I would like to introduce you all to Harold.  Harold is a sweet little monkey who loves to cuddle, how could a monkey be this soft and not like to be loved on.  The traditional Red Heel Monkeys are so special and are a part of our collective history, but when you step out of the familiar you are exposed to new textures in monkey friends.  The material used for Harold was almost silky.  I love his embroidered eyes and mouth.

Hi all,

I am Michele, also known as the Monkey Momma.  I have not always been obsessed with sock monkeys, in fact, I am fairly certain I didn’t have one until I was about 29.  Not only did I discover my love for them, but everyone else did too.  For my thirtieth birthday, every present had something to do with sock monkeys.  I was horribly sick for my birthday and those monkeys made me smile and gave me comfort.

That brings me to today.  My life has turned upside down due to illness.  The doctors don’t know what is wrong, yet whatever it is has managed to affect every area of my life.  I had returned to the work force after 10 years of being a stay at home mom, and just completed my first year of college with a 3.8 GPA.  I was forced to take an indefinite leave of absence from school and lost my job.  I am not allowed to drive due to sudden, extreme, bouts of vertigo and seizures.  I even had to miss a once in a lifetime all-expense paid trip to Hawaii.

I am an aspiring writer with a very understanding agent, who is doing her best to keep me from losing the opportunities I had earned.   Now, I can’t write or even sit down to read a good book.  Logically you may ask how I am writing this blog post, Dragon Software is an awesome thing.  However, even using the software this post is taking a LONG time to dictate.

Between my doctors’ appointments I spent days sitting on the couch, with nothing to do.  When you watch “Flowers in the Attic” for the third time and think, “Gee, they have more to do than I do.” you know something is wrong.  Other days I forced myself to do things I wasn’t able to do and made myself feel worse.  Despite how much I tried to deny it, I was on the verge of spiraling into a deep depression.

Then I remembered, Sock Monkey’s Make Me Smile.  There are countless ways to make a sock monkey, not all require the use of a sewing machine.  All I really needed to do was sit and stitch.  If I start to feel bad I can stop at any moment and restart without any large process.

With each monkey I make my smile gets larger and I can face the day with my head high.

I hope my monkeys make you smile and bring you a little of the joy they give me.