...because home doesn't happen overnight.

If you follow me on instagram, you may have noticed that a stuffed strawberry frequently makes an appearance alongside Mabrey. My cousin gifted Mabrey the Ikea strawberry lovey over a year ago and, ever since, the two have been inseperable. Mabrey and her strawberry are BFF’s. Mabrey affectionately refers to her lovey as “B” and their relationship is just about the sweetest thing I’ve ever encountered.

mabrey & B

My boys had blankies they loved when they were babies and toddlers but they only slept with them. (They still do but they don’t have to have them.) The blankies never made it out of their beds. But Mabrey and B go everywhere together. Mabrey talks to B. Mabrey sleeps with her face buried in B. Mabrey clings to B when she’s upset. B sits on the corner of the kitchen island to watch Mabrey eat. B goes for rides in the car with Mabrey. Mabrey takes B along for walks in her stroller. B watches movies with us. (To date, the only movie Mabrey has sat through from start to finish is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. One of the main characters is a little strawberry.) Mabrey makes us talk to, hug and kiss B. Mabrey blames B for her messes.

Me: Maaay-breeee, who dumped out all the Legos?

Mabrey: B did-dit.

So it should come as no surprise that our entire family was completely heartbroken when B went missing last month. Ironically enough, we lost B on a trip to Ikea – the same place B hails from. I wasn’t paying attention (I am easily distracted at Ikea) and didn’t realize that B had made it into the store with us. So I never noticed when Mabrey accidentally left B lying somewhere. In fact, I didn’t notice B was missing until after we returned home and I was putting Mabrey down for her nap. I couldn’t find B. She wasn’t in the car. She wasn’t in the house. She wasn’t dropped between the car and the house.

Frantically, I called Ikea. You can imagine how confusing that phone call was for the person on the opposite end of the line.

Me: Hi. We were just at your store and my daughter lost a stuffed strawberry. It’s actually an item you guys used to carry so someone may have thrown in onto a shelf thinking it belonged to the store but ours has all the tags removed. Has anyone turned it in?

Ikea employee: (silence for a while) So….um….you bought a strawberry today?

I left my name and phone number but, needless to say, no stray stuffed strawberries had been turned in. I broke the news to Mabrey telling her B was all gone. B went bye-bye. Initially, she took it pretty well. I think I was more upset than she was. Everett came to the rescue and selflessly offered up his stuffed puppy for Mabrey to sleep with. Mabrey went down for her nap (with Everett’s puppy) with no problems. She didn’t mention B anymore that day. She went to bed that night with Everett’s puppy and didn’t make a peep. I was relieved.

I’m a firm believer in “everything happens for a reason.” Mabrey seemed to be handling the loss of B quite well so I thought maybe it was meant to be. Maybe it was time to move on.

The next morning I went in the nursery and lifted Mabrey out of her crib.

Mabrey: B go bye-bye.

A lone tear rolled down her cheek. Ugh. My heart sank. I felt horrible. Mabrey had lost her best friend. Normally, Mabrey is a pretty happy girl but that day she was pitiful. She was sad and clingy and mentioned B several times throughout the day. I was sad, too. Screw “everything happens for a reason.”

When Steve came home from work that evening, we scoured the internet for a B replacement. (Our local Ikea no longer carried the stuffed strawberry.) We found a new one on eBay for $15 and bought it immediately. It took six days for B 2.0 to arrive and it was a loooooong six days. Mabrey was sleeping okay with her brother’s puppy stand-in but she asked for B from time to time and she wasn’t her normal happy self. I was anticipating the arrival of B 2.0 but worried that Mabrey might not go for it. Surely, B 2.0 wouldn’t look, smell or feel exactly the same as the original.

Much to my surprise Mabrey took to the replacement. I remember handing her B 2.0 for the first time. I could tell right away Mabrey knew it wasn’t the real B. But after a few seconds a huge smile spread across her face and she gave B 2.0 a big heartfelt squeeze. B 2.0 was better than nothing. B 2.0 was good enough. I had my happy girl back.

Now Mabrey treats B 2.0 just like the original. They are best friends and I am so grateful for a happy ending to our lost lovey story.

A lost lovey might seem like a minor thing to get worked up about but it really felt as if Mabrey had lost her best friend and, being her mom, I felt like I was the one who had let her down by not paying closer attention to B’s whereabouts. Has your child ever lost a lovey? How did your child react? How did you react? I hope your stories have happy endings, too.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

81 Comments

12.March.2014

Hi Dana, this post was so heartbreaking for me because I can picture my little ones losing their blankies which they have had since birth. My son is 4 and my daughter is 2 and their blankies go EVERYWHERE with them every single day. I just cant imagine how my children would feel if they lost them. Also these are not easily replaced since they are patterned with holes and paint stains so the kids would know. I’m so happy Mabrey is thrilled with the 2.0 and is back to her happy self. Also loving your blog, I have been a reader since your family moved to this house.

12.March.2014

Aw poor girl! I wonder if she’d like the Strawberry Shortcake dolls too?

My 17 month old loves his tag blanket which he calls Deeeee! I think it’s the cutest fricken thing to see a little kid dragging a blanket behind them in their totter-y unstable walk. I keep saying each month he gets older that “this is my favorite age!” then another month goes by and I’m saying the same exact thing.

Nicole B.

