Friday, December 01, 2006

Sad Realization

We have been celebrating at work... In November, we had a baby shower (then the baby, which weighed in at 9 lbs, 14 oz and 22 1/2 inches long!) and a retirement party. There are two more pregnant women, and we had one more shower today.

Of course the mama was registered, but I rarely go by that. I think about the person and come up with something on my own. As I was leaving to shop for this gift at Wal-Mart, my inspiration was this:
IMG_1368
Fuzzy is my son's well-loved friend. He was gorgeous when we got him, with a snappy bow and soft curly fur. He's soft and squishy and perfect for hugging tightly when you're scared. My son MADE that shirt for him. He's been loved nearly bald and I don't see Fuzzy becoming a thing of the past anytime soon.

To my way of thinking, every small child NEEDS a bear-friend like that.

So I set off for Wal-Mart, thinking I'd dash in, find a new friend for the new baby and go. No such luck.

First of all, there is NO stuffed animal aisle. No central place to go for a huggable friend. And the bears that were there either glowed in the dark, smelled like bad fruit, were meant to be drawn on, or had hard bits of machinery inside that said prayers, nursery rhymes, or sang idiotic songs.

And those were the generic-sorts of bears. The other stuffed denizens of the toy aisles were CHARACTERS! They came from cartoons, movies, TV shows... No toy that didn't already have a personality attached.
Bear Care

And of course, there are the "specialty" bears (granted, these are NOT at Wal-Mart):
Dominatrix Bear Naughty Bears

What are you supposed to do if you don't have the time or the money to go to a specialty shop?
Bear Seller

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Check out some of those hallmark card stores or stores like that they have some awesome snuggly bears....

your sons is cute...

as for the 9 lb 14 oz baby ..my oldest son ...before he was born they believed he would be 9 lb 14 oz....however....when he was born he was 9 lbs. 2 oz.....so i can and do relate !!!!

Anonymous said...

really?! they have s & m bears?!?!??!?! who'd of thunk it? do we get pics of the pretty new living room?