Parents lend helping hand when Buddy loses his

You may have heard of the Fox TV show "Man Versus Beast." Well, this was a case of beast against Buddy.

It was a disaster of epic proportions.

Our dog, Cassie, chewed the hand and most of the arm off Bailey's beloved Buddy Bear.

Of course it took me a while to realize the full gravity of the situation. Becca found the injured Buddy on the floor. She phoned her mother in hysterics. Through the tears, she choked out the horrible truth. "It's nothing but thread!" I guess I thought his whole head would be mangled, but it wasn't so bad. He kind of looked like that scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz after the witch attacked, but it wasn't hopeless.

I called Joni and told her it was only a flesh wound. Of course, I kept finding little Buddy fluff all over the floor. Should I have called the forensic experts from CSI? "A flesh wound?" she said incredulously when she examined Buddy firsthand. "His hand is missing and most of his arm. You call that a flesh wound?" She said it reminded her of the time Bailey had hacked off her bangs, and I didn't even notice. Naturally, I had a good excuse. There was a great playoff football game on TV. That's one of those little "incidents" years ago my wife still won't let me forget.

Of course, the dog looked completely innocent. She couldn't understand all the fuss. She had no idea that her "snack" was our daughter's best friend and sleeping companion. Bedtime wouldn't be the same without Buddy Bear. We have spent many a night looking for Buddy so Bailey could go to sleep. Bailey even plans to have Buddy at her wedding. We certainly hope she grows out of it by then or we'll have to invest in a Stuart Little tuxedo.

Joni rushed the injured Buddy to the closest fabric store. She laid him gingerly on the counter and asked the store manager to help match what little fabric was left. She looked at Joni and then at the pitiful bear. "That isn't Buddy, is it?" asked the obviously faithful reader of this column. As you know, I've written about Buddy before.

With fabric in hand, Joni returned home to attempt reconstructive surgery. This was pretty tough considering Buddy was more thread than fabric. She fashioned a new bright blue suit, which included a new hand and arm.

Then came the moment of truth. We held our breath as we told Bailey of the tragedy. She wailed. We crossed our fingers and produced the new and improved Buddy.

Surprisingly, Bailey was delighted. She even said he smelled like the old Buddy. Unlike a real surgeon, we did stuff all the old body parts inside.

With all Buddy had been through, Bailey suggested he needed a cape because he survived and was a "Super Buddy." Joni went back to the sewing machine and fashioned a little blue cape with a giant white "B" for Buddy. All the rest of the evening, Super Buddy and his faithful sidekick Bailey zoomed around the house, fighting dog crime and saving dolls in distress.

Then Bailey decided Buddy should make a fashion statement with a collection of aprons and capes for every holiday and special event. Should we call Ralph Lauren? Bailey even suggested that mom make her a giant-sized blue cape for Halloween so she could be a super hero too.

All seemed right with the world. Joni set to work on some fashion Buddy accessories. Cassie played with her own toys. Bailey snuggled with her bedtime Buddy. Even super heroes need their sleep.

Mark Bliss is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.