G has found true love in the form of a little Pingu soft toy. I've had him for years (I have been a Pingu fan since my teenage years) and can't even remember where I got him from. When we moved house I put him, along with the rest of my (extensive)soft toy collection in the nursery. G 'discovered' him sitting on the bookshelf last week and it was love at first sight.
G won't sleep without Pingunow. She carried him downstairs in the morning and only releases him from her (tight) clutches when she drinks her milk, at which point we smuggle him upstairs. When she walks towards her cot she calls out for 'teddy' and gets distressed if she can't see him. When they are reunited she clutches him to her chest (his face has to be buried in her neck) and won't let him go without a fight.
A rather wonderful by-product of this love affair is that G seems to be sleeping much better. It may just be a coincidence, but since she started sleeping with Pingu (maybe I should re-phrase that?!), many more smiley faces have appeared onm her sleep chart. In fact, she only seems to get upset in the night now if she wakes and Pingu has 'disappeared' - he's usually at the other end of the cot.
I wondered if she had adoped him because we've been watching episodes of Pingu on the iplayer and he looked familiar but we watched one the other day and she didn't seem to relate her bedtime companion to the plasticine creature on the screen. Whatever, it's lovely that she has taken such a shine to a toy and the sleep thing is quite nice for us.
