A mom searched high and low for her toddler's beloved blanket after the one he had grew tattered and found another one through women on Facebook.
When Crystal Eldridge noticed that her toddler son’s blanket, which he’s had since birth, was starting to tatter, she began the search for a new one – but she couldn’t find it.
Parker, 2, has autism and is non-verbal. He uses the colorful blanket as a source of familiarity and comfort. When Parker had an allergic reaction to a mosquito bite a few months ago, Eldridge, of Massachusetts, said all he wanted was his blanket.
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“When Parker's upset he likes to wrap it around himself or nuzzle himself to it. Every doctor’s appointment it’s there and there’s quite a few,” Eldridge told InsideEdition.com. “With autism and sensory sensitivity, he becomes very fixated on objects. It’s a source of comfort for him."
But, it had been quite some time since Eldridge was gifted the blanket at her baby shower and she couldn’t find a place that was still selling it.
Eldridge was worried how Parker would respond if he couldn’t use the blanket anymore.
That’s when she decided to reach out to Christine Blackmon, who started the Facebook group “Delicate Flower," to see if she could find anyone who had it.
Eldridge messaged Blackmon saying, "I have a two-and-a-half-year-old son who is my absolute world. Parker has autism...he is non-verbal and when he is upset and can't calm down, he snuggles his blanket. This blanket is his everything."
She asked Blackmon if she could help out and that she did, posting it to her group.
A week and a half later, she had two of Parker’s beloved blankets in her mailbox.
Esmeralda Flores Diaz saw a post about the blanket in a Facebook page for moms who live in Galveston, Texas. A woman, Traci, had seen it on the “Delicate Flower” and posted about it in the mom’s group.
Flores Diaz had the blanket, which she had also been gifted at her son’s baby shower, and she wasn’t using it because her son had special blanket of his own.
“Traci came and picked up the blanket from my house and mailed it to Crystal,” said Flores Diaz. “None of us knew each other. My son is only a month apart from Crystal’s son so I can relate. He’s also attached to his blanket.”
Flores Diaz said to be able to help Eldridge was life-changing for her.
“The fact that you can help another is just amazing. You see all these bad things happening in the world and it’s nice to see someone who cares about their child. It’s about helping each other,” said Flores Diaz.
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Eldridge also received the blanket from a Florida woman who works in a day care that happened to have it, and now little Parker has three of them.
“I am absolutely overjoyed I got the blanket. Parker doesn’t really notice the difference. I think it’s just the print. It’s a stimulation thing for him. He’s very visual,” said Eldridge. “Now I can rotate and wash them. I just thank the women who helped me.”
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