Stories Collected While Living in France

French la Vie

The Loved Bun-Bun

               Bunny

My name is Bun-Bun. I was once-upon-a-time a fluffy white and plump bunny.

When Chelsea was a wee baby her cousin Annie gave me to her. I no longer have fur, nor pink velvet in my ears, and my lips have acquired several stitches of red thread to keep them kissable.

I have been lost and found a few times in my seventeen years. When Chelsea was a toddler I went to the grocery store with her and her Mother. After shopping for groceries Chelsea said to her Mother, "Bun bun all gone." And started to cry. Her panicked Mother who treasured her sleep, and who barely spoke a word of French had Chelsea tell the salesclerk her problem. "J’ai perdu mon doudou.*" It seemed everyone in the store stopped shopping and started looking for me.

I was then, as I am now a star. Have you ever known love so sweet as to have a child love you more than candy?

Photo: Chelsea’s stuffed toy. Who corrects me each time I say toy. "Mom, Bun-Bun is not a toy!"

*Doudou is a French word to describe a child’s favorite toy or belonging.

Comments

48 responses to “The Loved Bun-Bun”

  1. Katy

    It’s amazing how long we remember those first lovies. When I was little, I had a stuffed lamb I was very fond of. We moved when I was 4 and the little lamb got lost in the move. I’ve regretted that ever since and that was about 52 years ago!

    Reply
  2. tut-tut

    Yes, we have Pippo here, who is in need of repair. How can they love these creatures so much, even as teenagers??

    Reply
  3. Jeanne

    How sweet and precious is this story.
    The Velveteen Rabbit comes to mind.
    Rabbit Rabbit.
    How adorable
    Love Jeanne

    Reply
  4. Darla

    Of course Bun-Bun is not a toy. Look at that face, that personality. He’s a talisman, a touchstone, a bundle of memories.
    Darla

    Reply
  5. My Melange

    Very cute…I love bunnies! I had many of the real ones as pets as a kid. She should take it to college with her, non?
    ___________________________
    “…and everywhere that Chelsea went her bunny was sure to go.”
    Bun Bun will have a good education.

    Reply
  6. Beverly

    We have “Lambie”. She is now stored in a box in the closet. But in the days when she was needed for night-time snuggling, we had five extra lambies hidden…just in case!
    None of them worked like “Lambie”! Mary knew the imposters!

    Reply
  7. Kit

    Shops and favourite animals are a fatal combination. Youngest has an owl called Wol who used to be indispensable at bedtime and the places he chose to roost! Once he was reclaimed from a snug niche on a shelf at Clicks the Chemist. Luckily I’d remembered the aisle where I’d spent a long time deliberating over vitamins, as he was tucked well back out of sight with only his feet visible when you peered in.
    Precious memories.

    Reply
  8. phyllis

    Oh Bun-Bun brought to mind several well-loved childhood attachments!
    I recently was given my babyhood quilt and found it matched our bedroom exactly right now! Maybe something subliminal came to surface after all these years?

    Reply
  9. Shannon

    No one thought you were her mother? LOL.
    What is a doudou, btw?
    _______________________
    * Doudou means a favorite toy in French.

    Reply
  10. Sheila

    Of course Bun-Bun is not a toy..!
    I had my Lamb until I was 17 and we emigrated. My mother discarded it, thinking I wouldn’t notice, and he did not make the trip. When we arrived in Canada and I realised he was gone forever I was very upset.
    I still miss him..!
    Lamb, like Bun-Bun I’m sure, knew all my secrets, and dried my tears, and helped me sleep.
    I’m guessing Bun-bun made the trip to California..?!

    Reply
  11. louise

    I think everyone had a Bun-Bun… well something like her, maybe not quite as stylish though. Mine was a cabbage patch kid that also looked worse/better for wear after many years of friendship.

