What's so Special about Dolls and Toys?

What's so special about dolls and toys? As collectibles, of course we know they are a good investment, and they are miniature time capsules of cultures and customs long gone. Certainly, they are sometimes beautiful, and they invoke nostalgia. As I cruised the yard sales and one rummage sale, it hit me. I did well today, with a Steiff Afghan hound for one dollar, and a miniscule doll from Brittainy displayed inside a seashell, and of course, my loved Barbies, some comic characters the Museum doesn't have. It dawned on me then that what makes dolls and toys special, especially the loved ones that aren't mint, is that a child loved them. That is their value, and their power.