A bear, a duck and a blanket

The house has gotten quiet and my babies are sleeping. Each of my three little boys is cozy in their beds snuggled up with their favorite companions: a bear, a duck or a blanket. How precious they are to my boys and to me.

My Mom calls the bear, "stinky bear". I'd have to agree. He does emit a rather nasty odor despite any efforts to clean him. He used to be so cute. I remember when my cousin brought him to the hospital after Neil was born almost three years ago. Little did I know then how important he would be. After all, we had already gotten tons and tons of stuffed animals so here was just one more. Of course, even I could tell there was something unusually cute about him. The fact that his company-provided name was Slacker made him even more charming and unique.

It took Neil a few months to decide that the bear was the one too. For a long while, Neil didn't seem drawn to any particular thing like a toy or blanket, although pacifiers were essential. One day, though, something changed and he decided that the bear would do. He's been a good bear. He's lived a hard life and it shows. Nothing like being spit up on, dragged by one arm, smashed and picked at to make a bear show his age. I need to make sure we take good care of him because we need him to be around a long time.

I have noticed over the last few months that Dylan and Evan are beginning to claim their companions. Looks like we made a $50 mistake by buying other bears (different ones) from the same company that brought us Slacker. We even picked bears that even looked a little like the boys but, as parents are apt to do, we made assumptions about our kids' likes and dislikes and were inescapably wrong. Dylan, who is huge, oddly has picked a tiny duck. I can't help but chuckle at the sight of this enormous baby snuggling up to his little duck who is already looking worse than the bear. Dylan's favorite activity is to suck on the duck's beak. I'm concerned ducky may need some cosmetic surgery shortly.

Ever the rebel, Evan has leaped outside the realm of small, animal-like creatures and instead has chosen blankets. Although he doesn't seem to be particularly attached to one specific blanket, he does seem to like the blanket made by his great-grandmother. I applaud his choice. Not only is it perfect that he picked something that was lovingly made specifically for him, I can wash it! Also, it is so well made that he actually might not be able to destroy it. Of course, it is even more irreplaceable than the bear and duck since it is truly one of a kind.

So now as the boys sleep and the house cools after a hot day, I listen to the quiet of the house and am thankful that my babies are lovingly holding their special companions as they dream sweet dreams. Maybe tomorrow I'll wash the bear, make sure the duck's beak is ok and wash the blanket to make sure they stay with us as long as they can. I can't help but feel a little akin to the bear, the duck and the blanket since I often feel dragged, smashed and spit up on but I also know how it feels to be loved and to feel irreplaceable and it's nice.