Two Monkeys

Back when Judson was born, Slade took the boys to the toy store on the way to the hospital (the second day) to pick out a stuffed animal to give to Judson.  Randall chose a hedgehog and Russ chose a monkey.

Randall's hedgehog "shed" and little bits of "fur" would end up all over the crib, so the hedgehog ended up on a shelf.  Over time, however, it became very clear that Judson was getting very attached to the monkey.  By 18 months, that monkey (named Monkey because we're very creative around here) was a constant companion and went everywhere with Judson.

I began to have visions of losing Monkey and the distress that would follow and decided to buy a second monkey just in case.  I was unable to find one locally so I checked eBay and found him!  I was so excited to order him and felt such peace of mind, knowing we wouldn't know the meltdown and sleepless nights that come with losing a lovey.

But, when the new monkey came in the mail, my heart dropped and I had to laugh.  Apparently, Monkey had been loved so much that he no longer looked like he had when he was first purchased.  He was flat, his fur was matted and his sweet pink cheeks were not pink at all.

Here's Judson with it fresh out of the package.  He's tickled that they both have tails (Monkey's tail is his favorite thing--he wraps it around the fingers not in his mouth while he sucks the two middle ones). *grin*

Laughing with the two monkeys on the couch.

When I first gave him to Judson, he grinned and held him and said, "He's so chubby!" So, now we have Monkey and Chubby Monkey. Chubby Monkey is great for sitting at the end of the bed and sometimes he makes a good pillow if Judson lies on the floor, but he will never work as a substitute for Monkey. *grin* He is cute, tho!

Here's Judson telling me he has "two monkeys!"  Chubby Monkey is sitting pretty on the left and Monkey is slumped over on the right.

I think Chubby Monkey might work in an emergency, but I pray we never have to find out whether he does or not!