Last fall, I wrote about the Hearts For Hearts dolls (Changing The World One Heart At A Time) that my girls would be receiving for Christmas, and predicted that they would be a hit…and they sure were! (A sign of successful Christmas gifts is when the kids are still playing with them in October.)
When I found out that two new dolls were available for this Christmas season, I quickly accepted the offer to check them out.
Let’s start with the best parts: a portion of the purchase price of every Hearts For Hearts doll goes to World Vision to help children worldwide…and the dolls themselves help educate our girls about the lives of children in other countries.
This year’s additions are Zelia from Brazil and Lauryce from New Orleans, USA. (Last year my girls got Lillian from Belarus and Consuelo from Mexico – especially neat since we had been to Mexico on March Break that year.) Other represented countries include Laos, Ethiopia, and India…no Canadian doll yet.
The dolls are authentically dressed, and come with a storybook, friendship bracelet and comb.
I rarely let the kids keep packaging from anything, but these boxes kicked around for quite a while because of their educational value: photographs and tons of information about the represented girls.
Since receiving her doll, Frannie, my seven year old, has spent countless hours on http://www.hearts4heartsgirls.com playing games and learning all about children all over the world – so great, especially when one of my goals for the girls is that they’ll take an active role in charity and social justice.
Recently Frannie mentioned wanting a different brand of doll for Christmas, one that a friend has, and was very quickly redirected when I told her that there were new Hearts For Hearts girls available. She was on the computer immediately checking them out…though I had to do some quick mommy-mind-messing to convince them that they both shouldn’t ask for Lauryce (I’m hoping it’s not the blonde thing)…because wouldn’t it be better if one of them asked for Zelia so they could play with both?
The dolls retail for $29.99- 34.99, and can be found at Walmart, Target and ToysRUs.
If you’re looking for a very special gift for a little girl in your life, I would highly recommend Hearts For Hearts girls.
Disclosure: I was provided with the above-named dolls for review purposes. Opinions are, as always, my own.
Thanks for the great idea! Maybe my granddaughter will find one of those under the tree!