Having a Doll, Wish You Were Here…

***WINNER PICKED 11/29 WITH RANDOM.ORG***

***CONGRATULATIONS to, The Saunders Family!!!***

I was never much of a girly girl. I never liked baby dolls and only really liked Barbies because one of my mom's friends gave me a trunkful of mid-'60s Barbies and Kens with all their gear. I was more into the amazing mod vintage clothes (actual stitches and buttons! pointy stiletto heels and flat go-go boots!) than the dolls themselves. Fast-forward a few decades and now I have my own little girl who alternates between mud-covered beast and ballerina fairy princess. I swear I have never dangled dolls in front of her, but she will adopt and nurture any mangy old thing in sight. Baby dolls you wouldn't want to touch at garage sales have been adopted against my will because of Roo's benevolent nature.

But now that she's a "big girl" of 3 1/2, she's not only into baby dolls. Recently, we've gotten on the mailing lists of two doll catalogs that Roo leafs through over and over again dreamily, pointing out the things she covets. "Mommy, maybe I can get this for my birthday?" Uh, probably not, honey. Mommy has problems with the sheer volume of crap we'll encounter if we let one of those things into our house. They seem kind of…Stepford. Like if I let Roo play with them, she won't like She-Ra anymore or bugs, for that matter. These dolls are so white and squeaky clean. Even the "ethnic" ones! So I was happy to discover the Karito Kids.



Yes, Karito Kids are pretty dolls and you can buy books and clothes and accessories from their world. But unlike their peers, they actually do seem to have individually distinct features and personalities and even a social conscience. Their parent company is called KidsGive and they have a charitable mission: with every Karito Kids purchase, your child gets to log onto the website and activate a code that enables them to vote on how to allocate their donation (3% of the retail price) to Plan USA, a child-centered charity organization. Your child can also sign up to receive emails to see how the donations are being used. It's a small step, but it's definitely a step in the right direction.

The five dolls that make up the Karito Kids represent 11-year-old girls from China, Kenya, the USA, Italy and Mexico. I got to see them at a local store and they really are very nicely made. They are gorgeous and sassy in a way real girls are, not like Bratz. If you're a doll fan, you will love them and if you only tolerate them for your kids' sake, you will be impressed with their quality and design. I want one and I usually despise dolls! If Gia had darker eyes and curly hair, she would be a ringer for Roo in a couple of years, too…Oh, wait, Karito Kids isn't in the mini-me market!



Karito Kids was named the #1 toy in Family Fun magazine's 10th annual T.O.Y. Awards this year and one of you will be lucky enough to win a Zoe doll of your very own, just in time for the holidays! She is the blonde, bohemian American girl with the snazzy skullcap and sneakers:



To enter and win Zoe (a $99 value), visit Karito Kids and comment on this post with the answer to the following question: What city is Zoe from? Let me know which Karito Kid is your favorite, too!

Entries will be accepted through November 28th. US readers only, please. Make sure you leave an email address or that you have one accessible on your blog so you can be contacted if you win! If I can't find your email, I will pick a new winner. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR BLOG PROFILE IS SET TO PUBLIC AND THAT THERE IS AN EMAIL AVAILABLE ON YOUR BLOG OR LEAVE AN EMAIL ADDRESS ALONG WITH YOUR COMMENT!!!