He adores them all, but the kitties are by far his most treasured friends. He also has two penguins (Sugar and Shivers who "wubbers" which is his word for shakes), a monkey (I-ggy), a lamb (Little Lamb), a blue bunny (Flopsy), and dog who wears rabbit ears (Bunny). He gave each one their names himself.
Occasionally, others may find their way in there if he crosses paths with them during the day. Last week, he discovered his favorite baby toy, a panda head attached to a small fabric blanket, so that was also part of the group.
As I mentioned before, cats are his favorite. He shares that fondness with his big brother. Samuel made a fluffy white cat at Build-A-Bear for his 4th birthday and she has been his lovey ever since. Snowflake, as he named her, is part of the family. Elijah's kitty friends include: Cookie, Ginger, Oreo, Doug, Sally, Fluffy, and Pouncy.
Just this week two new kitties have joined the family. Nana took Elijah to Build-A-Bear in honor of his upcoming 4th birthday while we were in Atlanta for Spring Break. He made a Siamese cat that he named Ivory. Samuel and Elijah chose matching pajamas for their kitties to wear, and insists that they are now sisters. His other new cat, Smokey, was a gift at his birthday party from his best preschool friend.
The animal friends carry over into our days as well. He will often crawl into my lap and purr like a kitten, while giving me kitty kisses. Or, we like to hide under the covers in the "pig-a-loop" (igloo) and play penguins. He will bring me his friends so we can love on them together and play as if they are real.
His collection is beginning to outgrow his bed, but I hope it's a long while before he outgrows this stage. I am so enamored with this soft, sweet, loving side of Elijah. He can be boisterous and headstrong, but is just as caring and affectionate. Everything he does is to the extreme, and he makes our lives so interesting!
