To think 10 is too old for a doll?

[AtSea1979]

DD has gone in to Y6. She’s 10. She wants a doll for Xmas and is still very much in to pink plastic things. I thought she would have grown out of this by now. AIBU to be concerned that she’s heading for high school next year and acts too young?

yes, there's that, but it's also that whilst they start off aimed at, say, 10 year olds (I think that's what JKR said she aimed the first one at, a year younger than Harry), the later ones have pretty complex plots and characterisations which will simply whoosh over the heads of young kids. So why not wait? Are the books and films going to vanish, do they have a use-by date on them?

I played with Barbie until I was 12-13. Used to love improvising furniture and clothes for them from stuff I found lying around the house. Wouldn’t mind one now if I’m honest and I’m 58!

It is very important for kids to fit in with their peers. And so what if kids don't understand it all? I read lots of D H Lawrence books at 12 and enjoyed them, I didn't understand all the subtleties, but so what.

@Elodie2019 I remember holding a doll like a baby at a gathering when I was11 and overheard female friends of my parents making nasty remarks.

I remember a woman in the street saying, "Bit old for a doll" when I was about that age. Very tall for my age.

As I've got older I've thought WTF was that woman's problem? I can't imagine making a rude comment (bullying, actually) to a random child on the street, or one I knew. These adults would be better off worrying about themselves and their own immature behaviour.

I played with Barbie until I was 12-13 Me too and used to get terribly upset when my older brother kept making them do things with ken

10 is not too old and tbh I think it is really good for her. Often when children play with things like dolls they are role-playing real life through the doll and if you observe you can get a great sense of what is going on for her through her play. It should be encouraged. My dd3 is 7 and plays with all her dolls constantly and the world she creates and the themes she has just mirrors her everyday life and it is her way of processing what has gone on so healthy for them I wish her older two sisters still did this

Re the bullying thing, I'm pretty sure any ten year-old will be well aware of what's "cool" and what isn't. I always knew as a child that my interests were considered a bit babyish or weird by my peers, but doing what I enjoyed was more important to me than being in the "trendy" crowd. All we can do as parents is accept the people that our kids are. So many of my women friends have said to me over the years "yeah, I was a disappointment to my mother because I wasn't fashionable/ grown-up enough/ popular with boys/ interested in make-up". Most of those mothers were probably just worried about their daughters being bullied if they didn't fit it, but kids don't hear that. All they hear is "my mother wants me to be different".

I played with Barbies at 11(god I miss my barbie ferrari).Tbh it's nice in this day and age that shes still into them.

I think the comments from the older women were most likely a reflection of their own childhoods. My own mother started going on about me getting too old for things when I was about 6 (in the 90s) and in many ways seemed very eager for me to grow up and put “silly notions out of my head”. I can easily say childhood wasn’t something to be enjoyed or celebrated. It was something she couldn’t wait for me to get out of so I could be of more use to her.

At 9 she was responsible for most of the domestic duties in the house as, unusually for the time her mother worked full time. She was fully responsible for raising the younger children, including a new born at 11. At 15 she was expected to leave school, no question of staying at all, so she could bring a wage packet into the family home. She became pregnant whilst still in her teens. Many women of her generation had similar childhoods and as a child, especially a female child, I could feel a lot of bitterness projected on to me by women of older generations.
It wasn’t just my mother, it was other children’s mothers of a similar age to mine (almost 40 when she had me) and grandparents age. I can remember an elderly lady who always used to mutter and moan and roll her eyes when she saw me, from about aged eight or nine with long hair (typical for girls in the 90s!) - “That hair needs cutting, she’s far too old for pigtails and ringlets. She needs something short and easy kept.”

My DDs are 10 (yr 5) and 12 (yr 8) and got back into Barbies over the summer holidays.

The games they play have really evolved (they design new hairstyles for them on paper, then cut and 'dye' - with pens - the dolls' hair, design and make clothes out of their own old clothes and off-cuts of fabric and have even created a 'Family Tree' for them, linking them back several generations - well, they do have more than 40 of them; several purchased over the summer from Charity shops or eBay for around a pound each!) - but at the end of the day, they're still essentially playing with dolls and I think it's totally fine!

