have a IRL friend who has always stressed anatomy and using the proper words for male and female parts. Her 6 year old is sweet in an embarassed way as she makes him say words like "uterus" (he is coming to that age). I have never really understood what it is all about, but she seems to think it is really important.

Thanks for clarifying this for me (if you choose to).

[pritchettzoo]

Okay, well, since you seem to be reticent for some reason to answer, can anyone else?

I was really curious. I wasn't being rude. But it seems like it's being received that way and responded to in kind.

Do they have just sort of shaped labia on the outside? I really am curious as to the reason. Dolls don't have knees or elbows or brains or... Just wondering why the penis and labia (if that's what is there as there are no pictures because some pervert would probably use them for other purposes) would make them "anatomically correct" when they're missing 9000 other parts. Are they used for potty training? The ones on Tykie come with tiny little toilets. ???

Anna
Mama to Gracie (Sept '03) and Eli (July '05)

[aliceinwonderland]

Raising hand in ignorance too!! I mean, if all dolls had penises, yes, i'd protest and ask for the other side to be well-represented too. But I'd think, once you go down the anatomically correct path, doesn't it, umm, become very individual, what the "correctness" is?

DS has a boy-doll, he calls it "baby", and no penis as far as I know...I'm not that upset over it...

[holliam]

I think using words like "compulsion" and "upset" makes it seem like you are already assigning judgement. I wasn't trying to be rude. Was just in a hurry.

But, nope, I'm not compulsive nor upset about this. Gosh, I don't think I sounded like that in my OP. I was pretty light-hearted and poking fun at myself.

I'm actually cracking up because this is really kind of ridiculous. Do you really care about my doll choices? ! I just have several reasons why I'm wondering what ones are available. If I don't find one I like, then so be it.

If I had posted asking for hispanic dolls, would people have used the same words? I hope not, but isn't it the same concept? It's just a doll characteristic I'm interested in.

I mean, it's a doll. This just seems like a silly discussion. If you don't get it, don't buy it! I'm not out to convert the world to anatomical dolls! Really!

Holli

[american_mama]

Veronica:

No, I don't think that's the same style of Calin doll. I think the new one has a lighter skin tone than the Calin African-American dolls, plus the outfit is different.

What I have deduced is that Calin dolls vary by things like: outfit, hair color, eye color, whether eyes open or close ("sleeping eyes"), whether there are real eyelashes or not, mouth expression, teeth or no teeth, and... I think that's it. They are very small differences which are usually not spelled out anywhere.

For the African-American Calin dolls, I think there are only two or three choices, and the differences will probably be even subtler, since I think Corolle keeps the eye color and hair color the same on them. If you really want to know about all the Calin African American dolls, email me and I can check my links. The skin tone of the dolls appears very different on various websites, but in real life, I suspect that all the Calin African-American dolls are the same skin tone.

The Babipouce African-American doll has brown eyes, painted eyelashes, no hair (it wears a cap), no sleeping eyes. As it's teletubbies body shows you, it's styled to be more of a cuddly doll than a realistic one. The skin tone is a little lighter than a milk chocolate bar.

Veronica, if you want some other doll choices, just email me. I want to write an email about it to a few friend with biracial kids, so I don't mind the prod to taking keyboard.

[oliviasmomma]

I totally respect that you don't want to answer this question--but I was wondering too. DD isn't into dolls yet, but I have learned so much from this board already. It seems like most of the posters have well thought out reasons for their opinions, and often I learn something! (Not just toys, but clothes, etc. Thanks to this board, I made it a priority to buy unit blocks, a wagon, play silks, etc...)I've never thought about anatomically correct dolls before, and I genuinely wonder why a parent would choose one over the standard type doll. If you don't want to answer the question that's fine, but can you point me to a source that discusses them? Thanks!

[holliam]

I guess my point is that I think this isn't one of those issues in which I think there is some deep wisdom in which I could educate anyone.

Some professionals use them for sex education and for working with sexually abused children. Some parents and child care providers use them for potty training. I'm sure you can find more info with google searches.

I'm not really trying to be evasive. I just don't think I have any great wisdom aside from thinking it would be a good choice for my daughter for many reasons! It's honestly just not something I really feel like debating since it's really nothing earth shattering.

So, if I said something like "the first thing my daughter did when she saw a doll was to check whether it had a belly button because we were learning about belly buttons and now she is interested in all her body parts and knowing her personality she is bound to check for that and she is very verbal and will ask questions and I prefer to talk to her about these things using the actual names"... among other reasons...does that really help? I guess I just don't think it does.

I guess I just keep returning to my original thought that as much as some folks are curious about my reasons, I'm just as curious why since to me it's not any different from wanting a doll with other physical characteristics, such as darker skin, almond shaped eyes, which are all things I would like in a doll too. But, I already know where to find them. So, I didn't bother inquiring about that.

