Many small children have some sort of item that they sleep with or that comforts them when they’re sad.

My son Court had a stuffed dog that he received when he was still a baby. It slept with him every night. When his dad and I divorced, instead of requiring him to drag Muttsy back and forth to both houses, we bought a second Muttsy. I understand that would not work for some kids, but it did for Court.

As a result, he ended up with two very ratty lookalike dogs, both named Muttsy.

Recently, I came across both Muttsys hidden away — one in my cedar chest, one in a chest of drawers in our guest room. I showed them to his daughters Kaiya and Mylee, and they loved seeing the animal that had kept their dad company in his youth. So I sent the Muttsys home with them.

The other day I saw this photo of 6-month-old Cole with his dad’s favorite stuffed animal, and it definitely made me smile.

Have a good weekend.