Julia was one and a half years old when I bought her stuffed animal dog, McKinley. Julia immediately formed a bond with McKinley, and in no time, he became part of the family. Julia sleeps with him at night and during nap times, and drags him along to all of the family functions, vacations, and even the grocery store.

     Deep down, Julia has always known that McKinley isn't really alive. Despite this fact, Julia would get extremely mad if one would sit down on the couch beside him and accidentally sit on his tail.

     McKinley has been through the wash several times, and even stitched up a time or two.  All in all, he continues to play an integral role in our happy family.