Do You Use Your Dolls as Replacement Children?

OMG I wish I had seen this sooner in the year! I want to stand up and shout AMEN!!!

 

Not at all.

 

Dolls are not my replacement children. It's a fun hobby, but that's all. I'm not sure if I want children yet, I'm still young and now's definitely not the right time. Maybe in the future. Much like Lil Spark said, my dolls have nothing to do with if or when I decide to have children, and children won't affect my BJD hobby since they are unrelated.

 

I am childless and intend to be so for the foreseeable future. I do not see dolls as children, but very special works of art. I entertain the feeling that there is some sort of mystery, something more they're not sharing with me perhaps, but my only children are my pets.

 

My many doll collections are a hobby. I happen to love children and enjoy the artristy
of their creators. Many people just do not understand, they feel I must be lonely. No,
I'm very happy, my dolls just add to my pleasure of living.
~Michelle~

 

Personally I love diversity as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. I think if there is a whole in our lives we fill it the best way we know how.

 

Oh, and I do not use dolls to replace/subsitute for kids.. I dont have child dolls(except LDD which come twisted/dark themed & have collected since i was 21).. We have 3 cats that are our littles, plus Hubby prefers it to be just us-which works out since I can't have them. Too busy in life for kids. Only after I was told I could not have them, did i even think of them.

 

I am single, never married, no offspring, but I worked with foster children and their families for almost 40 years before retiring. Those children were kids that I nurtured, talked with about their lives, tried to help them get prepared for adulthood, encouraged them when they were down. That maternal instinct made me good at what I did, and the only thing I miss in retirement are those relationships.
I call my dolls "my kids" just like I did the foster children, but it is different. While I enjoy making clothes for them, anticipating a new arrival, taking photos, etc., they are something I enjoy, not something I nurture. There is a difference. I have my favorites, which varies from day to day, and I have some that don't turn out exactly as I plan, but I don't worry about them, I don't plan for their future, I don't anguish when something doesn't turn out right. That is what a parent does.

 

I would never use my dolls as replacement children. Sure they are lovable and huggable, but they can't replace a human being. Yes, they can relieve stress and you can dress them up in all sorts of ways, but you can't hang out with them or talk with them.

 

hmm well, the dolls i have do are my little girls and i love them a lot!
but they are still dollies.
if they are some kind of children replacement or placebo... no, they could never fill the little space a child could take.
and right now im so so happy to have dolls as company and my little girls!! i couldn't be able to handle kids at this moment of my life... to big responsibility.

but i find it quite fun that all of them are child like, and im not particular attracted to older looking dolls, i dont know maybe because the bigger ones will be all naughty with me, bossy and demanding "hey! what kind of a place is this? pffft what an owner i have, could you at least place me on a pretty spot? and where is my fancy stuff? im to old for this girly play" lol!!

 

Of course, not. I have both dolls and children, and I tell you - there is a difference

 

I got my first doll in December of 2010 and my son was born in March of 2010. I had been researching and planning a doll since 2008, but had been derailed because of many issues that came up.

My dolls are not children, nor could they ever be a replacement for my son. So many doll owners here say they dislike kids or babies, and that is fine, but I am telling you every fiber of my being changed when I met my son. I never saw myself as 'maternal' or even interested in babies. Of course this statement does not apply to everyone, but I think that most of the time it is impossible to predict such a 'what if' situation. The human brain is so complex and our hearts can change in less than a moment. Just when you think you know yourself, you are surprised.

I use my dolls as a creative outlet. My son who is now 2.5 enjoys them too. Of course life is draining, especially since he has special needs, and I wish I could take a break sometimes like I do with my dolls. They are my de-stresser. I feel that there is nothing that could replace my dolls and there is nothing in the world that would replace my son. The two really have nothing to do with each other.

 

I use my dolls as replacement actors & models....

 

No my resins are not replacement children. Most likely I will not have kids and as for animals I not too interested in them either. But I do have 2 plush animals that me and my bf always joke are doing things and playing around. I can see how some people can have bjds as stand-in for children, its very easy to do. It starts out very simple, and before you know it, they have personalities and histories. My bjds are still just bjds, but they getting lively.

 

Kids? Eeeew, I don't like those. I have never wanted children, and, all things considered, that's likely for the best. My dolls aren't my children, they're unemployed roommates. Aside from Lumpi, they don't even help me or clean the house. Lumpi models for my comics. All my dolls are adults, and with few exceptions I much prefer the company of adults.

 

I'm not sure I would consider my dolls to be "replacement children", mainly because I hate kids and never want to have any. The closest thing I have to living, breathing children are my ferrets and cats. Though, I do baby my dolls quite a bit though. I dress them, play with them, cuddle them, "talk" to them(their characters, anyways), refer to them as my "resin babies" etc., but I don't actually consider them to be my children.
... Even if some of their characters refer to me as "mom" or "mama".

 

My dolls are art projects, and are physical models for characters. They are most definitely not children, and I do not have some sublimating need to attach mothering feelings as if for living beings to inanimate objects.

I intend to have children and they will be infinitely more to me than some doll could ever be.

 

No my dolls are not replacement children. I have 2 very live children and we're trying for 2 more. I also have an army of animals living with me so if I want to nurture or mother something there's a line up here.

 

Mine aren't replacement children. Neither are my pets, or anything else~! I think I'd actually be a bit offended if someone assumed any of the things I love are mere child-substitutes. I don't even know if I want children yet.

 

Interesting topic! I don't have children, and probably never will. I don't feel I'm missing much, although I love my niece and nephew. My dolls are dolls, and I care about them, but substitutes for children they are not.