The Life and Adventures of Six Little Monkies: Making Tubie Friends

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Making Tubie Friends

Today was a fun and exciting day for both Ellie and Zach. I had received 2 packages while the kids were at school. Of course Ellie was dying to know what was inside both. The bigger box was full of flat (dead) stuffed animals. Upon seeing them she asked all excited, Are those the Tubie Friends we have to fluff and stuff and make alive?" I let her know they were. Her curiosity got the best of her and she was bouncing off the walls to know what was in the smaller box. Also she just HAD to know if we were going to "fluff and stuff" the animals tonight. Originally the plan was not to stuff them tonight. But she was so bummed about not being able to eat dinner, yet so excited about the Tubie Friend Project and finally getting to "fluff and stuff and bring to life" some animals, that I could not tell her no.

The first thing she did was to take the 5 AMT buttons we had received and lined them up, then picked 3 unstuffed animals for tubes. She picked out 4 shirts, (we got 5 buttons, 5 extensions, and 5 shirts from AMT to use with this project). 1 button was going to replace the button that Ava chewed the middle out of from her penguin.

Thank you Ava we now know that the buttons are very solidly placed... A 2nd button was needed for our Dr Monkey, our display and explanation toy for the project. This toy will be used as we tell about the project and that the toys are coming with buttons, some are coming with extensions, and others are coming with buttons, extensions, t-shirts, and syringes. Every toy given out through Tubie Friends will have a MIC-key or AMT button, and either a g-tube, j-tube, jg-tube, in special circumstances we can add other items such as trach's or other medical devices that can be attached. We have one mother that has found a way to attach a port that is removable using velcro for her TPN/g-tube child. The possibilities are endless with these wonderful medical/teaching/comfort toys.

The other buttons went to a duck, lion, and unicorn. The duck is off to a toddler very soon where the toy will be greatly loved, the unicorn is off to John Hopkins Children's Hospital GI clinic, and the lion well he was claimed by our 7 yr old who had a feeding tube for 4 years.

Well I told Ellie where the big bag of stuffing was in the craft room and sent her off to find it. Within a few minutes I had a giggling bouncing 6 yr old come bounding into the dining room where I was already preforming "surgery" and adding buttons. With total excitement exploding from her entire body she took the first toy (the unicorn) and lovingly and carefully started stuffing this toy. Soon she was excitedly helping to stuff the unicorn. Zach was in and out as the lion was next ready. Later he came back to discover his sister had taken over the stuffing of the lion and was not happy about that. However, his unhappiness was short lived as he and Ellie finished up the lion together.

Once the duck was stuffed I stitched the backs of all three toys so they will not come unstuffed, then both Zach and Ellie playing in front of the camera with their Tubie Friends and the 2 they helped with as well.

Showing off in order Mumble the Penguin, the Duck off to its forever friend very soon, Dr Monkey, Pink Unicorn, and Brown Lion (still waiting to be named)