What a Girl Wants

Vancouver girls are skipping downtown with delight because shopping for American Girl dolls (and all of the necessary accoutrements) just got easier. You can now shop for the dolls at two locations in Canada: the Indigo at Yorkdale in Toronto and the Chapters on Robson Street. The dolls are not available online, so you should make an occasion out of it and plan a trip over to Robson.

If your daughter is a fan of the of the premium dolls, she’ll love the assortment of furniture, clothing, movies, and books at the store. The hair salon is open for business if Kit’s blunt cut needs a retouch or if Lainey’s curls need taming. Ear piercing and spa treatments (ahem, for the dolls) are also available. There’s no cafe for tea parties, but we’re not complaining—not having to brave border lineups for retail therapy, doll style, is worth it (and we like to tea party at home).

These dolls are investments: Bitty Babies start at $80, and regular dolls $110, but they’ve won the durability battle in SavvyMom houses—we haven’t lost a head or an arm yet, which is more than we can say for others.

Best of all, moms can brush up on their book club selection while our kids decide on how to spend their allowance. It’s a retail win-win for everybody.

If you’ve still got gifts to buy, we love these Great Local Gift Ideas in Vancouver.

Image from Sonia Recchia/George Pimentel Photography.