    Reply
  12. martina

    I have my Dad’s stuffed toy from about 1930, Foxy. You can move Foxy’s tail and his head will turn. A most beloved heirloom. There is a book out where people share their stories of beloved companions like BunBun and Foxy. Really a sweet book.

    Reply
  13. susan

    I always feel lucky after visiting here!

    Reply
  14. Gillian @ Indigo Blue

    Bun Bun is to Chelsea as Persqualky is to Blue!
    There is nothing quite like a well loved stuffy.
    xo
    Blue

    Reply
  15. Rosemary

    So cute!!
    Reminds me of looking for my daughter’s lost doll in the mall.
    Have a great day!
    Rosemary

    Reply
  16. cd&m

    Reminds me of The Velveteen Rabbit.

    Reply
  17. carole

    Hi Corey:
    Bon Bon is so cool. The facial expression is “IT”
    Take care
    carole

    Reply
  18. carole

    Hi Corey:
    Bon Bon is so cool. The facial expression is “IT”
    Take care
    carole

    Reply
  19. tommiea

    My little girl has a bunny as well….She sucks her thumb and rubs one ear of the bunny. I often wonder when she will give it up.

    Reply
  20. Dee

    My grandson, David has a bunny…bunny…bunny…bun…bun…bun. I swear…you HAVE to get all the bun…buns in or he corrects you! When he goes to bed at night…he has a place in his bed for ALL his stuffed animals…and everyone has special name! He told us they are all his sons!

    Reply
  21. angela

    That is the sweetest story. An Elmo “toy” is the favorite around here though with boys I doubt it will last throughout the years.

    Reply
  22. Star

    Mine was a stuffed yellow floppy-eared dog. It was well loved, but not nearly so much as my brother’s; his had to be stitched together many times as its head was separated from its body as a result of his carrying it around by the neck, and I believe it eventually got a turquoise coat sewn on to keep him all together. Such good memories!
    Will bun-bun be going to university with Chelsea as her mascot?

    Reply
  23. Lea

    Thank you for this sweet peek down the Bun-Bun hole…

    Reply
  24. BOSSY

    Bossy understands. Her children have kissed the mouth off their Poohie. He’s also been hugged flat.

    Reply
  25. wendy

    One of the sweetest cutest things ive seen in a long time : )

    Reply
  26. RoO

    OOoohhh my Bun bun…
    ha.ha. He’s definitely a star now! Just look at how well he strikes a pose!
    And yes he is coming with me to university!

    Reply
  27. patpaulk

    We all have our favorite toys/bun-bun’s to play with.

    Reply
  28. Maryc

    How sweet! Bunbun all gone. Waaaah! He looks like the Velveteen Rabbit! I love that you had her explain her predicament to the sales clerk and that they all helped out!
    My 2 1/2 year old has a little blankie that is her favorite thing ever. Luckily, we have three of them and she just uses one at a time. ALl three were small receiving blankets from the same package that she has used since she was a newborn, so they are all equally faded and soft.

    Reply
  29. Mo’a

    Oh!!!sweet Bun-Bun the stories you have heard and the tales you could tell…

    Reply
  30. ParisBreakfasts

    Lapin, Lapin
    Where have you been?
    Though your fur is thin…
    And your mouth in a permanent grin,
    You ran off at the marche
    and put Corey in a tail spin!

    Reply
  31. Di

    Sweet bun-bun! I lost my doudou in a bar when I was 35!! Probably better not to ask what my much loved octopus (really just some strands of black wool after 29 years of loving) was doing in a bar!

    Reply
  32. Karen Cole

    How DO you tell so many beautiful stories? This should be a childrens book.

    Reply
  33. susanna

    Awww….I have a Rabbity (my twin sister has an Elephanty) and she/he has a special place in my home and in my heart. I’m so glad that you found Bun-Bun the Doudou.

    Reply
  34. Gail

    Thank goodness you explained “doo doo”. Very different meaning in English.
    xoxo
    Gail

    Reply
  35. Sandy

    Hang on to bun bun! I lost my first teddy bear sometime in grammar school only to find him up in my mother’s attic when we moved her in with us. I was in my mid 50’s at the time. Teddy now has a place of honor in my bedroom. Teddy is 57 yrs old now.

