More Sunday Stylin': Rocking Big Bear's Old Bow

Niecey at 3 years old and Big Bear looking less loved.


When Niecey was very little I found some little teddy bears real cheap at walmart in the baby section. I tried to always get her stuff from the baby section so that she wouldn't choke to death on a button or something. I think this was her first Christmas so she was about 5 months old and of course I had to buy her a ton of presents. Well Baby Sibling didn't have the means to get her a present, both because she was a broke high school student and because she didn't drive (though I took her places when I had time). She saw the cheap teddies and figured they would work for her budget and so bought them off of me. Niecey Poo fell in love with one and it was her second lovie (her first was a beanie baby white wolf named wolfie and it got lost at some point). I am fairly certain her first word was teddy (tuh tuh) and this teddy started her teddy addiction. She lost it and bonded with a bigger fluffier teddy until it too got lost. Then about a year later I was trolling around after work and found myself in the Osco (Osco is like CVS or Walgreen's but usually in the same store/building as Jewel which is a grocery chain in IL, together they are called Jewel Osco) and what did I see but a huge teddy bear that was only like $10, score! I brought this bear home and when she saw it she was quite impressed and toddled over to me and was a little shy at first (it was about as big as she was at the time) so I had it give her a hug and they've been friends ever since. Niecey LOVES to recount this story, while she does not remember what happened I reconstructed it for her and she loves to hear it and tell it. Dad started referring to it as her big bear as I recall and that is how Big Bear got its name.















Fast forward a few years, Big Bear is an extremely loved bear and it is very obvious by looking at it. Originally it had stuffing throughout its body/arms/legs/head. Pretty much all the stuffing was compacted by the frequent cuddling and ended up in the arms, legs and head and the body is pretty much empty. I offered to restuff Big Bear but she does not like that idea at all. Another feature of Big Bear is its satin bow, that is basically her favorite part of Big Bear, she loves the feel of the silky fabric (it is not so silky now but that doesn't bother her) and will often cuddle Big Bear in such a way that she could have the bow in her hands close to her face so she could feel it with her fingers and her face. I was not there the first time the bow fell off, Cheryl reports that she made the most pitiful/traumatized scream when it happened, she had been swinging Big Bear around by the bow and it was just too much for it. Auntie Cheryl and I think Graw got Big Bear's bow back on and it eventually became a regular thing until recently Middle Sister sewed on a new yellow bow since the brown one is getting too old to keep reattaching, thus it became "Big Bear's old bow" and it is a lovie in and of itself. The problem is that she left it in my apartment and I did not see it until after they had driven off. I told her that when Graw comes to visit me that she can bring it back with her and she seemed ok with this for a bit. She is growing increasingly distraught about not having it though.















Tonight she decided that waiting is unacceptable and begged me to mail it back to her, I most likely will do so, I just have to find a box and get enough time to make a trip to the post office which closes ridiculously early here. Mom just found out she is going to need surgery to remove a growth in her foot and so she might not be coming here as planned so that is also a factor. So much for me negotiating a trade, the bow for my new unactivated cell phone she sort of accidentally swiped (it was in her pocket and I forgot to check)! The bow is way more important (seriously) than the phone, not just in Niecey's opinion but in mine as well, especially since I glued my old phone back together so it should be good for awhile longer (I am not thrilled with the new phone and like the old one). I took the following picture hoping it would amuse Niecey and get her to stop crying about wanting me and the bow but it only made her more upset, sigh. Guess I am just not cool enough to rock Big Bear's old bow.