12.March.2014

Such a sweet story! My kids, too, have special lovies. My 6 year old boy has “G”, his Angel Dear giraffe. A few months ago, while my husband was painting the main room at night with a constuction light to help, my son threw G and it landed on the lamp, burning G badly (and thankfully not the whole house). I ordered a new one, then cut the singed G, and now he loves both. My daughter has “Pink G” (same giraffe in pink) – a few weeks ago, Pink G went missing. Hopped on Amazon, ordered a new one, and she took to it. Two days ago we found original Pink G stuffed in a Buzz Lightyear metal lunch box in her room. Now she loves both. Long story, but thankfully both my kids were adaptable to their new lovies, and still love their old ones. Even when the kids outgrow them, I will keep these lovies of theirs forever.

12.March.2014

Aw! My daughter had a huge attachment to her binkie pacifier from day one. It was much like B. She had some medical issues in her first year and always managed to find comfort in her friend. Nurses would comment how good she was. I knew it was Bink. At 4 we finally had to say goodbye. At that point she did not suck on it, but would hold it. People would look at me like I was that mother…whatever it sounds silly but it was her best friend. We put it in a home made build a bear so she could still have a piece of it. We both cried that day. I sooooo get it.

12.March.2014

http://hypervocal.com/vids/2012/ah-ah-is-back/

Have you ever seen the story of the mom who finds her son’s stuffed monkey three years later? So awesome.

P.S. I’m a real person. The story is like yours and is sweet. Nothing for sale.

12.March.2014

we lost my sons teddy when he was almost 3. We went shopping for a new one and every time he picked one up he would say “it’s not quite right”. In the end I dropped $45 on a new one that he picked. Best $ I ever spent. Honestly, I would have spent $100. He’s 7 now, still sleeps with it, and it’s name is “right teddy”. If asked, he still remembers loosing the other one. FWIW, I’m 33 and still have my childhood teddy in the house.

12.March.2014

Let this be a lesson for us all. If a child gets attached to a lovey, have at least 3 backups at home :-) My heart would be broken too at that lil tear and I probably would have paid a lot more than $15 if I needed to!

12.March.2014

Suggestion: Label B with a sharpie w/ name (I used only our last name) and phone number. Much better chance of getting it back.
My three-year-old(now 24) daughter had a beloved bear Beth. Beth was left in the middle of a round clothing rack at a major dept store, missed her when we where in line to pay for some items, yelled and cried like a banshee which led the store to close down all the cash registers while employees helped us find Beth. Keep in mind this was around Christmas time. I will never forget the looks we got from the other customers. I can laugh about it now, but not back then. And yes, we still have Beth.

12.March.2014

My daughter is 20 and still has “dolly” – a stuffed doll that was a gift when she was born and became her constant companion and source of comfort. Dolly went everywhere with us. Daughter is away at college, but dolly still lives with us — she sleeps in the nightstand next to daughter’s bed. Thankfully, the one time Em lost her dolly, it was only a week before dolly was back with us again. In the meantime, a smaller version of dolly (named dolly’s sister), was ok, but not the same. I also did a frantic search to replace dolly after the frantic search to find lost dolly failed, but she was no longer sold. We were all relieved when Dolly was found a week later inside a soup pot as I was making dinner. 2 year old Em did not remember putting her inside the pot. :)

12.March.2014

My youngest had a teddy bear she received as a gift when she was born. His name is Bear Bear and he went everywhere she went. When she was 2 or 3, she lost him while with friends at McDonald’s. They hadn’t realized she set him down, and even though they went back within a couple minutes, someone had taken him. I think I was sadder than she was! The following week I was at our local grocery store, and the floral department had several on a shelf. Of course I had to buy one, even though she was adjusting fairly well. She knew it wasn’t the same Bear Bear, but she was happy to have another one.

12.March.2014

We lost Meow on a flight and it was so sad. We also found a replacement on eBay and bought 2. It was a long, sad week.

12.March.2014

Yay for finding a replacement! My son has “Fred” he is a plush robot and has been in family portraits!

12.March.2014

In my circumstance, I’m not the parent, but rather, I’m the child. I slept with my baby blanket every night growing up. I loved that thing. It was torn and shredded in so many places, completely falling apart, but it was mine and I didn’t care. I took it with me whenever we went away. I mostly slept with it but would also bring it if we watched a family movie in the living room or when I was sad, etc. When I was 11 we went out of town and I brought it with me, of course. However, I failed to realize that I kicked the blanket down into the covers at the hotel and forgot to pull it out the next morning. That night when we were back at home, I couldn’t find my blanket (not in my bed, not in my suitcase, not in any other normal spots I would leave it.) I searched everywhere until I realized it was back at the hotel (I cried so hard.) My parents too tried to get it back by calling the hotel but they had lost it for good. It still kinda makes me sad to this day. Now I’m 22 years old and newly married. I hope that this does not happen to my (future) kids but I know I will be that mom that will fight to find their “lovey” if it is lost.
So glad that you were able to find another B for Mabrey and that she loves it as much as the first!

12.March.2014

When my son was 2, we lost his stuffed Corduroy on a walk, and I didn’t realize it until we got home. I retraced our walk twice that night, sobbing like an idiot the entire time! That bear went everywhere with him. My mother-in-law replaced it when she heard, but it was probably more for me than for him :) Corduroy #2 still sits at the end of his bed, and he’s 5.5 now.

12.March.2014

I don’t have any kids, but I do still have my Blue Blankie. I received that as a gift from my grandparents’ maid as soon as I came home from the hospital 30 years ago. He’s beat up, has holes everywhere, and is literally threadbare but I refuse to let him go. I only lost him once in the 30 years I’ve had him, and I didn’t take it easily! I left him behind in Florida when I went to visit my biological father for two weeks, and my father took his sweet time in sending Blue Blankie back to me. I was 6 or 7 at the time and just remember not being able to sleep and my mom constantly trying to help me feel better (and yelling at my father on the phone a lot). So glad you were able to find a replacement!

