Poor, poor "Kitty"

I know. This looks bad. "Kitty," as she is almost generically known, was well into her second round of Beloved Stuffed Animal-hood, courtesy of Grandchild #2. And, as good as the Ty company is at making stuffed critters, it would seem that at some point, one of them will literally have the stuffing hugged out of it, or in this case, the PVC pellets. It was an alarming time. "Kitty" was leaking and no one could find the leak. It didn't help that certain brothers in the household didn't want to find the leak. Much better to sling her around and have pellets flying all over the place.

Enter, Yours Truly. It's been long established that the dh can fix all things mechanical -- cars, bikes, trucks, skate boards, etc., etc. My job is Everything Else. I've sutured a lot of stuffed animals in my time, and I don't let the fact that I can't sew hold me back. I'm always hopeful that when it comes to grandchildren with injured comfort toys, it's the thought that counts.

So. I was hereby given the task of re-inflating "Kitty," who by this time was pretty flat. I thought I'd never find the hole -- Ty is really good at hiding their seams. Eventually, I did, which brought us to the next hurdle: Where To Find PVC Pellets?

Nowhere around here, I soon learned. And no, I couldn't just stuff her with something else. You can't play fast and loose with the details in a situation like this. The beloved injured critter has to be as close to the Way It Was as you can make it. (Those of you who are not yet grandmothers, please take note.)

There was only one thing to do. I had to sacrifice somebody else's PVC innards. Several somebody else's, as it turned out. But I was very gentle, and I re-sewed all the holes I made. The bottom line is that "Kitty" has been returned to her previous self -- except for the Sponge Bob Band-Aid on what must be her elbow. (Future grandmothers should take note of this, too: Grandchildren like for their wounded to have Band-Aids.)

"Kitty" is looking good now; the sacrificial "lambs," not so much. "You do know," the dh said, looking at their flat little bodies, "these are the ones that are probably going to be worth a fortune."