Steve went to Ecuador earlier this year to shoot a small documentary on the Cotacachi Honey Fund, which provides beehives, equipment and training for small scale farmers in the country:

I was excited for him to go and see a new part of the world, although there was a part of me that wondered if I'd ever see him again. The bees the farmers work with are a hybrid of killer bees, and Steve would have to work with what was promised would be the "Cadillac" of bee suits. Spoiler alert; he made it out alive and didn't get stung once. In fact, he even brought back some souvenirs, most of which were made of alpaca hair (fur?)

He brought me a beautiful alpaca shawl which I mean to use more but I'm afraid to get food on it so it usually stays carefully folded in my closet. Paul, on the other hand, received a few toys, including this alpaca which is made with alpaca fur.

I find this both charming and creepy, basically forcing me to think about what it'd be like to have a human doll made of human skin (or am I the only one who thinks this way?)

Anyway, what's sweet instead of gross and weird is how soft the alpaca's fur is, like a little cashmere cloud. I like his little crazy googly eyes and pointy ears. Paul calls it the "Packa" and, like most of his toys, greets it like an old friend he hasn't seen in years when he comes across it. "The Packa!!!"

I'm trying to crack down on teaching Paul to take better care of his toys, saying that if he likes his stuffed animals, he should put them on the couch or table and not leave them on the floor, because the animals make the house look messy and then of course they get dirty in general. But I might have a special place in my heart for the Packa. I noticed the other day that the alpaca's hair was getting a little bit clumpy and dusty. He looked like he was starting to grow tiny alpaca dreadlocks.

So I did what any normal, adult woman with limited time on her hands does. I took the Packa and gave him a little brushout. Most stuffed animals, when they start to gross me out, get an unceremonious dunk in the washing machine (even if they say "spot clean only," because I'm cruel and cold.) But not the alpaca. He got a trip to the beauty salon.

I guess this type of thing runs in the family:

(I even used the same brush)