Happiness is a (Knit) Blanket

Remember Linus van Pelt from the Peanut comics? Linus adored his blanket, if he didn't have his beloved blanket, he went into withdrawal. He was always my favorite character-well, him and Snoopy. But when I became a mother, little did I realize that I would shortly be getting not one, but two little Linus van Pelts of my own.
Both Ben and Brigham have a passionate love for their blankies, or "baby" as they call them. They are knitted blue creations that they adore.I only wish that I could take credit for knitting at least one of them!
Woe betide us if we do not bring them on a road trip! They will not go to sleep without them, and they love to take them everywhere. Now that Ben is almost four, he has become (slightly) less needy when it comes to his baby. He no longer insists on bringing it everywhere. Although once in Edmonton he insisted that he needed to bring blankie to the library, but instead of carrying it or stowing in the stroller he wrapped himself up in it. He looked like some bizarre, tiny bag lady. Granted though, stranger sights have and will apear again along Whyte Ave!
Brigham though is even more passionate about his blanket love. We can never get out the door without him making the plea for "bwoo baby" to come along as well. Yesterday he determinedly carried it all the way to the park, around it, and back home resisting any attempt I made to put it in the stroller so it would stay remotely clean. Handwashing those blankets can be a pain.
Yet as a mother who only relinguished her own beloved baby blanket at the age of twenty-one, and only because I worried that it would shortly disintegrate, I can understand the love of a cherished blanket. I believe that Ben and Brigham should be allowed to keep their "babies" for as long as they need them.
Although with all that love, they do get a little worse for wear. Ben's blankie is hardly blue anymore, and I often have to mend runs (or "owies" as Ben calls them) to keep it from unraveling. Brigham's is fading too. But it is fun to see my two blond boys enjoy and love their blankets, just as a little blond girl did hers years ago.