In her first year, Keira quickly made friends with several of her stuffed animals, but nothing ever too serious.
At 5 months, Panda made her smile from ear to ear!
At 6 months, she resembled this owl but he was too big for her tiny arms to cuddle. Besides, the little one came with and three's a crowd. Sitting side by side is as close as they would get.
We tried to pair her with these three. Surely she would warm up to one of them. While soft & cuddly, however, they all fell flat.
We began to think that Keira would never have a "lovey," a friend she would never tire of, cuddle in her sleep, love forever and perhaps, talk her out of needing her paci one day. You see our secondary motive?
And then one day it happened. Who really knows when it actually began, but from experience, I know that sometimes the best friendships are born out of time.
Penguin has actually been around since before Keira was born. For her entire first year, we always looked him over at playtime and I'm sure Keira did too. He was always to the side, but never out of reach. He lived in a basket, often stuffed between bigger, prettier & more colorful toys. Do you see him?
Unlike his roommates he is quite simple. He's small, plain & lacking in color and at first glance he's doesn't seem very cuddly. Despite his set backs, one day Keira began to see something we didn't see. Ryan was the first to notice it. All of a sudden she was attracted to this small, simple penguin and began giving him more attention then the rest. Turns out he is the perfect size for her. She can wrap her arms around him and she found his beak the perfect size to kiss. It was a match made in heaven!
It was so sweet to watch this relationship grow! In the early stages of their friendship, I'd catch Keira and penguin in a full fledged conversation over the monitor. In fact, one morning, I caught her teaching penguin to stand. She picked him up from under his wings and stood him on his feet. Of course, he'd fall and she'd do it again... and again... and again, all the while trying to plead with him that he needed to stand. At the time, we were in the middle of also teaching Keira to stand, in the exact same way & in the same tone she talked to penguin! We'd pick her up from her arms and land her on her feet until she stood strong. Somehow she picked up on it and decided if she had to do it, so did he. It was too cute!
A few months after the start of their relationship Keira affectionately began calling him "Owl." Of course, we tried to get her to call him penguin, but as it turns out, that's a little too mouthy for a toddler. After a while, we decided there's no use in fighting it. For this reason, he will forever be known as the penguin named Owl!
The penguin named Owl is always around now. He often escorts Keira to breakfast.
They play together throughout the day and he comforts her when she's sad or scared, often turning tears into giggles.
And when they aren't together he's upstairs patiently waiting for the sun to go down and for Keira to return. The crib is a lot more spacious than that crammed basket! He's come along way!
At bedtime, Keira will ask for Owl and point to her crib as she drinks her last cup of milk. She holds him tight and in between sips, she'll shower him with kisses. She'll even ask us to kiss him good night. I'm pretty sure he enjoys it!
Keira & the penguin named Owl, BFFs - est. 2013.
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