Puppy

IMG_4867
Originally uploaded by stubbygray

This little guy is who I'm talking about when I mention Marley's beloved Puppy.

I honestly don't remember how old she was when she "fell in love" with him. She's been carrying him everywhere for two, maybe three years.

You can see that his nose is stitched. It's because Marley's self-discovered, self-soothing technique is to suck her thumb while scratching Puppy's nose. It's quite cute.

This is an old picture. When I saw it I thought, Oh, look how big Puppy's nose used to be. I'm no seamstress, so these days that nose is all puckered inside the green muzzle, held together by an unruly mass of red thread, and, of course, a mother's love. Heh.

When they made her an "Honorary Kindergartener" earlier this school year, Marley was required to give up her naps--which also meant that she had to leave Puppy at home.

I wasn't sure how this was going to go over, but she was ready. She usually brings him along for the ride in the morning, and I leave him in the car, making sure to sit him up in the carseat for when she gets out.

We've had a few "incidents" over the years. We've left him at Mammy's three times. The first two we drove a half hour there and a half hour back again, late at night, to retrieve him. The third time, Corey thought she should deal with the consequences of forgetting him.

But of course, a sentence like that creates instant karma, since WE, the parents, are the only ones around to deal with her dealing with said consequences. It's heartbreaking to see how sad she gets if she has to sleep without him. She literally cries herself to sleep while I rub her back.

During our most recent mini Disney vacation, we got halfway back to our hotel before realizing we'd left him in the biggest Disney store in the world. Nice. I was sick to my stomach thinking, this is it, he's gone forever. Corey wordlessly concurred.

Nevertheless, we hit the ground running. I jumped off the bus and ran to the concierge, asking him to call the store. "You see, we lost her lovey--he's a yellow bear but she calls him Puppy--we think he's in the big Disney store! " I felt like such a... a... parent trying to explain this to some college kid.

Listen, buddy, I know it's just a stuffed animal, but finding this freakin' thing really is a matter of life and death. Are you a parent? No? Well, trust me. When you are a parent you'll understand. When you love a little someone who loves a freakin' doll so much it would BREAK HER HEART to lose it, you'll understand.

Then I soothed an already weepily-exhausted child while Corey took the not-so lightning fast Disney buses back to the store to pick him up. Door to door to door, it added just under three hours to what was a long day to begin with. But, thank the gods! Puppy had been found by a customer, turned in, and was enjoying the scenery (and I can only imagine the staff's loving attention) when Corey arrived.

How do you say "Relief!" ?

I once found an identical Puppy on ebay (they're rare) but, sadly, I did not shop victoriously. Doesn't matter anyway. Even a perfect clone wouldn't be her Puppy. It's a testament to the power a child has over the adults in his or her life. Love is such a circular thing. It's funny how much Puppy has become a part of our family. We love her, she loves Puppy, therefore, we love Puppy too.