Maybe it's just because this was a "where to find" thread rather than a "why would you" thread that I just found the inquiries somewhat out of place.

Well, bed time for me!
Holli

[aliceinwonderland]

All your reasons sound fine to me (not that they need to ;)). I was just really, honestly curious. I understand most things here whether I choose to "do" most of them but this one really escaped me!

Thanks for clarifying :)

[oliviasmomma]

I am so sorry if I came across as debating! Thanks for your response and I'll do a bit more digging. Good night!

[squimp]

I don't think Holli meant anatomically correct dolls (like with a penis or vagina). After reading this thread, and being curious myself, I surmised that she's searching for a doll that looks more realistic. You know with a plastic face and hands, and a mouth that has a spot to put a bottle, etc., like the Corolle dolls. Our Calin certainly isn't anatomically correct, unless there a living beanbags...

Holli, don't get rid of your Waldorf dollie - I bet she'll want to have doll families in a bit. DD started out with Calin Laughing Bright (aka Baby Baby), then her family expanded to include several others in her baby doll family. But make sure you have enough teacups to go around :)

Lots of folks like the American Baby Bitty babies too.

[aliceinwonderland]

That's the one we have, the Bitty "boy" twin. Very much loved :)

[ellies mom]

OK, from what I can tell, like you said there are a few African-American Calin dolls that all seem pretty dark. Then there seems to be the "multi-ethnic" Calin and then the newer "Darling" Calin that both seem to have medium skintones with the "mult-ethnic" being darker. It seems like the newer doll is closest to my daughter's skintone.

I haven't seen too many dolls that I really like for my daughter. She isn't that into her Joy's Waldorf doll that I made from a kit. I still think Joy's has the best choices for customizing the dolls though. DD has a few Groovy Girls. They are pretty cool. But as far as baby dolls go, I really don't like most of the ones I've seen IRL. So, I think I'll settle on one of those two Corolle dolls and call it good. Thanks for the rundown. I'm glad to finally find one I like. Hopefully DD will like it also.

[kath68]

Holli -- I didn't mean to put you on the spot. My question really wasn't meant as a "why do YOU want one" so much as a "why do PEOPLE want one". It seems they are gaining in popularity, and if I was missing a nugget of research or a child development philosophy, I wanted to know about it so I could check it out for myself. That's all.

I get that people want dolls reflecting various ethnic backgrounds, but that is a different issue *to me* than anatomically correct dolls (because dolls don't need to be exact replicas of human babies, so anything added on to them, even just for accuracy's sake, is usually done for a specific reason).

Charlie isn't into dolls, except for a rubber duckie and an Elmo doll (Elmo begs the question -- is the Elmo doll anatomically correct? He's got nothing down there, but maybe that is just the way he is in real life. ;) ) Anyway, it really isn't an issue for us at this time. I was just curious, is all.

[jd11365]

Dude, just get the kid a doll. She doesn't need a $100 Waldorf, a vagina or otherwise...it just needs to be a doll. Kayla is happiest with a cheapo $10 doll from Target. Clearly Mari likes regular dolls if she was playing with one at the children's museum, so get her one just like that since you already know she likes it.

[annasmom]

We have the Furnis doll (link above) that is anatomically correct. I got the doll because it was cute, I "think" I knew when I ordered that it was anatomically correct. Honestly, the anatomically correct parts remind me a lot of the plastic baby dolls I had as a kid (don't really remember the names - I always had hand-me downs from my older sisters, maybe Baby Tender Love??), except on the Furnis doll it is done with stitching. We have a girl doll, so I am sure it is a bit different for the boy versions ;). I don't seem to recall any of my baby dolls having penises!

[holliam]

Dude, why the heck does everyone care what kind of doll I get?

This is among the more ridiculous threads I've ever been involved in!

Holli

[Joolsplus2]

I know I wanted a boy doll for my kids, because *I* had one when *I* was little (must have been a seventies thing? lol). Plus, I found one on ebay that was circumcision free, and want to normalize that image because my uncut son is an oddity in this neighborhood (of course, the kids don't know what they are looking at, they just think a naked boy doll is good for hours of giggles, but oh well...)

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[trumansmom]

*sigh* Who'd have thought we'd have to put a warning on a doll thread?

Folks, let's keep it nice, okay?


