Gifted/AD – This post features plushies that Jellycat kindly gifted me — there was no obligation to post, but I wanted to share because I LOVE THEM. But for transparency and to follow rules and laws, I want to put this disclaimer here, RIGHTIO, now on to the Jellycats!

Almost a year ago, my son had an idea: an Instagram for his plushies. I thought his idea was absolutely ADORABLE. He spent months sharing his plushie adventures, and I loved seeing how much fun he was having. Eventually, after about four months, I asked if he’d mind me joining in too. He said, “Of course you can join me”, and so I started my own plushie account as well — because we already had so many plushie adventures together, and I thought it would be so special to share them too.

I didn’t expect anything to come of it — I just wanted a little record of our adventures like a little Instagram plushie blog. If you’ve seen my blog, you’ll know I take so many photographs, but before Instagram, and my blog, they just sat trapped in my iPhone forever. That always made me a little sad — so many tiny, cute moments, hidden.

So I set them free. I made a plushie Instagram, started posting our adventures, and now a year later it’s become something so much bigger than I imagined. I’ve made amazing friends, shared incredible moments with my son, and recently — something truly exciting happened.

Jellycat themselves reached out to me! They wanted to send me a gift!

The Big Box Arrives

Jellycat often reaches out to Jellycat Instagram creators — they did for their 25th Anniversary, sending out pins and a little bunny keychain. So when they reached out to me, I figured I’d get something similar — maybe a keychain, some stickers, or a pin. So when a giant box turned up at my door, I had no clue what it was.

My first thought was “Oh no, did I order something and forget again?” Cue immediate brain interrogation mode as I frantically searched my memory for any trace of late-night impulse shopping. It wouldn’t be the first time, and it wont be the last.

I grabbed the sacred package-opening knife (which is just whatever butter knife I find first) and RIPPED into the box like it was Christmas morning — or like one of those days where I genuinely forgot what I ordered on Amazon. After a few PAINFUL seconds of fighting with the butter knife, I realised it was just slowing me down. So I did the only logical thing. I tore back the cardboard with my “bear” hands — chaotically, like a starving bear who just found an unguarded picnic basket.

And that’s when I saw it.

The white tissue paper, gleaming in the sunlight, with “Jellycat” repeated all over it.
Instant realisation and excitement. “OH MY GOD.”
I shouted again to my son. “COME QUICK!”

My son, mid-Hello Kitty game on his Switch, sprinted into the room like I’d just had a life-threatening accident. No, no — just one of my brand of fluffy excited emergencies. He’s used to my emergencies by now. I was expecting a keyring. But the box was huge. Inside the box was a big red Jellycat bag and inside that, not one, but TWO full-sized Jellycats. A keyring. Stickers. A lovely note from Jellycat.

I was over the moon. Well, I still am.

Giving My Son Hugg McSnugg

The first Jellycat I pulled out of the bag was Hugg McSnugg. A little fluffy devil, complete with tiny horns and a heart at the end of his tail. His heart-shaped face is absolutely adorable. He feels different from my other Jellycats — his fur is unusual but still incredibly soft, a little sensory treat. His arms, legs, tail, and horns are all glittery, adding to his magical look.

“A little Valentine’s cryptid,” my son called him. I really love that Gen Z has a cryptid fascination. I felt alone in my Mothman obsession until Gen Z arrived.

I was so happy to see him in the box. If I’m honest, I really hoped Hugg McSnugg would be in the Jellycat Valentine’s package — not for me, but for my son. He had wanted him so much. So after taking many photographs of Hugg McSnugg in his best poses, I surprised my son with him.

“But he’s for YOU,” he said. “And you like him.”

And well, yes, I do. But I love my son more. And I love that he gets to join in on this Jellycat surprise with me. I’m so excited to see the little adventures he takes Hugg McSnugg on. Maybe he’ll take him to Uni next week, where his plushies always have the best time — on the train, in the Uni library, living their best plushie lives.

