The Nite Nites

Nite Nite strings are going to be the death of me. They are all over my house. Just as I have finished vacuuming the entire house, I'll look down and see a nite nite string or two laying in the carpet mocking me. My vacuum cleaner's spinner brush is wrapped with them. I have to clean it out every few months. It drives my crazy! When I had my house for sale back home I was constantly picking up nite nite strings. Someone would call to look at the house and I would have a variety of tasks to check off my list before we could show it. One of these tasks was to go around and pick up nite nite strings. AAAGH the insanity!

What, you may be wondering, is a nite nite? Well John Russel has three of them. They are his security blankets. Why three? Well, I bought three thinking while one was being washed he would always have a beloved nite nite to cuddle. Little did I know that he would insist on having all three at the same time. He became attached to them when he was probably around a year to eighteen months old. Purple Bear was also once a part of the team, but he was dropped sometime along the way. The nite nites are blue and white with fringe along the sides. The fringe is his favorite part. He tickles his ears with it. I love to watch him brush the fringe over his pink ears. It always makes him seem so little.

When he first went off to mother's day out I sewed his name on one of them using blue gingham fabric and blue string. This was to ensure that it wouldn't get lost. Over time his nite nites have grown smaller and smaller, hence the strings all over my house! A year ago I noticed his name tag hanging off so I helped it along and it now resides in my jewelry box along with his first two baby teeth.

John Russel sleeps with his nite nites every night and he loves on them periodically throughout the day. He uses them for capes as he becomes his favorite super hero or wraps them around his head and pretends to go on a safari through the desert. He covers up with them while watching TV and he becomes a mummy by wrapping them all around his arms and legs. They also make great tents and hiding places.

Rusty thinks John Russel is getting too old for his nite nites. To my horror he sometimes asks if he can put them away. I remind him that he will get rid of them soon probably much sooner than we would like. You see, I know because I too had a security blanket. Her name was Baby. She was a soft pink thermal blanket with a satin trim. Oh, she smelled so good and felt so soft. My brother, William, told me I was too old for her and cut her up. I then had to sleep with only a scrap of Baby. But then as I got older the little scrap of baby wasn't needed any longer. I tell Rusty this. I'm not sure if he's convinced, but he'll have to take my word for it.

So the nite nites live on! For now I'll have to continue picking up those little strings that litter my carpet. In a few years I'm sure I will see a random string from an old towel or piece of clothing and be reminded of John Russel's nite nites. I might even miss picking them up!