When I was little I had a gorgeous chimpanzee puppet, which I named Mizouri after the chimpanzee that was born in the Melbourne Zoo at the time. I adored him.

I am still unpacking boxes after moving into this house over 6 months ago. When I found Mizouri at the bottom of a box that was also filled with vintage fabrics from my nanna, I was delighted. The fabrics are beautiful, but Mizouri is a package that reminds me of my childhood and comfort.

The puppet is very lifelike. I learned to manipulate him in ways that made him appear alive. You can imagine my children’s faces when I brought him into the kitchen, making him suck his thumb and cuddle into me. “Look what I found!” I said. The children gathered around me, squealing in delight once the initial ‘what the’ hung in the air.

Matthew is particularly taken with little Mizouri. I think the monkey is currently in his room under a doll’s blanket. This morning he was pushing it around in a pink doll’s pram, talking to it in a cooing kind of voice. He runs little play dates with his soft toys, with picnics and rocket rides etc. I love hiding in his doorway (not so easy when you are the size of a hippopotamus), watching him play!

The children sometimes fight about who gets to play with Mizouri, but Georgia graciously (or not) resigns herself to the fact that Matty has a hold on the monkey. She has my Cabbage Patch Kids, afterall.

Introducing Mizouri to Matthew and Georgia (12/9/10)