Always with her, her little red panda.
No longer our little newborn, she is a toddler now. One little thing has been there since she was a newborn though. Her little red panda. It was given to her as a gift by one of her Daddy’s coworkers when we went to visit. It’s actually a stuffed animal from the company. They put one out for each animal that makes an appearance in their commercials. If you are from BC, you know what company I am talking about.
The red panda found a place on the shelf in her room for the longest time. When we worked with the sleep consultant to help us with transitioning her to be able to sleep on her own, we offered up several things for her have and cuddle when she slept. The red panda was selected very quickly.
This little red panda has become her lovey it seems. It is always with her when she has a nap, or goes to bed for the night. If we let it leave the crib, she will drag it by the tail around the house. She has a few stuffed toys that she likes, but this one, this one seems to be very special to her.
It is something she finds comfort in when she goes to sleep. She keeps it very close to her. Often tucked under her arm right beside her, or her fingers are grasped right around it when held out from her body. She has a close connection to this red panda, it brings her comfort. It has been a part of the process of her learning how to self sooth.
The other day we realized we should probably hunt down a backup for this little red panda. I had visions suddenly of the For Better or For Worse movie called The Bestest Present and I started to worry, what if some how we misplace her little red panda and can never find it? It be hard to find a replacement if it happened a year or two from now, and I’d be concerned about making the transition to something else. Thankfully a friend of ours has offered us one that they have, after I put a photo up mentioning we should find a second red panda just in case. So a backup is ready to go if need be.
Did you have a lovey when you were a child? I sure did, I had a few little blankets that I would take with me everywhere! What about your children, do they have loveys too?
Also have you red The Velveteen Rabbit? Its a wonderful story about a stuffed rabbit that belongs to a boy, the rabbit becomes real through the love of his owner.
Red panda and panda are never far away, but red panda has a very special place.
I had a stuffed bear I loved, but it only became important to me once my little sister came along. Couldn’t let her have it, could I? 🙂
Calvin has zero security items. He doesn’t even play with stuffed animals. He does like having his muslin blanket to use as a pillow when he sleeps though. But it doesn’t go anywhere with him.
My monkey has a brown blankie that her gramma bought at the hospital gift shop (you know – super affordable) the morning she was born. I have no back up and due to some really good luck, she stills sleeps with it’s frayed edges tucked under her chin just over three years later. 🙂
My lo has always favored a Pooh Bear we got from a lady who runs a restaurant in town. When he got it, it was probably bigger than him. So cute!
It’s so interesting that your daughter is keen on a panda stuffie. Such a wonderful animal and there are some lovely books that focus on pandas. One that we like (which has textured pictures) is Little Panda by Piers Harper.