i was messing around with my camera last week, and asked sarah if i could take some test shots of her. it was getting late, and i meant something quick in the backyard. next thing i knew, she had 3 different outfit changes and props to go along with them. i went through the first two looks, taking pictures, but not getting any great shots. then she came out in the third outfit. pajamas and her teddy bear.

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i am so glad that she did that. i have been saying for ages now that i wanted to get some photos of her and teddy. i would have probably taken some photos in her room or something, when i got around to it. but she had so much fun posing these for me.

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sarah has had teddy since she was about 6 months old. and she's going to be 11 years old next month. teddy has always been there. she was attached to him since day one, and carried him everywhere she went. everywhere. teddy in one hand, and a bottle of milk in the other.  

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her hands look so big now, holding him. i can remember her little chubby hands holding on to him, way back when. and she always held on. i'm sure we might have lost him a few times along the way. but she really did keep a good hold on this guy.

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she loves her teddy just as much now as she did back then. he's always around. usually on her bed, waiting for her to climb in at night and hug him tight. but occasionally, i will find him out on the couch where she's been watching TV. or downstairs, after she carried him down in the morning and then left him there.

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and his poor little arm has held up well over the years. sarah used to rub on teddy's ears as a way of comforting  herself. but she also picked at the fur on his arm. alyssa did this too, picking the fuzz off her comfort item of choice (that's another story, another day). slowly, over time, he just lost all the fur on his arm and was left with only the netting that holds him all together. but he's held up and has never lost a limb yet 😉

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thank you, dear teddy. for being a constant friend and companion to our sarah bear. yep, that's what we have called sarah for years and years. "sarah bear". probably had something to do with her love of her teddy. thank you for always being there for her. when she was sad or upset, and needed comforting. or when she was happy and wanted someone to snuggle up with. you have been through so much over the last 10.5 years of her life, and we love you for it 🙂

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17 responses to “a well loved teddy”

  1. Eileen Van Dyke Avatar
    Eileen Van Dyke

    Love the last picture Laura! Can’t wait to see the scrapbook page you make with these pictures and the great story (hint-hint).

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  2. Lynn Avatar

    Adorable, adorable photos Laura! My 13 year old still has his blanket….loves it…within the last year he just stopped taking it to sleepovers!

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  3. Jen Avatar

    What an awesome memory…My son, who just turned three, has a stuffed puppy. I can’t wait to see what you do with those pictures.

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  4. dawn Avatar
    dawn

    How cute is that!! The photos are great and it was a good idea of hers. My kids have had tons of animals they slept with till webkinz came along, now every night I pick a new one for them to sleep with. My son Sam had a puppy he slept with till Webkinz then he just sleeps with his newest one everynight till he he gets another one which could be every 6months or so. That’s pretty good for the teddy to be in good shape still. Thanks for sharing

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  5. Sandi N. Avatar
    Sandi N.

    Laura
    She is a smart to pull out what she wanted. I bet you have some really great photos because she was happy:)
    TFS
    Sandi N.

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  6. Cheryl Avatar
    Cheryl

    Love the photos.
    My 15 y.o. grandson has three F-P kitten Cozies he named “Ki-Ki.” The first one was a 1st b’day gift from my sister. I bought the others when it became apparent Ki-Ki was going to be a lifelong friend. So we had regular Ki-Ki, car Ki-Ki and spare Ki-Ki. For years I shuffled them around, washing them as needed.
    About a year ago Will passed one of the Ki-Ki’s to his then 3½ y.o. brother. Chase loves his Ki-Ki nearly as much as Will did.
    I wonder if Will would pose for some photos? Thankfully I do have a few I took over the years.
    I too am looking forward to a layout featuring Sarah-Bear and Teddy. 🙂

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  7. Shannon R. Avatar
    Shannon R.

    What sweet pictures! My 5 year old has had a bear since birth and he still loves him just as much now. I always wonder how long he’ll love bear bear but as I see, it might be forever! That would be ok with me as I see bear bear as part of our family too.

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  8. lorry Avatar
    lorry

    Love this photo shoot! Thanks for sharing, and I can not wait to see these photos scrapped. You have documented the girls lives beautifuly Laura you should be proud!

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  9. Sandra Avatar
    Sandra

    How very precious! I just know that you wanted to hold her tight as well. Love the then/now layouts. Maybe you can look at your older stash of pictures and find one where her “little” hands were holding on tight to Teddy, and compare her “bigger” hands now. Great, great, pictures. TFS

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  10. Jennifer D Avatar
    Jennifer D

    What an adorable story! Thanks for sharing it cause it made me remember my teddy which I still have 🙂 After I got married and we got a dog, my teddy got moved to a shelf to avoid the shredding puppy. Yes, I’m a married lady who still has her teddy … good thing my husband has accepted it 🙂

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  11. Sara Rossi Avatar

    OMG!! What a great idea for her album! A precious memory she will always cherish! And those pics are fantastic!! Love them all! The threadbare arm is just too funny! Love it!!

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  12. Krista Lund Avatar

    these are great. love the close up of the teddy with her hands.

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  13. Carla Avatar

    These pics are so sweet and gorgeous as well! Love that you took pics of her and her teddy together!!! I see a LO coming soon…

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  14. Linda Avatar

    can’t wait to see the layout you come up with for this one!
    We have a well-loved bear too. But he was made of terrycloth, and after 3 years of “tagging” on the satin tag on his bottom, my daughter had worn the terry off…and he wasn’t made with the stronger nylon netting, he was made with cotton threading. As luck would have it, I found a duplicate on eBay…and in the middle of the night, after we’d prayed for “new fur for Carterbear” we swapped him out for the new one.
    We’ve accumulated a few extra “carters” and hope that we don’t have to make any more changes. Right now, we’ve gone through 3 of them, and Hannah’ 9. One day, when she’s older (like college-aged or older, lol) we will give her all her bears and explain to her why we loved her so much that we would do this for her. I think she’ll be pleased, especially since we’ll have an extra “new bear” (or two) to give her to share with HER child someday….

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  15. Suzanne Sergi Avatar

    Love your photo shoot!!! The photos are beautiful!
    What a fantastic memory for her. My oldest has a hippo that was her keepsake. My youngest both had blankets. (they are so well loved) lol
    cannot wait to see the layout! (:

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  16. Leslie Avatar
    Leslie

    So special and sweet. Can’t wait to see a layout using these pics!

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  17. lisa Avatar
    lisa

    OMG Laura!!! My oldest son (born in 1984) had this EXACT teddy for years, it was his absolute favorite and went EVERYWHERE with him. It is even more worn (but not too much more!) as Sarah’s!!! I will have to pull my Joe’s teddy out of his keepsakes bin and do a layout about him. Thanks for the inspiration and the great memories this blog post brought back!

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