What is a Steve?

Kim asked what a Steve is.? Good question.? Good question indeed.? Those who have been reading my blog (and Unexpected Miracles) for a long time know exactly what Steve is.? Or better yet Steve the Cat.? And those lucky enough to meet the boy in person (usually at our house) end up saying, “Ohh, that’s Steve,” when they see us.? As if no one really believes this thing is my child’s favorite toy.

So here’s the story of Steve.

When we were waiting to become parents we did like every expecting parent.? We bought tons of stuffed animals.? Because who doesn’t like a cuddly teddy bear.? Before you become a parent you think you child will play with this hoard of fuzzy animals.? Oh one more won’t hurt.? The reality is your child will pick 1 and that will be it.? If you are lucky he will pick one you actually purchased.? That wasn’t so much the case in our house.

The boy has gorillas, monkeys (they are different), bears, elephants, airplanes, you name it.? When we met him we took a stuffed monkey.? We didn’t get it back.? When we picked him up we took a stuffed lion.? He wanted nothing to do with it.? When we got home my mom gave him a little bear.? He was disinterested.? In fact for the first 2 weeks home he had no clue what to do with stuffed animals.? Then one day he came into the kitchen carrying Steve.

I made Steve.? I made him long before the boy ever came to live with us.? Steve is constructed of an upholstery fabric sample.? The trusty MIL gave me these fabric samples in a big bag of fabric and I saw the Steve pattern in a book.? I didn’t buy the book, but committed the pattern to memory and went home and made him.? I had no intention of giving him to the child.? He was sitting in a basket on my hope chest when the boy found him.

Oleg was instantly attached.? He carried Steve everywhere with him.

Then he found Pink Steve.? Pink Steve was the first Steve I made.? He’s made from khaki and pink linen.? Again, scraps I had laying around the house.? Pink Steve’s arms and legs are a little short.? When the boy became attached to Steve (just Steve refers to his Steve) I got paranoid that we would lose him or he’d get so gross that we’d have to toss him.? So I found another upholstery sample and made another one.? Steve #3 is red, with super skinny arms and legs.? I forgot how wide the arm and leg pieces should be.

At Christmas I was asked if I could make a bunch of Steves for our church bazaar.? I made 12 (and have bodies done for 12 more).? All but 1 sold.? I brought home the lone Steve with the intention of leaving him at the trusty in-laws.? Nope.? The boy found the Steve and he is the second favorite.? He’s Green Steve.

Over the past 2 years I’ve made plenty of Steves for other children.? And the boy has test driven every single one.? Oleg carried around The Czar’s for two days before I pried it from his hands to ship off to Anne Marie.

I should also explain why he’s called Steve and why they are all Steve.? The pattern in the book is called “Many Faces of Steve.”? So I called it Steve the Cat.? Since then the boy has called it Steep and Steve.? Every one he sees is also called Steve but with an addition.? Green Steve, Red Steve, Blue Steve and Pink Steve.? Except at Oleg’s 2nd birthday party Tacoma Chickadee’s eldest daughter renamed Pink Steve to Rose.? We still call it Pink Steve.

Nowadays Steve sleeps in the bed with the boy and watches puppet shows.? I thought he’d lost interest, but yesterday I put the boy down for his nap and there were no “friends” in the bed.? “Where’s Steve?” he asked.