Have you ever come across something from your childhood that brings back so many memories... that it actually brings you to happy tears?

This hasn't happened to me in a LONG time... but it happened over the weekend when I was visiting my parents in Thornhill. My dog Snickers and I always get a very warm welcome from my parents when we come home Friday afternoons... the house smells like my moms cooking (Friday nights we have a huge meal and the whole family gets together) and we are greeted by my parents two dogs, Bailey and Jet at the door. I usually drop my bags in the hallway (which still drives my dad nuts) and head to the kitchen to say hi to everyone.

Well, this past Friday, before I could get to the kitchen, I was stopped by something. My mom had been cleaning the basement earlier that week and had found something from my childhood... something that takes me waaaay back... as far back as when we lived in Cape Town, South Africa. We moved to Canada when I was 3 years old and I still remember having this toy in our house in South Africa and in our first little townhouse in Canada. It was a toy that I actually NEEDED because I was causing damage to my finger and my teeth.

Let me explain.

When I was a kid, I sucked my left index finger. Yes, while most kids sucked their thumbs... I for some reason took a liking to my left index finger. I sucked it so much that it became shriveled up, dry and the finger even became thinner than my other fingers. Sucking on that finger also did damage to my teeth because of the way I sucked it, it was pushing my two front teeth forward (thank goodness for braces later on in life!). So my parents bought me something so that I would stop ruining my finger and my teeth. It was a pink, rubber bunny that had a hole in the bottom of it and it was made for kids who sucked their thumbs so that it could be placed on top of the finger and you could chew on it or suck it and try to wean yourself off of the actual finger sucking.

Did it work? Well... I remember quite a few times when my parents would say goodnight to me and I'd be sucking on the bunny... and when they were gone, I'd take it off and suck my finger again. But yes, the bunny did help my finger sucking and the phase passed by the time I was 4 or 5... and all was well in the world again :)

Coming home and seeing that pink bunny sitting on the table was wonderful... It seems like such a small thing, but I was over the moon to be reunited with it... my voice went extremely high pitched and I was squealing with excitement, telling my mom all of the memories I had with that bunny... she just smiled at me and let me carry on for about 20 minutes straight. What an awesome mom :)

So here it is... that pink bunny I spoke so highly of... in all it's glory: