Pups McGuff

Before La was born, she received a very special gift from my Grandma Lois. My mom's side of the family threw me a surprise baby shower, and my grandmother bought a gorgeous hand-crocheted blanket and stocking cap for La. Wrapped up with those items was a small plush puppy that she bought on a whim at Kohl's because she thought it was cute. Little did anyone know that the stuffed puppy was destined to become La's most cherished possession.

She's been toting "Pups McGuff" around ever since I can remember. She nuzzles him against her cheek. She talks to him like he's a person. She strokes the ribbon around his neck with her thumb and index finger every night to fall asleep. No gift has ever come close to surpassing puppy's place in La's heart. When she was a toddler, I used to scour the internet, trying to find a replacement in case she were to ever misplace her dear puppy. I located a couple of them on e-Bay, but because the puppy was discontinued, they were priced at $40 and up. I refused to pay this exorbitant amount for a puppy that had originally cost my grandmother $6. So, I crossed my fingers that La would never misplace puppy.

In August, we lost him.

We knew he was lost somewhere between Marci and Scott's wedding in Cleveland, our home in Chicago, various places throughout Milwaukee, a few more locations in Neillsville, and a whole bunch of spots in Wisconsin Dells. And if we left him in the Dells, we might as well kiss his cute little hiney goodbye, because that place is ... well ... there just aren't any words. We NEVER would have found him there.

So what did I do? After a week of La crying herself to sleep, I hopped on e-Bay and prepared myself to drop fifty bucks on a stuffed animal that cost the manufacturer ten cents to make. I found him in seconds. Look how cute his listing picture was. Such a handsome pup. That sweet face almost convinces me that he's worth fifty bucks:

BUT LO. Hath mine eyes deceived me? Is the seller actually offering him for a mere four dollars??? I rubbed my eyes. I blinked at my computer screen. It was true.

*chorus of angels*

I bid on him in record speed, as if he would disappear like a mirage. And I made sure I won the little rascal by setting my "highest bid" at a whopping fifteen dollars. Turns out no one else bid on him. I really truly got him for four dollars.

For the past few weeks, the new puppy has done his job just fine. But, when we were in Cleveland this weekend, La was digging through grandma's toy box and located the REAL Pups McGuff. He wasn't lost after all. The sneaky little feller was just on an extended visit at Grandma Lin's.

In case his resemblance to a hairless rat didn't already tip you off, the one on the left is the original puppy. The one on the right is the e-Bay impostor. The one on the left used to have all that fluffy fur too, but that was before he was loved mightily by La.

He also used to have a nose, I assure you.

When La was reunited with good ol' Pups, she cried like a baby. Tears of joy streamed down her face and into his hairless hide as she snuggled him into her cheek. It was very moving.

And if I start to look like puppy in a few years' time, I'll know that it's probably because I was loved fiercely by La.