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Bye Bye Blankie?
Ease Your Child's Blankie Blues
By CJ Johnson
When our son Mason was born, we placed a snuggly, blue blanket in the crib with him. It had already been loved by two babies before him and was worn and faded. He adored it far more than we imagined he would. When he began to crawl it was tugged along behind him; as he learned to toddle around the house it dragged at his feet. By the time he was 2 years old it was just a bunch of strings precariously held together. He didn't notice the deterioration, but I worried how he would react when it was just one sorry string.
Toddlers are often attached to blankets as their love objects. If those sacred fuzzy objects are lost or ruined a small child can be devastated. Thankfully, there are ways for parents to ease their little one's blankie blues.
"Children naturally adopt possessions and view them as more special than an adult would," explains Dean Cloward, a child psychologist practicing in Nevada. "Blankets are often chosen as comfort objects because they are given to them by parents who love them, they provide warmth, they are soft and they can be cuddled when going to sleep."
According to Carol Seefeldt, the Maryland-based author of "Early Childhood Education and Active Experiences for Active Children," blankies are powerful. "Blankets help a small children learn to comfort themselves, gain internal control and calm themselves," Seefeldt says. "The experience extends into later maturity as the person learns self-calming and coping skills."