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Operation: Love Lovey

Thursday, July 29, 2010

I remember everything that I get in the mail. I remember opening every package, pulling out every piece of wrapping (the air filled plastic pockets, the styrofoam popcorns, bubble wrap, confetti, newspaper- all of it), and writing every thank you card to send off in return. I'm very appreciative of everything given to me and my children, everything has meaning.

When I was pregnant with Charlie, shortly after finding out that we were having a boy, I received a package at my doorstep from my wonderful Grammy, filled with handmade burp cloths, and this thing (which would later become known to us, as "Lovey")...



Now I'm not one for decorative things, especially pillows (in my way, in my way, in my way). I've always tossed them to the side, and then they end up cluttering either the floor or a closet space. So what was I to do with this half dog thing, sewn onto what could only be described as a baby body pillow??

I tossed it to the side, naturally- into the pack 'n play it went.

Well. Soon that pack 'n play became Charlie's downstairs sleepy time area (nap times, quiet times, I-have-nowhere-else-to-put-you-so-you'll-sit-here-for-now times), and one day when I peeked in on him, to see how his slumber was going, I noticed that he had wrapped his entire body around the pillow, hugging it with all of his might.

"Awwww!", I said out loud. He had found a friend.



Little did I know, that pillow would become much more than just a friend, but the two of them become companions. Soon the pillow had to start going from the pack 'n play into the bassinet with him. And when he moved from the bassinet to the crib, the pillow went there too. And I'll never forget the day that I realized that the pillow was not just a pillow, but... Charlie's Lovey.

He had just woken up from a nap, and when we came downstairs, I just could not comfort him. For an hour, I must have pulled my hair out trying to figure out what was wrong with this child. "Why are you crying? Why aren't you happy? I've given you milk, I've snuggled you, your diaper is clean, we're watching cartoons, what is wrong with you?!" ...and then it dawned on me (as I thought back to an episode of Imagination Movers). I scooped him up, and we darted up the stairs together.

You should have seen the look on his face, when I pulled Lovey out of his bed.
The happiest little boy EVER.

Charlie had found a Lovey.



As hes grown older, Charlie's love for Lovey has intensified, and the two cannot possibly be separated, for anything. His Big Sister had a similar relationship at this age, with her blankie, which I have to constantly remind Christopher of as he gets frustrated with the situation at hand.

If we get in the car without Lovey-
If we go into the store without Lovey-
If Charlie gets knocked down or hurt in any "oh you're fine, its just a little bump" kind of way, and Lovey isn't within arms reach-
If Charlie doesn't feel well, and Lovey isn't there to comfort him-
If we forget Lovey upstairs-
If Lovey falls out of the crib-
If (God forbid) Lovey has to take a bath in the washing machine-

...seriously. You'd think this child was being tortured. The two just simply cannot be separated. And that, is that.

Want to see what happens if something comes between the two? If Lovey is inside and Charlie is out?



This. A whoooole lotta pouting. Complete misery. A halt to all activities. Life suddenly comes becomes nothing more than agony.

And while it makes me crazy sometimes, I understand.

I still have a Lovey.

Right, I know, I'm 26 years old, but- I still sleep with the same teddy bear that I've had since I was 2 or 3 years old. The dang thing isn't much more than a pile of matted threads by now, having fallen apart in nearly every way possible, but I love my "Jingle Bear" very much. And while I can easily walk away from him and my life would still go on- that wasn't always the case. When I was younger, I would have DIED, had Jingle Bear gone missing.

Luckily though, there were duplicates, of Jingles. So if that had ever happened (which maybe it did? Once or twice?), had Jingles in fact gone missing, there was a plan B. Swap him out. When I was that young, I probably would have never known.



The other day as we were leaving the Walmart parking lot, Charlie began screaming "Lubies! Lubies!", in his somebody-shot-me voice, and my mind immediately flashed to the worst.

Oh Lord. We've lost Lovey.
"Stop the car! Stop the car right now!", I started to yell. And I wasn't kidding, I was literally ready to jump out of the van and run back into the store. I'd go through every aisle 1,000 times if I had to. I cannot imagine life, without that anxiety causing yet equally loving blue puppy dog pillow.

So as Charlie sat there screaming, and Christopher looked for a parking spot- I frantically started organizing what I'd do, if Lovey was lost for good.

And friends, I'm not kidding when I tell you that I started to have a heart attack. I was pouring sweat, I couldn't breathe, my heart was racing-

We, would, be, screwed.

Charlie's everything would go from this...



to this...



Can you imagine looking at that face every day?

We *found* Lovey, by the way. He had slipped out of Charlie's lap, and fallen between his seat and the door. Thank goodness it was only a scare! BUT-

I'm begging you friends. BEGGING YOU. We can't go through that again. We can't through that for real.

Help me find another Lovey?
Help me find a backup?

I don't care how much it is. I don't care if I have to travel to China to get one. I don't know what I'd do, had we REALLY lost that pillow.

Help me?



I've already preformed surgery on Lovey's arm once. It came off completely, in the dryer, after Charlie took him swimming in the kiddie pool out front (despite my best efforts). And I'd gladly sew that arm on over and over and over again. But what do I do, if Lovey goes missing, and there isn't an arm to sew?

