potential love fest?

two weeks ago, eric, grandma brandel and finn made the arduously long trek to the mall of america. arduous meaning 5 minutes. i kid. but they did go to the mall with the purpose of creating finn's most prized possession or at least according to his father - the teddy bear.

here's a little background. eric has a teddy bear that he's had since he was a baby. it's name is conveniently "teddy". teddy is eric's most prized possession - and you thought it was his computer. he, in fact, does not sleep with his computer, but he does sleep with his teddy. i'm sure he'd prefer i didn't share this tidbit with all of you... but it's true. he's still sleeping with his teddy. and he's quite content to cuddle "it" all night long, instead of his wife. HARRUMPH. anyway.... teddy rarely leaves his nocturnal side and if you ask him straight, he'll tell you that teddy is indeed alive. if you dare to insult the teddster, he'll scold you and tell you to apologize to teddy, and in all likelihood, teddy will get a hug to ensure there's no hard feelings. a number of times teddy has "farted" on me or when i've accidentally sat on him in the bed, i've been told i'm inappropriate. this may seem all like a big joke. i assure you, it's not. teddy is ALIVE... mwah ha ha.

anyway, so it wouldn't have been right for a little boy to not have his own teddy. so off they went to build-a-bear to create the love of finn's life. stuffed with love from daddy dearest. below are his first pictures with him. while finn seems a little upset at being forced into stuffed animal matrimony at such a young age, i'm sure he'll come to realize that his father had his best interests at heart and that an arranged relationship was the best thing for him in the end. so without further ado. finnegan and his teddy, "bobby brandel".