Jeanne
Mom to Truman 11/01 and Eleanor 4/04

[jec2]

Seriously! But, I think there is honest to goodness curiousity about this. It's interesting that when people ask "why wood toys?" or "why Kettler?" or "why Kinderzeat?" and people very openly respond. If Holli felt targeted or criticized I cannot understand that b/c I am seriously curious too. I know that I wouldn't have thought of getting an anatomically correct doll or see the importance of it--except since I have a boy it might be something to think about getting...http://67.18.37.18/3783/12/emo/dontknow.gif The closest thing I had to one growing up was the Baby Alive which pooped and peed.

Anyhoo, for those who are curious and never really got any sort of answer from the above posts, I did a little sluething and found a few sites that mention what such dolls are most commonly used for and include therapy, sexual abuse work, courtroom testimony (which is not without controversy), sex education, and for people with disabilities. Here is a link to a wikipedia entry on the topic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatomically_precise_dolls

and here is a site that not only sells dolls but also teaching materials http://www.migima.com/parent_products.html

Also, apparently the current term is anatomically "detailed" dolls rather than anotomically "correct." http://67.18.37.18/3783/12/emo/26.gif

[JBaxter]

We have a nice babybottoms boy doll and a inexpensive TRU doll in a blue sleeper ( and a nb cloth diaper) I was WAY more excited by the baby bottoms than Nathan was. The generic doll is the only one he has ever been interested in. It gets bottles diaper checks and rides in the shopping cart. His Elmo doll is the only one with "rights" to the toy potty that came with the babybottom doll. My advice would be take Mari shopping and let her pick one out.

[holliam]

Actually, I did say those are reasons and groups who typically want these types of dolls so perhaps you didn't read that post.

I certainly didn't alert a mod since I think this is just so weird because it's like you all think I have some secret reasons. It's just so silly. It's just simply that I don't have reasons that impact anyone else so why bother? It's not based on some educational theory or anything.

I mean, why do some people want a green bike? It could be something silly like it's their favorite color or they had one as a kid or some other ridiculous reason.

I just honestly don't get it! I'm not compulsed, upset, nor anything but totally bewildered.

Holli

[o_mom]

A couple of these say they are anatomically correct (potty and bath dolls):

http://www.liveandlearn.com/gotz/index.html

[jec2]

Hi Holli, I did see your answer above but only decided to submit what I found after my google search (that you encouraged in that same post). There were a few other instances that I mentioned that you didn't so I was just trying to be thorough (and procrastinate my dissertation number crunching, lol). I also found lots of research about the controversy of using such dolls in sexual abuse cases and testimony, which I mentioned too--and was unaware of.

I have seen others previously talking about anatomically correct/detailed dolls here but never asked why but now that finn is much more interested in dolls I began to wonder about them when I saw your post. Innocent curiosity, that's all.

While I don't want to speak for others, I don't think anybody thought that you had some "secret" reasons but thought that perhaps there was/is a school of thought that you were invoking and were just curious about what that school of thought might say. Although you might not have any particular reason for wanting one I imagine that some parents do and perhaps people just wondered if you, like said parents, had such a reason and asked, which I find completely legit.

From what I know about you, you are very well-read and very well-researched and also seem to favor natural/attachment/waldorfian ideas of which I love to learn about as well. In addition, I study socialization (political and gender) and I honestly thought that there was some psychological/cognitive/developmental reason and suspect that others thought the same. sorry for bewildering you.

[holliam]

Thanks for the clarification! I really did not mean to sound snarky so my apologies if I sounded like that. I just really didn't have any cool explanation other than my own cheesy reasonings!

Holli

[Phoebe]

I bought my dd the Paul Corolle doll for Christmas because she specifically asked for a doll that looked just like her little brother. He's a really nice, cute doll with a penis. He comes with a bottle and potty too. He is all plastic though, and I know plastic is definitely out for you. Maybe some WAHM out there makes a knit or crocheted one with little yarn genitals.

Mary
DD 4/01
DS 6/03

[greatcanuk]

For people interested in Baby Bottoms dolls (and possibly other Fanny's Playhouse stuff) Tykiediapers has them for a good $10 less than I've seen in other places, at least the potty ones. She is closing an order for them at the end of this month, and placing the order Mon/Tues.

Hope that helps someone!

[stella]

This particular doll is not anatomically correct - in fact, far from it- but she's really great for young children. Her name is Huggems from Madame Alexander and basically she has a vinyl (realistic-looking, somewhat) head and face, but her body is soft cloth. Some versions have soft hands and others have soft arme, hands, feet and legs.

She is a very snuggly first baby doll.

I have boughts everal at Tuesday Morning.

[TraciG]

I actually have a baby boy doll that has a penis. I got it when I was little, my father was doing work for a toy company & he got a lot of toys & dolls so that's where it came from, it is very real looking, it's now one of Sydney's babies & takes bath's with her !!! For me it doesn't matter about being anatomically correct but she does know what a penis is now !!!!!!!!!!!!