“Yeah, I’ll take one of those Steiff 50th Anniversary bears, please.”
“That’ll be $350, plus tax.”
“Hmm. I don’t know that I really like the colour. I better have a think about it and come back later.”
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True story. I had an extensive teddy bear collection when I was young. I generally got one from every location we visited of all styles and sizes. I had probably about 40 bears.
But everyone kept saying, when they heard I had such a collection, that I needed to get a Steiff bear…as if that would legitimize my teddy bear collection in some way. Only…I didn’t like Steiff bears. I don’t really find them cute, nor do they provide any kind of emotional significance to me. Not to mention the outrageous price.
So, no. I never had a Steiff bear…and I’m okay with that! 
For those curious…no, I no longer have the collection. And, in fact, I finally got rid of my first teddy bear that I got when I was 5 years old named Freddy only about a year or two ago. He’d been stitched back up more times than I can count, and no longer had his original nose – I had to sew on a replacement button nose – due to an unfortunate encounter with the neighbor’s dog when I was still in middle school.
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I still have my childhood teddy bear, who must be about 50 by now. He once got lost at an airport. And he was stabbed when I was at boarding school.
I have a few other emotionally significant teddy bears.
But otherwise I no longer buy teddy bears. That would be enormously childish and inappropriate. Calvin, on the other hand, does collect teddy bears, including one I won in Dinoland last year.
I did once buy a Steiff bear at Epcot, but gave it to my mother. It was one of the very small (but still expensive) ones.
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While we’re talking about merch, I just spotted this. Regular readers will know that I must buy one and put it into my possession. UOR Starbucks have never done the ornament size before, and they are the ones I collect.
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Still funny the third time through
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I know the dog across the street, Lucky. Not the owners names though (DH had a fight with them right when they moved in). Cute doggie named Mario lives behind us, brought him home 3 times, still don’t know their name but made sure to ask the dogs name.
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Freddy!!! 
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There is a very touching and meaningful story behind choosing that name for my bear: It rhymed with “Teddy”.
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So, did you not buy the Steiff above??
I love teddy bears and Steiffs. I have one Steiff and I bought each of my kids one for their first birthdays. The three of them are well loved 
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But you got rid of him.
This story is heartbreaking 
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None of the kids played with him any longer, and he was just sitting neglected in a box with other odds and ends.
I also had another rather large bear (that was also kind of a puppet) that I got when we took a trip out to California. I named him “Sequoia” after the trees at Yosemite, where I got him. He even flew on the plane back with me.
Sadly, Sequoia also “passed away” the same day as Freddy.
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THIS IS A MEMES AND JOKES THREAD!!!
STOP MAKING ME CRY!!!
PS I collected teddies when I was younger too, but most of my collection were ‘murdered’ during a nasty clearing out spree by my mum. 
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That made me very sad as well.
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Agree! Bring on the memes, leave the sad neglected Teddy’s alone.
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Don’t leave them alone!!!
Cuddle them ALL…! 
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My dog’s name, no joke, was Teddy. He was the best dog ever.
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Oh for crying out loud
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I still have my Pooh Bear that I got in 1971 at WDW (center). The one on the right I picked up sometime in the past 5 years. NOT getting rid of either unless a grandchild wants one.
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Your 1971 Pooh is amazing 
And Fozzie too!!
I had a Baloo once. He may have succumbed to the clear out massacre 
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