Stuffed animals come alive at La Cañada Flintridge Library
Christopher Robin and Winnie-the-Pooh, Calvin and Hobbes, the Velveteen Rabbit — there is a special bond between children and their beloved stuffed animals, one that sparks the imagination and speaks of a deep and abiding affection.
Paying homage to that bond, the La Cañada Flintridge Library held a special story time Tuesday afternoon in which participants were allowed to invite their most precious animal friends to join in on the fun as children listened to stories and made paper mobiles and sleep mask crafts.
But the real party started after the event, after all the parents and children had gone and the library closed up shop. That’s when the animals got the run of the place, playing with toys, racing down aisles on book carts and having a howling good time during the great “Stuffed Animal Sleepover.”
Children’s librarian Sarah LoVerme said the sleepover event is a fun way for children to engage with reading and the many adventures that await them inside the pages of a great book.
“It creates a special experience for them and makes the library more of a magical place,” she said.
LoVerme explained children leave their animal friends behind for the sleepover and then pick them up the next day. On their return to the library, participants get their animals back, along with a certificate of participation and a fun photo album showing all the fun the animals had at night.
“The activities the animals are engaged in are things the kids can do, too,” the librarian shared. “Except racing the carts down the aisles.”
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Sara Cardine, sara.cardine@latimes.com
Twitter: @SaraCardine
