On a boy and his 'blankie'

My kids are awesome at the moment. Don't get me wrong, they are hard and crazy and annoying. This morning at ladies bible study at one point I wanted to pack up all my gear, shove my kids in the car and go home and cry, because Georgie was having an epic tantrum over biscuits, and I was only just keeping myself together. But still, I'm finding that something has shifted in them, or maybe in me? Either way, I just seem to be noticing so much what cool little people I have been blessed with.

There is so much that has been going on lately that I could share about, but first I will tell you, Charlie has a blankie. And, although I am stressing about what kind of crazed, obsessed, grotty, and what-ON-EARTH-is-that-THING-you-are-holding??? creature we are creating (you know what I mean!) it is still just so darn cute!

I always thought that Charlie was the type of kid that could very easily attach himself to a blanket, or a rug, or a toy or a something. But I was never too keen to help create an attachment. He has always been a bit of a touchy-feely kid, and when he is tired or sad his thumb finds it's way to his mouth, but fortunately he is not that kid with his thumb permanently glued inside his mouth.

When he goes to sleep he always pulls ALL the sheets out from under himself and ends up wrapped inside a little cocoon, fast asleep on his bare mattress. This last few weeks, he has gotten in the habit of going into his room and pulling his sheet off his cot, and then going to sit on the couch and have a bit of a cuddle with it when he is sad or tired. I knew that it was the start of something, but it was really cute, so I decided that it was okay.

 

Besides, what was I going to do about it anyway? On the weekend I was talking with Mum about it, and wondering what the manky sheet would be called. I had accidentally started calling it his sooky-rug, but talking to Mum I decided to stop that quick, because I really didn't want that to be 'the name'.

Then a couple of nights ago, Charlie finished his dinner and went into his bed, and when he came out he was holding the sheet and triumphantly crowing "MY Ankie, MY Ankie!" When I asked him, "Is that your blankie?" He nodded emphatically "My Ankie, My Ankie!" And so, Blankie (or Ankie, depending on who you ask) has joined the family.

I must admit, I am still a bit wary of creating too much of a crutch with the Blankie. Partly because when I was a little girl, I had a 'sheepie' which was a sheepskin rug, that I was very attached to. So much so, that when numerous sheepskins died, and my Mum refused to spend any more money buying new sheepskins, I took to carrying around old, dead ugh-boots. (You see why I have issues with the whole blankie thing now, right?)

But mostly, I don't mind too much. I am trying to create 'rules' with blankie though, for example:

1. Blankie never goes outside the house, this is partly to make sure it never goes anywhere but home, and to make sure he doesn't get too attached to it, and also to keep it clean(er).
2. If Charlie is eating, blankie goes up and out of the way. We do not eat with blankie. This rule provides Shane and I with endless entertainment, as Charlie is often forced into a Sophie's choice type of situation, when he must choose between his two great loves.
3. Blankies are changed and washed regularly. This is to stop Charlie getting attached to one particular sheet, and also, Blankie gets really gross, really quickly.

I must admit, though, my worries aside, It is really really cute, when my little boy is feeling a bit sad, and he comes up to my lap for a cuddle with his blankie.