Little girls have always wanted to play "mommy," but this is taking it a bit too far.

WELcome to 2009

The big deal is that children don't need to be introduced to the concept of breast-feeding and the how-to-methods. What is this method saying to little girls? Strive for motherhoood and start planning now? What happened to our little girls enjoying their child hoods, playing hopscotch and jumprope? Now it's been replaced by planning parenthood 20-plus years in advance. Give my a break sun-sentinel, really. Breast feeding is for MOTHERS. Not little girls who aren't mentally able to fully grasp or understand the concept is just for MOTHERS. This is taking it way too far. And the fact that someone is asking what's the big deal is beyond me.

Maybe we should start giving out condoms to little boys to teach them about planned parenthood too, I guess. GTFOHWTBS!!!!! (google if you dont know what it means)

Wow Georgia, I agree with you - kinda creepy.

Let alone the whole marketing-to-gender arguments, this particular "toy" is incredibly disturbing on so many levels.

I also agree with Renae who commented.

Having both boys and girls, I can say simply that girls are always pushed into reality with their play - boys get to be mud-puppies.

And, like Renae said, age-appropriate issues come to mind.

Gosh...I kind of want to get it OUT of my mind!

Thanks for a great post and discussion!

Georgia is correct - kids are curious and this is a good way for them to begin to understand the breastfeeding process. It's a good product and I hope there will be more products like this.

Excuse me,Jill, but as far back as I remember we had dolls that took bottles and dolls that peed and dolls that cried, etc. Playing with dolls is a fairly common practice amongst little girls and yes, it is how children practice what they see their moms doing. It's called pretend play. Given I breastfed my son, my three year old daughter watched and played the same way with her dolls. It's natural, it's normal, and it's best for babies. When are people in this country going to get over being repulsed by what is natural for human beings? Sheesh!

I think that this is a great idea. When I was breastfeeding my son, my daughter would get one of her dolls and pretend that she was breastfeeding her doll. She was only copying what I was doing. We are as such an up tight society.

My daughter also pretends to nurse her doll while I breastfeed. People need to lighten up. Why is breastfeeding going to contribute to teen pregnancy and not giving a bottle- which actually makes motherhood look a whole lot easier!

You all need to freak out about adult women exposing their breast and booties and the indecencies of men walking around with their underwear hanging out because their pants are down to their knees and leave the innocence of children alone. Children who are breastfed often pretend to feed their babies the same way mommy feeds them from a very early age (like 1 years old!). This is a very rediculios society that calls the clean unclean and the unclean clean.

I really appreaciate the comments on this topic. Jeanne you make a really good point that I didn't really think of initially. For children who were only breastfed, pretending to feed a doll in the same manner they were fed would seem completely normal.

I hate the name. How about "Hungry Baby" or "Nurse Me Baby"? Gluttonous Baby???

What's the big deal. Sure our society has a "breast fixation", but is that any reason to be so critical about a toy that encourages children to breast feed when they become adults?

How many women out there remember playing with baby dolls while growing up that mimicked the "real thing"?
I don't remember anyone criticizing dolls with "toy baby bottles" that literally "brain washed" a generation of women into preferring bottle feeding to breast feeding when they were little girls.

If mother's have nurse-in's and expose their breass in public in order to breastfeed, then why is there a problem with this doll? Mother's need to practice common sense when feeding their babies. Cover up and go into a discreet area to nurse, or nurse in the car BEFORE you get to your destination. Stupidity is the cause behind this doll. Careless mothers who want to make a point. Well, they made it. Now we have to live with it. I breastfed my children and I would have never made a scene about it. I was discreet and I enjoy the moment of total dedication to my child at the a time. I was not making it a show to strangers around me. It was my business and it was personal, not a public exhibition. Now kids want to do what they see these careless mothers do, and feed their "babies" everywhere they go.

If mother's have nurse-in's and expose their breass in public in order to breastfeed, then why is there a problem with this doll? Mother's need to practice common sense when feeding their babies. Cover up and go into a discreet area to nurse, or nurse in the car BEFORE you get to your destination. Stupidity is the cause behind this doll. Careless mothers who want to make a point. Well, they made it. Now we have to live with it. I breastfed my children and I would have never made a scene about it. I was discreet and I enjoy the moment of total dedication to my child at the a time. I was not making it a show to strangers around me. It was my business and it was personal, not a public exhibition. Now kids want to do what they see these careless mothers do, and feed their "babies" everywhere they go.

If mother's have nurse-in's and expose their breass in public in order to breastfeed, then why is there a problem with this doll? Mother's need to practice common sense when feeding their babies. Cover up and go into a discreet area to nurse, or nurse in the car BEFORE you get to your destination. Stupidity is the cause behind this doll. Careless mothers who want to make a point. Well, they made it. Now we have to live with it. I breastfed my children and I would have never made a scene about it. I was discreet and I enjoy the moment of total dedication to my child at the a time. I was not making it a show to strangers around me. It was my business and it was personal, not a public exhibition. Now kids want to do what they see these careless mothers do, and feed their "babies" everywhere they go.

Georgia, I'm thrilled with this kind of attention and debate to the issue of breastfeeding. We definitely should be promoting breastfeeding as a society. But one of the problems is that not enough new mothers saw their own mothers, aunts, etc. doing it. It's become a mystery, rather than the norm. While I'm also a little uncomfortable with the doll, I'm encouraged by the discussion it's prompted.

I see no problem with this doll and its message. My daughter, who was breastfed, would take her dolls and mimic how I fed her. It's natural and normal. Some use bottles others use the breast. I would say, the little girls don't need a special doll to do this all they need have is a good imagination.
And for those complaining about Moms breastfeeding in public-what is your problem? A beginner Mom may have a little problem getting the baby in position, but after the first two weeks, most Moms can get the baby feeding without even looking and they expose nothing! You don't want to see a mother nursing--look away. Simple as that.

Well, I think breastfeeding is only good for mother and not for children.

Lauren is completely right.

The people who say "Breast feeding is for MOTHERS. Not little girls..." should — if they were consistent — complain just as much about dolls that pretend to nurse from a bottle. (And do they let their kids play with toy trucks? Driving a truck isn't appropriate, or even legal, for anyone under the age of 16).

I don't think the issue is kids imitating adults' behavior. I think it's that some people freak out when they see anyone breastfeeding in public.