MY VERY AMERICAN GIRL?

I thought I had escaped. 

I thought it wouldn't happen in my family.

 Last weekend, when I heard the half question-half plea coming from Maia, my 7 year old daughter, I realized I was wrong. 

-"Can we go to American Girl Place?"

-"I thought you didn't like American Girl dolls", I said.

-"I do now. And I have money saved"

 Andrea my wife, (who in her own words "would have gone crazy happy if there were American Girl doll stores when I was growing up"), was as excited as Maia.

 Me? I have mocked, made fun of and critizised American Girl mercilessly.  In more than one occasion I've said "This is the most American thing I've ever seen" (after the compulsive use of acronyms of course).

 

 I realize that I used "American" --unfairly but spontaneously-- as a bad thing. I didn't mean to.

Obviously I don't think being American is bad. What I labeled as "American" is the whole business idea of American Girl.  

Any girl in America-- as long as she has $110 to spend on a doll-- can  buy a doll that looks like her, at least in a general ethnic sense. Then she can step into the doll salon and have her doll's hair made up just like hers (extra charge, of course).

Then there's the matching outfits; The same models that are available for the dolls are available for girls, obviously in various sizes from four to twelve. 

Once the doll and the girl look like twins, they can go have lunch at the café, where the dolls can sit comfortably in their very own high  chair. And it's not pretend food, it's the real thing (at least, and thank God, only for the living girls).

And there are also beds for the dolls (only $118) books, movies, hairbrushes and accessories so you can keep your doll fresh and beautiful at home.

 Can you imagine this business starting in any other country but the United States? I can't. And not only because of the name, Just try to imagine "Niña Mexicana" or "Fille Francaise", o "Bambina Italiana".

 

We get to American Girl.  Maia choses a doll that kind of looks like her. No need for hair salon; their hair was already very similar. No café; luckily we got there late for the lunch seating and we were kind of too hungry to have just tea (served very fancy with scones and all).

 

"Let's go to the clothes section".

 Doll has a purple long sleeve t-shirt and green skirt. 

Maia gets the matching t-shirt and skirt in her size.  

I just sigh.

 She goes into the fitting room with my wife. After a couple of minutes they come out. 

 

Maia looks like the doll. The doll looks like Maia.

Inspite of myself, I smile. It's so cute. 

My wife smiles.

Maia smiles. 

The doll seems to smile. 

I smile. 

Everybody around us smiles.

 "Hey, let me take a picture!"

 Ok, that's it. Let's go.

 

"She needs a pijama"

I know that "she needs a pijama" means "and I have to get the same one"

 

She likes a night gown that she sees on Josefina, an Hispanic looking doll from their "historical" line that supposedly lives in the 1850's. 

She get the little nightgown for her new doll (one size fits all).

She gets the same nightgown (size 7)

 Now we can leave.

We get home.  It's not that late but Maia is anxious to go to bed. Her doll is already wearing the nightgown. She changes into the matching nightgown.

"Good night"

"Wait! One more photograph"

Click. Good night.

 Couple of hours later we check on her. 

Maia has her eyes closed. The doll has her eyes closed. Maia is smiling. The doll is smiling.

I'm smiling.

When you think about it,  American Girl works because we parents don't care what our girls are. we don't really care if they are American, Mexican, British, Nigerian... 

They can be anything... as long as they're happy.