Help me find a backup Lovey!?
I'm desperate.



Clearly, things like this, prove to us how bat-crap crazy we Mother's can get, when it comes to just how much we love our children.

*EDIT: Lovey has been FOUND! My amazing friend Tina, located the maker of Lovey by doing a yahoo search (wow google, really? way to fail me). The only problem we've got now, is that Lovey really is made in China (see and I thought I was totally joking when I originally said I'd travel that far), and so far we only know how to buy 2400 of them at a time. I've sent an email to the maker, asking them about how I might be able to go about finding out how to buy less than a billion, so now the next step, is locating a retailer to buy one (or ten) from.

Click here to see Lovey's catalog page.

Thank you everyone for your ongoing help. Thank you thank you thank you.

14 comments:

Mrs. Mommy July 29, 2010 at 11:59 AM  

We have done the same thing with Parker's Lovie "Tiger". We searched and hunted and scoured the Earth...and when we found our "spare" we bought as many as they had in the store...just in case. Good luck in your search. I will see what I can find! :0)

TexasBobbi July 29, 2010 at 12:08 PM  

We have two blankets that Ian loves, the only reason we have a second is that he stole it from Avery same thing with his two glow worms. I will keep my eye out, does it need to be blue?

Anonymous,  July 29, 2010 at 12:09 PM  

Does Lovey have a tag with a company name? That'd be a good place to start.

Anonymous,  July 29, 2010 at 12:36 PM  

this actually brought a little tear to my eye. I remember the day I lost my baby blanket..I was in 8th grade...and I obviously still think about it today. I will search like mad for you!!

Ashley Sisk July 29, 2010 at 1:39 PM  

Awww...what a sweet story paired with the photos...it brings it all together. I never had a lovey but my sister had one she carried with her forever. My best friend carried something around with her as well. By the time she got married, only a hand was left and she had it sewn into her dress. So sweet.

Sarah July 29, 2010 at 1:45 PM  

Where did that little baby boy go? Ahhh! He is growing up so fast. I just want to squeeze him!

I have been catching up on about a month of your blog and HOLY BLEEP! I am ashamed of myself for not being on here sooner, I had no idea you have been through so much!!!!!! I am thinking of you and baby and praying for your good health. She is going to be so beautiful and I love her name and her little clothes and pin board!

Take care of yourself!!!!
MUch.MuCh.LoVe.

beka July 29, 2010 at 1:50 PM  

Ah, we have a friend who had the same thing happen with their little boy. Except it was a stuffed elephant. Named Ellie. However you spell it. :)
Hope someone finds a backup!!
[ha, our friends used their back-up a lot of times....much-needed, oh yes!]

Oh Mandie July 29, 2010 at 2:13 PM  

oh goodness both of my boys shared a lovey when they were just babes, so I know what you're going through. (Heck, I'm 26 and still sleep with my lovey pillow too)

I'll definatly be keeping an eye out for a back up lovely for Charlie :)

Anonymous,  July 29, 2010 at 2:20 PM  

You don't know me, but I re-tweeted for you from a friend, so maybe some more mom's can help! I hope you find a back up!

krissilugbill July 29, 2010 at 2:37 PM  

oh my, what a sweet little lovely! :) its so true...we all have our own little lovely's that are so hard to let go of! I will keep my eyes pealed to see if I see a back up lovely online anywhere :) I have never seen it before, but it does look like it would be a great little nap time companion. Good luck with your search!

Jessica July 29, 2010 at 3:11 PM  

oh no! I will tell you that my best friends daughter has a build a bear kitty that she absolutely would not seperate with when she was younger (1 1/2-2ish). She bought an identical kitty and would "swap them" when it came time to wash the other, etc. She KNEW. That little girl KNEW that the replacement was not the original thing. And she refused to use it.

hopefully, you will have better luck. so good luck to you!

BeckyKay July 29, 2010 at 9:09 PM  

This is so, so sweet!! Isn't it funny how it's always the thing that seems most insignificant to us that becomes their favorite? For Connor, it was this little Precious Moments puppy that my grandma gave him for his first Easter. There was just something about that dog's ears that he loved. So far, Sally hasn't picked a favorite, but I'm sure she will!

Oh! I got your card today and posted some pics on flickr for you! :)

Reneesance July 30, 2010 at 10:07 AM  

Oh there's nothing I love more than a treasure hunt. I'm good at this!
Okay so we need more info. When did you get it, do you know where? Does it have tags or any other kind of identifying mark? If know you the store where it came from that's a huge starting point. The websites below have other message boards and hints for finding a lost lovey.

http://dirtybutter.com/plushcatalog/index.php?page=5&searchStr=puppy&act=viewCat&Submit=Go

http://www.lostmylovey.com/index.php

Anika July 30, 2010 at 3:27 PM  

I know just what you mean! Twila has a mini body pillow instead of a blanket. I thought it was really cute at first and then started to panic that I didn't have a back-up! Having the second one has saved me on many occasions...plus, it gives me time to wash the other! :)
Cute photos as always!

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