DD1 isn't embarrassed about it at all and we have had several of her (12 and 13 year old) classmates here over the summer holidays and they have happily joined in with the Barbies too.

I kept most of my dolls until I was about 14, but by then I was much more interested in making clothes for them than playing role-play games with them. I also used to make rag dolls from scratch and clothes for them, even beyond that age. She may want this doll more as a collector's item than a toy, and as she gets older it might spark an interest in dressmaking which isn't a bad thing.

I’ve said no to crop tops, make up, earrings, Harry Potter films etc.

Interesting how we all parent differently. My 8yos love Harry Potter, wear makeup occasionally and have crop tops but they also love playing with dolls. It's not either or.

Dd1 is 11 and I've found some girls in year 6 had parents who were so keen on them behaving like 13 year olds I found it odd. The class definitely had a split of older 11s and younger with dd1 firmly and happily in the younger camp. I can't imagine buying my dc a doll at 10 but that's because we have so many already with 3 dds.

DD also ten, just in year 6 loves dolls. She has made her barbies more interesting looking over the years, colouring in their hair with felt pens and cutting their hair. She's less into barbies now but loves those environmentally destructive LOL dolls (I hate the bloody things).

She also isn't on social media and doesn't have a phone. We do allow harry potter movies and most of her friends are watching stranger things at the moment. But we let her be our guide. She doesn't even want crop top vests yet as her friends have said that they aren't comfortable apparently. That may change if she hits puberty (hasn't happened for her yet, unlike some of her friends).

But the most important thing is to allow her the confidence to get to know what she likes and dislikes, without too much peer pressure at this age. It will only become more of a battle at high school.

My dd is 10 & still loves her dolls (barbies, lottie & designafriends & sylvanian families. Oh & lego friends & playmobil!

She made a friend at dance & went to hers to play & discovered she's into all the same stuff! Fabulous! So while a fair few of her school friends have grown out of dolls etc some haven't.

Don't wish away her youth. She'll be asking for make up & clothes soon enough.

Sorry, haven't read all of the replies yet but will got back later on when I have time.

Just wanted to say that your daughter is about the age mine was when she first got into reborn dolls. They're both for playing with as a child and collecting as a teen / adult, so bridge the gap nicely at that 'people think she should be too old for dolls' stage. Depending on your budget it might be worth buying one of these. However, I would advise not just going out and buying one for her, check any local shops if they do them or facebook pages / websites so she can look through what is available and get the right one for her. :)

Gosh, I played with my dolls until I was about 13! Maybe older. I used to hide the fact I did though.

I would go to my bedroom for hours playing with them but was embarrassed so would hide them when my Family entered the room. Sad really.
Let her be a little girl

YABU. She is a child, not even close to being a teenager yet. Let her enjoy the last few years of innocence ffs.

Harry Potter can be enjoyed on different levels. My kids have seen the films and read the earlier books. A lot is left out of the films and when they are ready I’m sure they will enjoy reading the later books from an older perspective and understand the subtleties. We have also enjoyed listening to the earlier books being read by Stephen Fry on long car journeys! They love it on so many levels, and it is part of the fabric of their childhood - most of their friends are into it too by age 8 to 10 and I know our school have done it as a topic in year 4!

Let her play with dolls if she wants. My girls are older than your and still love theirs. What would you rather she be doing?

They also love Harry Potter and have been watching the films for years :)

Of course YABU. I hope you haven't sad this to her?

Me late Sixties, have still got my childhood teddy bear. DD3 made the mistake of moving it into her room to join her colection of dollies teddies and the like she was left in NO uncertain terms that you just do not pinch your dads teddy bear!

So he's back in all his tatty glory in his little childs chair that dates from 1900 so i'm told and there he will remain untill they carry me out of here!.

Nope not too old at all. Be glad she is not growing up ss fast as some other kids and getting into trouble

I’ve just helped my 20 year old sister pack for her 3rd year of uni and she’s got her stuffed toys and a toy dog from when she was younger packed and away with her. So yabu 10 is defo not to old for a doll.

@Vilanelle same here. I used to perform full on plays with them in the privacy of my own bed room. Maybe it was being an only child, unable to join the school drama club with the school being too far away to make my own way back and all my friends living closer to the school. It was a creative and drama outlet for me.