And with my son’s birthday around Valentine’s Day, it feels like Hugg McSnugg’s arrival is perfect timing — his very own birthday present from Jellycat.

My Heart Beats For You, Amuseables Beatie Heart

I was absolutely ecstatic to receive the adorable large Beatie Heart. Her fur is very similar to Hugg McSnugg’s, just a little longer, and she just looks so happy. In fact, I think she might be the happiest Jellycat EVER.

Before she arrived, I had already thought it would be adorable if my Jellycat bears had a little Balentines Day celebration — Valentine’s for bears — and had a Balentines Ball photoshoot. And how perfect is Beatie Heart for that idea? My bears already look adorable hugging her. Best Beatie Friends.

The arrival of Beatie Heart — I think I’m going to call her Betty — even gave me a new macramé idea. I could make a Betty macramé bag, and my large Barts could wear it while sitting next to her. ADORABLE. Hopefully, my ribs will let me make macramé before Balentines, but hearts are for every season anyway.

For now, I’ve placed Betty on my TV console so I can look at her all the time, but I might find an even more perfect spot for her soon.

The Heart Keyring

I absolutely LOVE the white Jellycats, but I don’t own any — until now. I’ve always wanted the moon, the white star, and the heart, so it’s so cool that the first white Jellycat I own was sent to me by Jellycat themselves. A little white heart keychain.

It’s going to look amazing next to Keyring Bart on my bag. Since my bag is grey, the contrast of the white heart with grey legs is going to look epic. I do worry about it getting dirty, but I also REALLY want to take it everywhere. Thankfully, my hermit lifestyle means it won’t have too many opportunities to get wrecked.

Keyring Bart IS still holding up — though he does look like he’s SEEN things. And to be fair, he has. Mostly the inside of terrifying doctors’ surgeries.

Stickers and a Note

Jellycat also included a little note and some stickers. I am SO HAPPY that Heart Throb Bart is one of them! He’s going straight onto my MacBook, where he can be my writing mascot. And the note they included was so sweet: “We hope your new friends bring you joy.”

Well, they REALLY did.

Thank you, Jellycat — and thank you for my plushie obsession, which is entirely your fault, thanks to Bartholomew Bears.

Not Used to Being Picked for ANYTHING

The kindness of this gesture from Jellycat meant so much to me — because I’m not used to being picked for anything at all. I am often on the outside looking in — outside of cliques, outside of groups, outside of being chosen. All I’ve ever wanted is to belong somewhere, yet I’ve never truly felt it. I made my peace with that years ago. It’s what comes with being your true, authentic self.

I am very real and I have a lot of diagnoses. I also don’t force positivity — and in business terms, that makes me a PR disaster. The highlight reel of social media feels soulless to me at times. Highlight reels have so much less meaning if you don’t share the struggles between them.

Lately, I’ve been completely honest here on my blog about how rough things have been. If you’ve read even a few of these posts, you might now truly understand just how much this Jellycat delivery meant to me. If every post I wrote was forced positivity, this would just be another haul post. That’s why I never force positivity where there isn’t any. This post is positive — because it means a lot to me.

Meaning is what gets me up in the morning — like the small ritual of drinking my coffee, even when my brain is screaming at me to stay in bed. Meaning is everywhere if you look for it. Positivity doesn’t need to be forced. But this philosophy has also made being on the outside looking in even harder. Because everyone expects me to mask it.

• Mask who I am.

• Mask my mental illness.

• Mask my personality and philosophy.

So to be here, to be myself — truly myself — and still be picked for something is amazing to me. And more importantly to still have made AMAZING friends in the Jellycat community.

Thank you, Jellycat.
And thank you, friends.

(As soon as I pressed Publish on my last post – the weekly report – this package arrived. Funny how that happens. So, I thought I’d post it the day after to go along with it)

The perfect song for this post – Jon Brion – Here We Go.
“As we move along with our blinders on
Each one of us feels a little stranded
And you can’t explain or understand it
Each one of us on a different planet
And amidst all the to and fro
Someone can say hello, here we go”