12.March.2014

Yes, my middle child’s “Tigger” went missing for days once. Turns out he had somehow gotten between the trash bag and trash canister, so when we emptied it the next time we found it. It was a rough few days.

I went to eBay and found two replacements. Unfortunately, those are now known as the “clean” Tiggers. Dusty Tigger is the original and the only one that will work. He is “well-loved” and has a distinct smell that no amount of washing can rid.

12.March.2014

Funny story. Well, it wasn’t funny then, but I can look back on it now.

When my daughter (now 11) was 4, she had a new favorite friend “Hippo.” Hippo, a TY Beanie Buddy, went everywhere. I ordered another from Amazon without telling her and switched them out occasionally to make sure Hippo got washed regularly. She always knew the difference, but we told her he smelled different because he was clean. She would point out other differences that I couldn’t see. But we just pretended it was the same toy. One day she decided to cut Hippo’s tag off. In doing so, Hippo had a hole cut in his fabric. She picked out the thread and I sewed him up. After she went to bed that night, I had to perform the same operation on Hippo’s friend. {sigh}

About a month into this charade, she was in my closet for some reason and found Hippo’s friend. She was SO excited. For the next month or so, she carried BOTH hippos around. EVERYWHERE. Then we went to my in-laws house for Christmas. She was playing with her cousin and Hippo’s friend got lost. We knew it was in the house, so my MIL promised to mail him home when she found him.

We spent the week after Christmas with my mother. We made a trip to Walmart for Baby Alive diapers. In the process of shopping, we had to make a trip to the restroom. Hippo got left in the shopping cart with a few items. When we came out, EVERYTHING was gone. I was panicked! We looked all over, asked at lost and found. Nothing.

I called my husband and he did a web search to find where we might locate a new one. We tried Cracker Barrel. No go, but we bought a Webkinz puppy, which she promptly named Lucy. She still sleeps with Lucy to this day.

Incidentally, about a week after New Year’s, my month-in-law found Hippo’s friend and mailed him to us. He has a place of honor on my daughter’s bookshelf, but it’s not the same.

12.March.2014

My oldest loves his Aden+Anais muslin swaddling blankets. They are his tiny blankets. Luckily they are 4 to a pack but after about 4 years the tags were missing on all but one (the tags are the best part, of course). We happened to be pregnant with his little brother at the time so we ordered some for the baby and some new ones for him. He still sleeps with them (he’s almost 6) and occasionally they make their way down to the living room but he’s never insisted on taking them anywhere. My baby doesn’t have a lovey and it sort of makes me sad. We’ve tried leaving his tiny blankets and an owl in his crib but no dice. Honestly, I think nursing is his lovey. It’s the first thing we have to do when we get home and we tried not nursing during the day last weekend and he was miserable. So for now we keep on nursing.

So glad you found a replacement for Mabrey!

12.March.2014

Oh man! I’m so glad Mabrey has her lovey back. I couldn’t even imagine my kids losing something they loved so much. I would feel so terrible aobut it. And in true hoarding fashion, I’d probably buy 3 more Ebay lovies just to be on the safe side. ;)

12.March.2014

What a tender story. I’m very glad for a happy ending.

My boys don’t have loveys but I did as a toddler. It was my “Pink-O-Blankey.” Once, it was left behind in a grocery cart which led to much weeping and gnashing of teeth. Thankfully, after a frantic search it was recovered later that day. My mom’s reaction was to cut Pink-o-Blankey into four pieces and hem up the rough edges. The redundancy she built into my security object situation lasted us until I was old enough to move on.

12.March.2014

My daughter ( now grown) had Pinky-a stuffed rabbit my dad gave her for her first Easter.
Like B, Pinky was Ashley’s fave “person” and they did everything together.

Pinky went house shopping with us one day and was left in a model home. It was near closing time when we went in; even though we realized Pinky was missing pretty quickly ( hello, crying child) they had already closed. Retracing steps, the cleaning crew was kind enough to let us in and look for “her.”

Luckily, we found Pinky and all was right with the universe once again.

12.March.2014

With me, my mom bought multiples of my sibling and my favorite stuffed toys and swapped them out regularly for equal wear and tear. All of my siblings and I were very attached to one specific toy, so it was actually a genius move. I lost my teddy bear out a car window when I was 4 on a freeway, but miraculously she produced another identical one. With my youngest sister (who is almost 20 years my junior) she dumped the multiple idea and put a tiny tracking device inside it that she could use with her iphone. Crazy, but for parenting piece of mind I completely get it!

12.March.2014

My son lost his small puppy lovey (Pepino) in a hotel in Spain. We just could not find it anywhere in the room. I left our details at the front desk but they never contacted us. I looked on the internet to find a replacement, but could not find any. After a few weeks I called the hotel. Lo and behold they had found Pepino and they mailed it to us straight away. What a happy day. Now all loveys in the house have a homemade leash with my email address on it. Just in case!

