One of the the things I have loved most about having a little girl is all the typical girly experiences it has offered me. Without wanting to stereotype or put my daughter in a box, I can say that in our experience, she is most definitely the chalk to the boy’s cheese 🙂 We often marvel at the things she is naturally drawn to, with very little encouragement or direction. There are things she does that the boys never did, as though intrinsically entwined in her female DNA. I have written in the past about how I don’t want my little girl to ever be limited by these things or think she’s not capable or that it’s unacceptable for her to do “boy” things. I guess I’ve just enjoyed seeing her steer in the direction of all things cute and girly!

It’s with confidence that I can say…. DOLLS are just her absolute best! Dolls are her jam folks. She just LOVES LOVES LOVES her BABIES!

Sure she loves playing rough with the boys on the trampoline and interfering with their marble marathons from time to time, but I can tell you she would much rather play dolly-dolly than play with her brother’s super hero figurines. Not a day goes by without her seeing to her dolls or playing the role as mommy, it honestly has to be one of the most precious things I get to witness. Her dolls are everywhere…. from her bedroom, to her dolly pram, to the garden, to the make-shift beds she creates for them around the house. I love seeing her role as nurturer and care-giver bloom as she delights in taking care of her “babies”.

I think it goes without saying then, that the arrival of happy Hungry Baby Alive last week, just about put her in a state of pure shock and elated euphoria. She literally squealed and squealed for hours after meeting her beautiful doll for the first time. And for at least several days after, she wouldn’t even leave the house without her. It accompanied us to the park, to play dates and even to Noah’s Music Concert. I eventually had to convince her that although I love her dolly, having to do an extra head count on EVERY outing was proving to be a little extra work than I bargained for. That, and I FEARED for my life should we ever lose her!

I myself have been super impressed with this doll too. I mean Guys, this doll is no ordinary doll, it’s incredible! And offers little girls (and boys!) hours of fun!

FEAUTURES:

1. She can talk! Not only can it talk, it has two different settings, one for mom and one for dad! It says a whole lot of different things, but mainly “Im hungry” or if you lie it down, “I can’t eat while lying down mummy!” she has the sweetest voice and Hunter just adores hearing her talk to her. The novelty never wears off.
2. She can eat and drink! Yup she can actually eat baby food. Okay, its really just watery gloop made from powder, but you can mix your own baby food and spoon feed your baby using all the cute accessories it comes with.
3. She comes with a bib, a tray, food sachets, some diapers and a bowl and spoon.
4. She can “poop” and “wee”!! You guessed it, everything you put in her mouth, comes out the other end. 🙂 And with relative ease I might add. It’s honestly not as messy as you would think. If you keep the food to a minimum, the mess is kept to a minimum. It’s just a matter of ensuring the baby is wearing one of her nappies, or is played with outside. (*Read our solution to single use diaper wastage below)

Which brings me to my one small teeny tiny issue I have with the doll. I LOVE that Baby Alive has incorporated all the real-life functions of a real life baby, but I really don’t like the fact that it comes with plastic nappies. 🙁  In a world with so much excessive plastic junk, and our real babies already filling our landmines with properly used nappies, I  just wonder if encouraging our babies to use them on their dolls is such a good idea? Especially because they are single use, meaning you need to keep buying more. Saying that, it’s really not vital to use them, there are ways around it! We have come up with a great idea to make our own simple pull-up towelling nappies! Good old Gagi has already offered to make some for Hunter’s doll. Another solution would be to plug (for lack of a better word) it with some toilet paper during feeding times.  For now we simply avoid feeding it too much (mostly we she loves to pretend to feed it imaginary food anyway) or we do it over per baby potty/outside. Like I said, there are so many other amazing features and this doesn’t take away from  the fact that this doll has everything a little girl would find irresistible!

Another question I was asked is “Is it suitable for my 2 year old?”. Hunter is 2.4 months and while it’s recommended age on the instructions and box says 3 years+ I have seen her enjoy this doll more than any other doll! I love it that it’s suitable for small toddlers like her but will be enjoyed by bigger girls as old as 10/11 years! As far as I can see, it’s something that Hunter will enjoy for many many years to come.

*You can see the video of everything the doll does in action on our Facebook page.

I have to make a huge apology as I got the price wrong when some of you asked on my Stories. I googled it and realised I gave the price on one of the more entry level Baby Alive dolls, which come in at R519 on Takealot. These HAPPY HUNGRY Baby Alive Dolls are in fact being sold for R1100 at Takealot, Toy Kingdom, Toys R Us and Toy Zone. I honestly wondered how a doll like this, with so many features and of such high quality would ever cost anything less than R1200, it just didn’t make sense to me… which goes to show, it offers you great value for your money. So if you are looking for an amazing Christmas gift for your little girl, I would SO highly recommend this gorgeous little doll. She will light up your whole family’s world!

I’m giving away a Happy Hungry Baby Alive Doll Valued at R1100 today! EEEEK! To *WIN* please complete the following steps:

1. Like and share the post on Facebook.
2. Tag a minimum fo two friends on the Facebook post using the hashtag #HasbroTopToys (one tag= one entry so you can enter as many times as you like but please tag new people every time :))
3. Make sure you follow The Mom Diaries on Facebook.

You can go check out the comp running on Instagram if you want to double your chances. 🙂

Terms and Conditions apply. 

*This competition is in no way affiliated with Facebook or Instagram. Winner need to complete all three steps in order to qualify for the prize. The competition will end Monday 25th November and the winner will be elected via random.org. Prize cannot be sold or redeemed for cash.

GOOD LUCK BEAUTIFUL MAMAS! ♥

Disclaimer: This doll was gifted to us, but all thoughts, options and words are my own.

Hi I’m Leigh! Did you enjoy reading this post? I really hope so and would love you to stick around a little longer! Please feel free to browse my blog for other articles or to keep up with all the latest news and to be the first to hear about some great competitions, come and find me me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also email me directly at leeloobaggins@hotmail.com or simply subscribe below and never worry about missing out!