    Reply
  36. Sandy

    Hang on to bun bun! I lost my first teddy bear sometime in grammar school only to find him up in my mother’s attic when we moved her in with us. I was in my mid 50’s at the time. Teddy now has a place of honor in my bedroom. Teddy is 57 yrs old now.

    Reply
  37. A Fanciful Twist

    That is painfully sweet! So the baby new French from birth… And English too?? WOW!!! 😉

    Reply
  38. Alice

    Bun-Bun is adorable! Who could resist that face! My daughter still has her blankie and still sleeps with it. It’s very tattered, but very much loved as I know Bun-Bun is!
    Again, thank you for sharing your lovely story…
    Alice

    Reply
  39. Stephanie

    Chelsea will cherish Bun Bun always.
    I have hung to to Ba Ba (the blankee) quilted some of it into a little piece.

    Reply
  40. eb

    (“mom! – that’s personal”)
    Sammy (the dog stuffie)
    took his first trip
    on an airplane…
    to Omaha
    to visit the Grandparents
    the Auntie, Uncle
    and the grownup – almost
    cousins…
    Sammy used to go everywhere
    almost – now, less so
    still…
    but we are a little
    quiet about it
    once there was a blankie
    many a quilted square
    and these dou dous
    have a smell
    like heaven
    xox – eb.

    Reply
  41. Dawn

    Corey, what a sweet photo! I just love how his fur has been absolutely loved off!! I’m so glad Chelsea still has her Bun-bun. xxoo, Dawn

    Reply
  42. Marie-Noëlle

    Hello Bun-Bun!
    My name is “Pouffalou”. I’m a French “doudou”. As old as you…I was mended a hundred times, was lost and found as often too…
    “Poussaou” joined me when my little master’s sister was born…over 14 years ago.
    The other day, our bag was opened and we got dug out. Shapeless, all holes, … I thought we would be thrown away… but our teen-aged masters started to recover all sorts of memories from their young age and sounded so pleased to see us again – They handled us with great care…
    That was short but sweet though…

    Reply
  43. Nicol

    Nestled in the pillows and mementos all bound for college my little girl all grown up could never make the trip without her faithful teddy xox N

    Reply
  44. Merisi’s Vienna

    My oldest and my youngest once had the same stuffed skinny little dog. One day the youngest forgot hers in bed in a New York hotel. When we came back in the evening, the beds were made and the little ones doggie was gone. The tears!
    Christmas Eve soon after, the little one opened a present from her older sister. Guess what was in there? (And no, the hotel in New York insisted no stuffed doggie had been found.)

    Reply
  45. Marie-Noëlle

    Bonjour !
    Je m’appelle Nounours. I’m an old French teddy. Was given to my mistress when she was 4. French word “doudou” did not exist in my time. Anyway, went everywhere with her. She used to carry me in her arms or in her doll pram.
    When her daughter was told my life story, she put me in her own bedroom and looked after me as a precious vintage piece…
    She never held me as a doudou as she had her own – Poussaou – a nice one…

    Reply
  46. tinker

    This is so sweet – BunBun makes me think of the Velveteen Rabbit – which I can’t even think about without crying. BunBun, you are beautiful!

    Reply
  47. frenchgardenhouse

    I’m assuming that Bun-Bun will go with her to school, then.
    I love that sweet girl’s “Not a toy!” statement. She looks all grown up, but she will always be your Baby.
    Lidy

    Reply
  48. Michele

    What an adorable bun bun.. he would be right at home with my well chewed rabbits..
    I had a cat pyjama case when I was a baby 49 years ago!!!!) and it was called Bobbada! Strange but true..
    Love to visit your blog and your vintage treasures are formidable!!!
    A bientot
    Michele

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Privacy Policy - Terms and Conditions