12.March.2014

My daughter adopted a lovey, “Penny” a pig, that I was gifted for her at my baby shower. She has had her for almost 5 years and there have been numerous times that we have almost lost her. When we were expecting our son Luke, who is now almost 3, my husband insisted we buy 2 back up loveys just in case. It has been a lifesaver when we accidentally leave his bear at grandmas etc. I do rotate them so they each get some wear :)

12.March.2014

My now 4.5 year old received an Ugly Doll, a red Ice Bat, from a friend when he was born. At about 1 he attached to it and he and Ice Bat went everywhere together. We lost him at an indoor global market when we went to go visit Santa when he was 2. By the time we got home, the market was closed and Ice Bat was nowhere to be found. I did what any (crazy) mom would do – I drove to the Mall of America at Christmastime at 9 pm to get him a new one. Once I got to the toy store, I discovered Ice Bat had gone through a redesign, and looked different than the one we lost! After frantically digging through the bin, I found a red Ice Bat with small feet, and snatched him up. My son looked at him suspiciously, but then hugged him and all was right with the world.

Not wanting to go through that again, the next time we managed to find the old-style Ice Bat, we bought a back up. Then, 6 months later, I was at a party and my husband was home with our son. They couldn’t find Ice Bat, and bedtime was going poorly, so he pulled out the backup. An hour or so later, they found the original, and S decided to attach to BOTH of them. As he got older, he decided that one of them had a slightly more upturned mouth, so that one was Happy Ice Bat, and the other was Grumpy Ice Bat. Happy and Grumpy went everywhere he did, and we watched those things like a hawk, knowing there was no way we could ever find replacements now that he had given them distinct personalities based on their facial features! Thank goodness S is almost 5 and while he sleeps with Happy and Grumpy every night, they no longer leave the house.

12.March.2014

We lost “lambie” at Disney World. My son took it out of his backpack right before we were leaving the hotel to head home and dropped it somewhere. We noticed on the bus to the airport. He used a stuffed elephant as a replacement but still asked for lambie. Eventually I broke down and bought him a new one. He now carries both!!

12.March.2014

This is the sweetest story. I love all those Instagram pics showing B hanging with the kiddos. Your daughter has a darling wistful look about her–I think she is probably an old soul.

I too have a lovey. It’s a soft pale pink shawl from India that I sleep with, covering my back and shoulders so that my husband’s nose air doesn’t breeze on me. : ) I call it my “dress,” but I’m not sure why. I cannot sleep without it (even if I happen to be sleeping away from my husband) and feel that if I were to lose it, that no replacement would ever be the same. Gosh, just thinking about losing my dress makes me anxious!

jbhat

12.March.2014

Aw man. This story made my heart hurt. My daughter has a lovey from Ikea as well. A stuffed moose she has called Muffin. Muffin is HUGE and yes, we take him/her everywhere. We get some rather strange stares when my daughter drags Muffin with her. Muffin should be rather hard to misplace since he/she is quite large, BUT…I have heard many ‘lost lovey’ stories so I assume it is quite easy. I dread this happening since Muffin is my daughters BFF as well.

Maybe I should invest in a back-up or ‘Muffin 2.0’ myself. Just in case…

Cute post!! Cheers.

12.March.2014

My best friend gave my daughter an Angel Dear brown puppy at birth. She attached quickly, and I realized we needed some backups in enough time to buy replacements (6 in total) before there was any change in the line. So when I chose an Angel Dear owl for my son (named by him “owlie”) when he came along two years later, we bought six of those as well. Not only does it help with loss (we’re down to two pup pups, two lost and one given to her BFF, but owlie’s holding pretty strong), but it also helps with laundry (my son’s a chewer and eventually that thing can get to a state we call “Foul Owl”). We keep one of each clean and hidden on a high shelf in case of emergencies. Behind glass.

It’s hard because sometimes they’re already discontinued before you realize the gravity of the attachment–we got lucky.

12.March.2014

Yes, for my daughter it’s Cuppy the bunny. She has had Cuppy around for 13 years (she’s now 15) and still sleeps with him every night. She’s taken him on every vacation and once he had to be FedEx’d back home from Amish country. That was a close call, ha ha.

12.March.2014

None of my kids have a security blanket or toy, but your post has lead me to wonder whether this is a cultural thing. I didn’t have a security blanket, neither did my husband, and possibly this is a particularly Western phenomenon. Interesting! And I am glad your second strawberry was accepted.
AND I wanted to let you know I enjoyed yesterday’s post about the pantry as well. We don’t have a pantry and storage of things like open bags of pretzels, etc. can sometimes be problematic. (Maybe that would be the same with a pantry?) How do you deal with those sort of things? And with your baking storage – what do you do when a bag of sugar or something is too much to fit in the container? I end up with containers of flour or sugar or something (noodles, too) and then half bags tucked away in the back of the cupboard. Maybe it is just me.

12.March.2014

I was pretty adament that I didn’t want lovies for my kids for this exact reason. But it’s so darn endearing and sweet to see them bond like that… So all three of my kids have had special lovies. I decided it was worth the small chance of losing it to enjoy the countless hours of them enjoying it and finding comfort in it.

We haven’t lost one (yet).

12.March.2014

So glad this story had a happy ending!
My sister and I each grew up with a lovey that was little more than an oval pillow decorated to roughly resemble Humpty Dumpty. On a trip to the bank my sister accidentally dropped her “Baby,” but no one realized it until bedtime. She was hysterical, but because this was the ’70s and we lived in a small, friendly town, my parents were able to call the bank president who met my dad at the bank and unlocked the doors so Baby could be retrieved.
With this story in mind, I quickly looked for a replacement when my son became attached to his Blankie. His particular version had been discontinued, though, so I’ve watched that thing like a hawk. In a pinch, New Blankie can sub in, but the original is irreplaceable.

12.March.2014

Long time follower..new commenter.

