Corolle dolls, at home and on the go

My kids are absolutely crazy into dolls. This means that we do a lot of pretend play here at home. But, where most people think of dolls as an indoor toy that consists mostly of snuggling, rocking, and feeding, we treat our dolls like we do our real babies, and we take them everywhere with us.

This started when my son was under a year old and refused to sleep without his special Corolle Calin baby doll. We couldn’t very well let one child bring a doll and not the other, so we’ve now embraced the fact that wherever we go, we will need a suitcase for our dolls, too. And, our Corolle dolls have been all over the world with us.

I love that they adore their babies enough to take them out into the world with us as it shows the love that they have for their dolls is stronger than just a mere toy. And I also love that it opens up ways to make playing with babies active and makes even more ways for realistic pretend play.

Here are some tips to make traveling with littles easier with dolls:

For in town: simply bring a doll carrier or doll pram with you and watch as your child goes. My kids tend to want to get held if they are asked to walk anywhere, ever, but for some reason they are able to walk miles {yes, really… miles} if they have a baby with them. The best part about this is that both carrier and pram are hands free, so should they need both hands, I don’t end up carrying my stuff and their babies. My daughter is partial to carriers, my son is taken with strollers, and luckily, our car can accommodate both, so they are both happy.

For on vacation: we’re still waiting for Corolle to make a gorgeous doll suitcase that we can pack full of our doll gear for trips, but for now we travel with a simple bag that keeps everything organized. Instead of placing this bag in the trunk or in the checked luggage, this bag is always handy while traveling. Somehow having a little one to take care of and soothe makes for easier car, train and plane trips.

Just look at my little 10 month old on a layover in 2011 – he doesn't look like he's been at the airport for 4 hours, does he?

For the love of the outdoors: I was initially worried about how Corolle dolls would handle the way we travel. I was really nervous the first time we took baby Emma to the beach and pool, wondering if her vanilla scent would wear off and be replaced by a chlorine smell.

And also very worried that our son’s Calin doll would turn brown with all of his boyish love. But, I’m happy to report that although my son’s doll is usually a “loved color” a few shades darker than it was brand new, it also washes up well whenever he lets us scrub him. As for the vanilla scent? Nothing has touched it – not chlorine, not salt water, not scrubbing, and definitely not a little dirt.

For us, Corolle dolls have made perfect travel partners, no matter where we are headed. They are up for anything, they keep the kids occupied while traveling, and they make playtime much more fun once we get there. While you may not think “dolls” when you think of travel toys, I wouldn’t have it any other way than to travel with our Corolle babies.

With a wide range of both vinyl bodies and special beach and water babies like the awesome Corolle bath doll {above}, you can find your perfect travel buddy no matter how dirty and wet your destination is.

Head over to us.corolle.com
to read about all the little details that go into making your perfect travel partner
or check them out at a retailer near you. And, be sure to interact with
Corolle on Twitter and Facebook  

Thank
you to Corolle dolls for inviting me to be an ambassador. As always,
all opinions are 100% ours. Because you can't possibly fake
these kinds of smiles.