Alex recieved this little guy for a baby present from my Colorado friend, Lynn Cranston. He arrived packaged with other goodies in a little red Radio Flyer wagon. By the time Alex was five or six months old, Beebe was already a favorite friend. Since Alex was too young to name him, I came up with the name Beebe (B.B. for blue bear - Matt says that the little rattles inside Beebe sound like little beebees, so the name fits that way, too.)
Alex became more and more attached to Beebe. Of course, he slept with the furry blue guy every night. But, that wasn't enough. By the time Alex was two, Beebe seemed to go everywhere with us, including: family vacation to Chicago, state fair, school, zoo, train festival at Lamm's, HarleyFest, parades and many more places.
Two outings deserve special attention. Those were the times that Beebe got lost. The first time was at the movie theater (Polar Express). Once we realized Beebe had stayed behind, we made franic phone calls to the theater. The first two times, the staff weren't able to find him. On the third call, we begged to come search the seats ourselves (since Matt had a pretty good idea where he was hiding). Finally, he was located, picked up and home before morning.
The second time Beebe was abandoned was at Quarry Quest. In fact, Beebe was left in the PortaPotty. Once again, as soon as we realized that Beebe didn't return home with the guys, frantic phone calls ensued. At nine o'clock at night, we were able to track down the woman who coordinated the event. She was already home, but she thought she remembered seeing Beebe at the lost and found. And, sure enough, we talked to her on Monday, and Beebe was sent home in a padded envelope. Luck was on our side once again.
Two notes about losing Beebe. First, both happened on outings with Matt. And, after the second time, Beebe was grounded to the car on all family trips. Second, it is amazing just how awful I felt when Beebe went missing. I know he is just a stuffed animal, but it gave me a pit in my stomach to think he might be gone for good. After all, Alex loved him like a living, breathing buddy (in fact, Alex once wished out loud for Beebe to come to life when he threw a coin into the wishing pool at the Domes). And, the little guy had somehow taken on a personality...he had nicknames (Beebs, Beebmeister), we made him costumes at Halloween (matching Alex, of course), he was included in the annual Christmas picture. He just seemed to be a part of the goings on around here.
Now that Alex is nine, Beebe does not join our family outings. And last year he was not in the Christmas picture. Alex still keeps him in his bed, but he does not clutch him tightly every night while he sleeps anymore. But, Beebe still holds an honorary spot in the family.