My daughter lost her Nittany Lion stuffed animal as a soccer tournament when she was a little one at her older brother’s soccer tournament..which was 60 miles from home. We drove back to the soccer fields, put an ad in the local paper, called the tourney host…but he was never found. Penn State had changed their Lion style was the new version which we ordered was never accepted..sigh. You are lucky he was accepted!

Yes people..get a back up!! lol

12.March.2014

I didn’t read all the comments so apologies if I am saying something already said….do yourself a favor and find yet another strawberry for safe keeping!! This was some of the best advice I received when my daughter was born- whichever items she forms the strongest attachment to, always have an extra. My daughter has 2 loveys that she ‘needs’ and I have an extra one of each in my drawer (also helps when one gets dirty/wet, etc.

12.March.2014

I can relate to this post too. My daughter is eleven now and has had a TY pillow pal ducky her whole life. It was a gift for my baby shower from my neighbor. When it became obvious how much she loved the ducky I quickly bought another one on ebay (at great expense – these things are collectors items now). We also lost ducky 1.0 and replaced him with ducky 2.0 only to later find ducky 1.0 but not before purchasing ducky 3.0 on ebay at even greater expense. She now still has all three in varying states of disintegration and still loves them all!

12.March.2014

This story made me so sad! But I’m glad B 2.0 showed up (and that mom & dad saved the day with eBay’s help).

My little girl has a lovey that was sent to me while I was pregnant. My friend had bought it at some cute boutique and I remember thinking, “This looks expensive. This baby better not get attached to this one.” Well, sure enough, she has expensive taste. I looked online for the lovey in the event that it was ever lost and that 14 x 14 piece of fabric costs $40!!!! So our lovey never leaves the house :)

12.March.2014

What a sweet story! Our 3.5 year old daughter had a small stuffed monkey with magnetic hands. It was from Telus (a cell phone company in Canada, maybe the USA too?) and I got it when I bought a new cellphone 7 years ago. Same thing as you, the girl took it everywhere and one day daddy and DD went on some errands and came back and couldn’t find it anywhere. He drove to every spot they went to and looked. Nothing. So I posted on facebook that we had lost this ratty, stinky, skinny monkey, and lo and behold!! One of my friends said her mom had two and gave it to me the next day. I could tell Violet knew it wasn’t the original because it was so puffy and clean but she still sleeps with it, and it’s been 2.5 years since she lost it. Happy ending!!

12.March.2014

My little girl who I believe is about a week older than your Mabrey has a beloved “B” as well. I believe B is short for blankie which hers is. I’m scared to death of losing B because he was handmade. If we take him anywhere he’s the only thing I remember to look to make sure we have before we leave. I’ve left my sunglasses behind on sunny days and my cell phone behind as well but it’s ok as long as we have B. B also gets pushed in a stroller and gets fed and kissed and rocked and it’s just adorable!

12.March.2014

Awww poor B and sweet little Mabrey. Im happy you were able to find a replacement for her, and I hope she can create a new bond and even stronger love for her new BFF. Thanks for sharing such a heartfelt story today Dana.

12.March.2014

Open bags of anything (pretzels, sugars, etc.) are placed in the corner cabinet. I have clothesline pins snapped onto a basket near the front (maybe you can see them in the image of the opened cabinet) of the cabinet for securing open bags. Then they go in their appropriate basket. Pretzels in snacks; sugar in baking ingredients. Hope that helps!

12.March.2014

My now 5 year-old daughter’s best friend was a little Jessie the cowgirl doll. She took her everywhere, including Yellowstone National Park when she was 2. We hiked to a beautiful vantage point above a waterfall with the little one on daddy’s shoulders when we thought she was jumping off. We scream in panic and she screams in agony when we all realize she just chucked her best friend over the falls! It was a hard trip home. Jessie sent postcards to my daughter from her Yellowstone and then returned a few weeks later, albeit a bit different. It’s a family story not to be forgotten!

12.March.2014

Hah, I remember this happening to me as a child. I left my favorite stuffed dog Spot in stores several times and luckily my parents were able to find Spot 2 and Spot 3 replacements. I was also aware that he was not the same Spot but it was OK.

12.March.2014

I lost my “lovey” as an adult and am still heartbroken about it. My lovey was an old pillowcase, printed with an illustration of several cat and dog heads in a forest (sounds strange, but it was a beautiful illustration); the pillowcase had been cut open, so it was a two-sided sheet and it was worn thin and soft from years of being cuddled. I hadn’t slept with it since I was quite little (maybe 8 at the outmost), but I kept it in one of my dresser drawers, among sweaters, and would have kept it forever. Unfortunately, my house was burglarized in 2005 and the place ransacked. The event was horribly traumatic for me and I ended up taking very little from the house when I moved out. For some reason, I couldn’t get over the invasion and the loss enough to pack and move properly. I left everything behind, even my “kittysheet” by accident. I didn’t realize it was no longer with me for a few years, but now whenever I think about it, I am heartbroken. Hang on to B for Mabrey, even if only in the attic; she might miss it one day.

12.March.2014

KNUFFLE BUNNY! I think this is fairly common with kids.

12.March.2014

Oh wow, that video made me cry!!! My daughter has two lovies (white bunny and pink bunny). They haven’t been lost yet, and my husband doesn’t get why I try to fight the battle of not letting bunnies come in the car with us… After reading this (and all the comments), I think I’ll order back-ups of each one!

