Sunday 3 March 2013

My Precious - March

Anybody that knows me will know for sure that my son is home this weekend, and how happy that makes me!
He moved up to Bonnie Scotland a wee while ago and will be a resident of Edinburgh for at least 2 years while his girlfriend studies for her Masters up there.  So visits home are going to be few and far between.  It's his birthday on Tuesday so his trip happily coincides with being able to take birthday presents back with him. 
I didn't think I was going to be joining in with Storytelling Sunday this month as I had been so preoccupied with stocking up the fridge and cupboards with all his favourite things and baking all things that he likes that I hadn't found anything to talk about.  Until I remembered these:
They may not look much to you, but to me they are absolutely priceless.  If anyone dares to say out loud 'looks like an old bit of cot blanket and a satin ribbon stitched onto a piece of muslin' I will not be happy.  But I can't get too cross because um, well, ahem, that's what they are.  These were the things that comforted my kids when they were tiny, the things that they cuddled hard when they were upset, stroked while they went off to sleep and helped take away aches and pains when they were ill. 
Ribby was 'born' after I bought our daughter a dress with a pink ribbon tied in a bow on the front.  She took to sucking her thumb and running the end of the ribbon across her top lip.  Even when she wasn't wearing the dress, she would get it out of the washing basket or improvise with the silky washing machine label sewn into the side of any other dress.  So I figured it was easier to design a piece of fabric which was easily washable and easy to carry around, got a square of muslin and sewed a piece of ribbon to it.  One happy girly.
The other 'precious' is Patnie.  Patnie started life as a small pram blanket with a wide strip of ribbon across the top.  My son loved to scrunch up the satin in his fist as he went to sleep and it moved into his cot with him when he was too big for the carry cot and then into his first bed when he moved from his cot.  We didn't realise how precious it was until one night when it was on the floor of his bedroom he just stood at the side of the cot sobbing and calling out 'Patnie' and pointing at the blanket.  Patnie grew smaller and smaller as it got older and ended up being cut into halves and then quarters to try and preserve it as long as possible.  A tiny part of Patnie also found its way into the pocket of his big boy school trousers when he had his first day of school, just in case he felt he needed it at all, no one knew it was there, but he could put his hand in his pocket and know that Patnie wasn't far away.
The kids gradually grew out of needing them, but I could never - EVER - throw them away.  Too many memories!   
So you know when they ask you what you would save in the case of fire, flood or pestilance?  These two little precious things would be top of my list!
Now, pop over to Sian's and see what other Precious Possessions people are sharing.  Right now I need to go downstairs and rustle up a favourite sunday lunch before my other precious heads back to the airport for his flight home.
 

25 comments:

Sian said...

oh, this really struck a chord with me today..moving inexorably as we are to the same situation as your own. The "friends" beside the bed are still there for now, and maybe they'll stay, while their owner moves on..I love that they have their own personal names too..here we had one called "poobie"! Enjoy the rest of your time together and I hope that boy of yours has a great birthday! Thanks Deb.

Cheri said...

Ours were just "blankies" and when the girls were babies we purchased several of each - a different color for each child - so that when one got nasty we just got out a fresh one so the other could go in the laundry. Doing it that way, the girls outgrew their blankies long before they truly wore them out.

Unknown said...

Yes, perfectly precious :D

Karen said...

Oh my, we had blankies too. My daughter held on to hers much longer than my son, but I haven't even a single piece of them. Enjoy your weekend!

Lythan said...

Aw that gave me a pang! My oldest son had a tiny handmade quilt on his Moses Basket which became Blankie and thus never graced the baskets of the other tiny babies in our house. (I've still got it tucked away, ready to be given for his first baby)

Ladkyis said...

My son had a bear called Gladly and my granddaughter has a bear called Harry. Mostly Harry stays in bed all day now because Miss Em is 8 and quite grown up. When things are more than an 8 year old can cope with then Harry comes to Grandma's house in the morning so that he will be here to greet her at the end of school. Thank you for sharing

Irene said...

Those pieces could never be thought to be rubbish. How priceless and precious they are. Blankies/soothers/comforters whatever their name, are an inherent part of our children's lives. I can understand why they would be your first thing in case of a fire.
Hope your weekend has been special.

Scrappi Sandi said...

How wonderful that you still have them! I'd love to know what 'Patnie' translates into...I wonder if your son remembers?!! :D

Jane said...

precious indeed.

Sabrina DS said...

I remember my brother having one of these. He couldn't live without it. It's so priceless that you kept them!
Cheers from France

ComfyMom~Stacey said...

These are so wonderful! I kept the rags of my blankie in my pillowcase and took it with me to college!

Anonymous said...

Love this story and Gracia has her very precious Sammy Seal who is more holes than seal but I know will never be discarded.

Lou said...

oh my, these are certainly precious....two of my three had blankies and they still sleep with them! hope your weekend with your boy has been a good one x

Elizabeth said...

I agree, they are precious items. I wonder if your children know that you still have them? Enjoy your son's visit.

Amy said...

We still have these precious items out and in use - and I can agree with you, they will NEVER be thrown away!

Happy Birthday to your big boy!

Missus Wookie said...

Oh definitely precious things - well worth keeping and saving!

Beverly said...

Thank you for sharing such a wonderful precious with us. Evidently the Chosen One was comforted by his mother's slip as a young child :)

Jen said...

Treasures indeed - way beyond price. I hope your weekend with your son was completely wonderful - and thank you for sharing. J x

Sheena said...

These are certainly very precious.
Many thanks for sharing x

Susanne said...

How precious and obviously very well loved. Thanks for filling us in on their ancestry!

Kirsty.A said...

Oh yes.I can totally relate to this. My two still have their favourite teddies on their beds, and when/if they are ever outgrown, I will be saving them too

Becky said...

Gosh yes! We still have 'wawee' in a drawer in Penny's room - we could never get rid of her comforter!

Jo said...

They are so precious with lovely memories and that's what makes them beautiful x

Alison said...

Precious indeed Deb.....My two had 'dits', which were pieces of a silky underskirt I had!
Alison xx

Unknown said...

You are a special mom to have made and kept these for your children. We were never allowed to become attached to anything like that. Mom was afraid that if it got lost in one of our constant moves we would become inconsolable. So everything in our lives rotated. Toys, stuffed animals and anything else you could think of!