12.March.2014

There was a 1980s Fisher Price baby doll that was out for a short period of time. This was my friend’s lovey for her childhood; she carried it everywhere, loved it (literally) to pieces. Her parents realized the need for a spare but couldn’t find one in the stores anymore. After years of abuse, “blue baby” was in pretty sorry shape. Her parents told her when she was 5 or 6 that if she continued to carry it it would be beyond saving, so “blue baby” was retired. My friend still maintained an attachment to her and loved her. In college she did a project that involved drawing blue baby. I met her when we were in our twenties and she showed me the blue baby book she’d drawn. I had had the exact same doll and did not have that level of attachment to it; it was still in my parents’ basement in near-perfect condition. I brought it back for her and gifted her with a “new” blue baby. We were 25 at the time and I swear, I’ve never given anyone a better present. :)

12.March.2014

Embarrassing story time.
‘Santa’ brought me a tiny Pooh bear when I was 6. I can remember getting Pooh out of my stocking. I slept with my Pooh bear from then on. He went to high school diving camp with me, to college with me, when I went to Colorado, and literally every time I spent the night away from home.
When I was 23 I left him in a bed at a hotel. I cried myself to sleep that night, and didn’t sleep well for the next month. I eventually replaced him with a manatee, but I still have dreams about him two years later.
Lovies last. And I’m still upset I lost him.
Abby

12.March.2014

We had almost the exact same experience with our daughter when she was around 2 years old. As a baby she became attached to her Jellycat mouse and he went EVERYWHERE with us. We lost him at Disney and called for days, even after we got home, to no avail. No one turned him in:( The first nap without him that day was hard. She cried when we told her he was lost. I think it was even harder for me because he had been such an important part of her life. So we scoured the internet and found out that he had bee n discontinued in the U.S but found one in England and of course ordered him right away! Thirty dollars and a few days later “Mousey” found his way back to us. We told her he had wanted to stay at Disney a little longer but she knew. She accepted him right away though and they are still the best of friends 4 years later:) He stays safely at home now!

12.March.2014

I know that feeling all to well. Glad you were able to secure B 2.0.

My son lost his beloved blankie at the airport im STL on our way back to AZ. We were in the plane, over who knows where & we are both frantically searching for “blankie”. A handmade balnket my mother made for him before he was born. The passenger next to us, a fellow mom knew all to well how important this was & flagged down the flight attendant. Flight attendant also a mother knew the importance of a missing balnket goes to the cockpit & asks the pilot to call the ground crew at Lambert. My son was 9 at the time. :) Thank goodness for the crew at Southwest airlines, the beloved blankie was found & returned via FedEx. No matter how old he gets, he still loves his blanke & sleeps with it every night, still.

12.March.2014

I picked up a sweet little bunny lovey from H&M while I was pregnant and had no idea how much my son would grow to love it. He has a few different loveys that were gifted, but none are like bunny. I also can’t replace it so I’m very aware if my son sneaks it out of the house with him. Both my Husband and I had heartbreaking lovey losses when we were children and I don’t want my son to go through that as a toddler.

In an effort to break lovey needing to come with us everywhere I bought a very sweet (but replaceable) stuffed bunny in hopes he’d get attached to it as well. And it worked! But now he has two lovey he needs to carry around the house when he wants comfort, two loveys he needs to nap with, two loveys to bring into our bed some early mornings… It back fired a bit. In the very least he understands “bunny” can come to the store, but “lovey” needs to stay home.

He’s also in love with the Moose from ikea. Thankfully it doesn’t have to come with us yet, but it’s almost as big as him and wonderful for cuddles. They really have some great stuffies there, and I’m so happy you were able to find a B replacement.

We had the exact same experience with our first son…he lost his favorite bear, “Teddy”. It was a “My First Teddy” bear and was only made ONE year, then its design was changed. We also went to Ebay to help (Thank Heaven for Ebay!!), and bought the only replacement we could find, which had pink writing instead of blue. He loved it, and named this one “Pinky”. Finally, the same bear with blue writing showed up on Ebay, so we bought that, too. He decided he preferred Pinky to Teddy, and so Teddy became his little brother’s bear, both extremely loved. My husband still keeps a watch on Ebay, even though the lovey stage has long since passed (the boys are now almost 8 and 10!)…he just can’t bear the thought that they may not have a Teddy or a Pinky when they grow up, should one ever go missing again ;)

12.March.2014

My sister and I both had blankets and my mom (smart lady!) bought extras and cut them up to be travel-loveys. So if we lost our blanket, it wasn’t the “real” one.

Aw! Glad she took to B 2.0. We had to do a switcheroo years ago when my son LOVED his teddy to death. It was a soft fabric winnie the pooh that my husband’s cousin bought me for my shower gift. Our son took to him from when he was a baby. But his body was made of this THIN cotton and the fabric got runs and wore holes very quickly. I was constantly stitching him together but felt like I was losing a battle. Finally one day out of desperation, I SCOURED ebay and found one identical and brand new teddy. I bought it and when it showed up, I attempted to scruff up the toy and removed the bow our teddy no longer had.

But how to get our son to take to Teddy #2. Well. I told him that Teddy needed a wash. All the while new Teddy was waiting in the washer. I washed both together, I dried both together and then I pulled out the NEW teddy and handed it to my son. He declared that it was the BEST wash ever (considering the toy was intact and had gained stuffing) and took to him perfectly. The old teddy went in my son’t memento bin and I have to be honest was used for a limb once when new Teddy started to fall apart as well.

My son is now 9. And it was just a few months ago that I told him the story of the two teddies. The new teddy still sits in his room and sometimes is there for a cuddle when he is feeling sick. And since old teddy was the TRUE first one, he still remains in the memento bin.

Funny what lengths we go to to keep their sense of comfort.
:)

12.March.2014

I’m so glad to hear there was a happy ending! We forgot Tinkerbell on the Super Shuttle just as we were arriving at our first ever vacation with our then 20 month old daughter. Thankfully she was distracted by the whole vacation concept for the next two days until we could make it to a Disney Store to replace “Bell.” Like you, I think I was much more distressed by Bell’s disappearance than she was.

The workers at the Times Square Disney store were amazing and even though they didn’t have any Tinkerbells on the floor, they went into the back and found one for her. They also gave our daughter two cute certificates – one that commemorated her first trip to NYC and another that praised her for “finding Tinkerbell.”

12.March.2014

I don’t have any kiddos, but as a first grade teacher, I highly recommend reading Knufflebunny (Kah-nuff-el bunny). It is about a little girl that loses her lovey. It is a great story!

12.March.2014

I was older (6-8?) but I had a stuffed cat that I loved so much. We were poor and couldn’t have pets, but this cat *looked real* and was *so soft*. I probably remember it looking more real than it was…but it was beautiful.

One day, by accident, it ended up in the dryer and the fur was just…frizz. Ugly frizz. I remember being heart broken, and also trying to be brave and pretend that it was okay because my mom was so upset. (Granted, I probably threw a fit first. I remember my heartless sacrifice now, but I was still a kid then.)

Poor thing! I can only imagine. I had a blankie and my parents still have him somewhere at there place. I don’t know what in the world I could do with it- it’s too aged and worn to give to my children but there’s no way I could ever throw him away. Not sure why it’s a boy either!

12.March.2014

Until recently we’ve had spare “Gigi” who is my daughters beloved lovey. Not having a spare is incredibly stressful as Gigi is my daughters best friend and constant companion. When Gigi was lost I searched the internet, only to find that he was no longer sold by the manufacturer. I searched eBay, but no joy….

Because I read this post, and watched the Monkey video I thought I would jump on eBay, just to see if the stars were aligned for me today – and you know what? They were!!! It is absolutely not going to be the real one miraculously returned, but we have a spare again. Thankyou!!

12.March.2014

Awww sweet little girl. No one has lost a lovey in our house but they are definitely a big part of the family. At 8 year’s old my son still sleeps with my “nubby bear” who is missing both his arms at this point, but my son doesn’t mind. That bear is 35+ years old and still goes everywhere.

12.March.2014

Can you believe me if I tell you, that I cryed when I red you stroy, the exact same thing happend to one of our boys but it was a monke he called “Chacha” it was one of thoes Beanie Babies and just like Marbey chacha was like part of the family. We are from México, so there was no way to buy a replacement here, so we search on ebay and luckly a lady from Los Angeles had the same monkey so we bought it and when it arrived to my husband office he called me really exited to tell me about it, and also the sweet lady from Los Angeles send us a mini version of chacha. We were beyond happy when we saw the reaction of our litte boy, is just that you love them so much! I send you my love to you and your lovely family all the way from México ♥

I was ready to pack up Chloe’s Ikea strawberry and send it off to Mabrey! So glad you found a B 2.0 but let me know if you want a backup ;)

I totally had the same experience. Chloe had a kitten hand puppet named Miu Miu (yes, from Ikea too!) that we lost. I went back to the store and they didn’t sell them anymore. Chloe was heartbroken. Miu Miu used to nap with her at daycare and no amount of Ikea puppies or sheep were a good enough replacement. Lo and behold, about two months later, the kitten puppet was back in stock in Ikea. I bought two. Miu Miu still gets played with occasionally today. I’ve put the spare in her keepsake box. Every child deserves a Miu Miu or B to remind them of their childhood :)

13.March.2014

So this was in the news this past Christmas, it made me think of this http://gawker.com/man-surprises-his-fiancee-with-long-lost-teddy-bear-as-1510586935. Makes me cry every time. Lovely post, thank you!

13.March.2014

Years later I’m still heartbroken that my sons ‘chocolate bear’ was lost on a trip with his father. The bear had been everywhere with us including to Cambodia and back.
In the end I knitted a similar bear but it’s just not the same. It makes me sad as my husband and I have our lovies from when we were little still.

13.March.2014

Once we discovered that my daughter’s blankie had been left in the airport. The plane STOPPED TAXI-ING, and they OPENED THE DOOR. Someone ran out on the tarmac and tossed the blanket up to the attendant who was standing in the door.

It was a small airport and before 9/11, probably wouldn’t happen today. Even then, I was surprised, but incredibly grateful.

A friend of mine bought 3 of her son’s special toy – just kept the extras hidden, in case of disaster.

13.March.2014

Aw, thanks for the offer Jen. Hopefully, we don’t lose B again but you might get an email from me if we do!

13.March.2014

Your story just sent me back about 11 years when “Cody Dog” , my 3-year-old daughter’s Lovey–went missing (At Disney World!). I can completely identify with your heartache. We frantically scrolled back through our photos and spotted him last on Cinderella’s carousel. We were leaving the morning we realized he was gone and anxiously placed a call to Disney’s customer service where we had to leave a message with a description of what we had lost. Feeling hopeless, we left for the airport and called home to a friend who had a similar stuffed dog that her daughter wasn’t as attached to. We also stopped in a store and did our best to find a close match. By the time we got home, we had two similar-but-not-the-same replacements that received a luke-warm reception from Kate. About 6 weeks went by and life had almost returned to normal when a package arrived out of the blue from Disney– they had found Cody Dog and returned him! She’s 14 now and we still have Cody Dog but he’s safely tucked away and sometimes makes a showing on those days when you need a good, old friend. :)

13.March.2014

Thank you for this. Great story.

13.March.2014

I cried too. Thanks for sharing. Kids really really do love their loveys.

13.March.2014

Willa’s still too young to really have an attachment to something. I’m interested to see what she does become attached to.

13.March.2014

WOW! That’s some great customer service right there :)

13.March.2014

My soon to be 19 year old daughter had a “My First Teddy” bear. I have a picture of her with it at 3 months. Bear got left in a hotel room. Luckily, they mailed it to us. We bought the same stuffed bear in the meantime which she named Teddy. As soon as Bear came in the mail, Teddy was given to a new born cousin. Bear started staying home when we went anywhere to take care of things but she still slept with him. Bear who is now smaller and faded out, went to college with my daughter as well.

13.March.2014

I. just. cried. I had a raggity doll when I was younger and was heartbroken like M when my dolly was left at grandma’s (who lived in a different state.) It was weeks before she was found under the couch. My daughter is only 5mo. old so she doesn’t have any huge attachments to her friends but I bought doubles of one elephant that she seems to like just in case! It’s just too sad!

14.March.2014

My oldest daughter has one of those loveys she named Boop, she couldn’t say Bear for the longest time. It’s one of those small blankets with the head of a Bear attached (hard to describe but I think you get the idea). She used to take it everywhere, she’s almost 7 now and still sleeps with it. My middle girl has a stuffed piggie that she adores. Lord help us if that pig ever goes missing! It was a gift from my mother and father when she was born (she’s almost 4 now) and it’s been washed many times but never seems to get truly clean… My youngest daughter is only 8 months old and doesn’t seem to favor any particular toy or “lovey” yet. We’ve lost a few toys over the years, left at various stores, despite the fact I am manic about keeping track of everything. No serious melt-downs, thankfully, but their sad faces are awful aren’t they?!

14.March.2014

My girls lovie is her froggy, which she became attached to the moment she got it at her first b-day. When we moved cross country a few months after her b-day, I bought a ‘spare’ froggy just in case (which I lucked out finding, it was the last one at the store). That spare has come in hand several times over the last year, when froggy 1.0 was left at the babysitters, or lost at aunties house for a few days, or really really needed a bath. Luckily my daughter hasn’t realized (or act like she does) when we quickly pull the spare out of a basket on a top shelf in her closet when she’s not looking. It would be a sad day in our house too, if froggy ever really went missing!

Oh how sweet and heartbreaking. We don’t have kids, but I’ve made a few minky blankets or purchased the super soft stuffed animals that became the loveys for the little ones in my life. I’ve been told on more than one occasion, you better have a back-up ;) I’m glad she is doing well with B 2.0.

I second a “cultural thing” explanation. I had no idea at all that kids use security blankets or toys until my third child was born (my first and second were born oversees). On my fourth toddler now, I have decided not to introduce any security objects to her. I am not an expert in kids psychology, but judging by myself, my older kids and my husband (who had a blankie as a toddler– we still have shreds in a memorabilia box) everyone turned out fine and secure. For me it is about avoiding a heartbreak for the kids and a headache for the parent. I have come to realize just HOW MANY behavioral issues we as parents create (myself included).
Pantry stuff: whole bags of sugar/flour can fit in a larger container on top of the counter, like Dana showed. I use this system as well, I bought my canisters at Walmart.

20.March.2014

I came across your story because I am scouring the internet for my daughter’s lost bunny!! It was lost March 6, 2014. I am seeing these stories of people finding their lost lovies after a long time! Well my daughter has had her bunny aka best friend since she was a newborn, my Granny bought it for her. It is well loved, pink, says Thank Heavens for Little Girls on it. We lost it at or near Disneyland and I just can’t understand why she hasn’t been turned into the Disneyland lost and found. I have called everyday sometimes twice a day. I’m not sure at the age of 4.1/2 a back up would be the same, she would know it wasn’t her bun-buns are she would call her. She dressed her in matching clothes, she had her own stocking at Christmas, she fed her carrots, and took her everywhere. She was truly her best friend. I am devastated as is my daughter without her! She sees bunnies with all the Easter things out and gets sad and says” oh that reminds me of bunny”, or can we do such and such when bunny gets back? She says her prayers for bunny to return. My suggestion would be to get your phone number put on it somehow!! We would always put a sticker with our phone number on it, but we hadn’t made it to the guest services counter yet to get the sticker :(

21.March.2014

My son is almost ten and has had a stuffed husky from my mom since he was about 2 years old. That stuffed dog is very well travelled. “Trav” has been to Mexico, Canada, Arizona, Washington, New York, DC, Florida (Miami & the Keys), Oregon, Hawaii (his favorite so far!) and numerous road trips throughout CA. If only I could have racked up the frequent flyer miles for the dog. He was always a carry on and only left the house to travel with us so we were lucky to never lose him. At this point he is starting to become a bit fragile in his old age so he is destined to be a sleep mate at home only in his golden years. I dread the day my son is ready to put him away.

21.March.2014

That was the cutest most enjoyable post to read.

09.January.2015

Just read this post after reading your 2014 in review post and was reminded of my niece when she was tiny. She had two loveys… a big one and a little one… Both were blankies crocheted by a great-aunt. The big was for bed and the little one was for taking out of the house on errands, etc… Pretty brilliant on the great-aunt’s part if you ask me! Anyway, the “little one” got lost at the grocery store. My niece who was probably not even two years old at the time prayed for it to come back. And it did. When my niece once again held her “little one” in her hands she spontaneously exclaimed, “Thank you Jesus!” Now, whenever I lose something I pray and whenever I find it I say, “Thank you Jesus!” :)