Mom goes into toddler's room at bedtime—and is surprised to see her snuggled up next to the most unexpected thing

Kids often develop a strong emotion and liking for at least one or two of their toys. It is because those certain toys give the young ones a sense of comfort. A toddler mother, Abbie McFarland (@abbielmcfarland on TikTok), filmed her daughter in her bed, surrounded by pillows and her favorite stuffed toys. However, there was an odd piece of object that had garnered the little one's interest over the teddy bears.

In the video, the little girl is seen grabbing onto an unusual yet her favorite bedtime buddy — a wooden cutting board. The cutting board was shaped like a weiner dog and the toddler cherished it way more than the rest of her toys. The video not only sparked laughter but also curiosity among adults, as the short clip garnered millions of views. For people who wonder why kids are attracted to certain toys and objects, Psychoanalyst D.W. Winnicott explained a concept in a study titled "Playing and Reality." 

The study deduced how comfort or transactional objects help children to soothe themselves and navigate through moments of separation or change in the environment. "It is also well known that after a few months, infants of either sex become fond of playing with dolls and that most mothers allow their infants some special object and expect them to become, as it were, addicted to such objects," the study read. "There is a relationship between these two sets of phenomena that are separated by a time interval, and a study of the development from the earlier into the latter can be profitable."

The comments section of the TikTok video joked about the toddler's interesting choice of comfort object. @theguevarafamilia wrote, "I mean at least it’s shaped like a dog. I thought she was going to pull out a straight-up rectangle cutting board." @phoenix.ember.rising shared, "My kid snuggled his shoe tonight because it helped him run fast today." @uwmd92 commented, "Ours had six bags of unpopped popcorn still in the plastic bags. Went everywhere with them even in the bath." @_maddibelle_ mentioned, "As a childcare educator, nap time is my favorite part of the day cause I get to see the crazy things my children decide to sleep with shoes, drink bottles, a piece of paper, etc. She is too cute bringing the sausage dog cutting board to bed." 

@knowledge_is_p0wer added, "She’s so precious. When she outgrows her cutting board. Save it. Wrap it and give it to her as a wedding present!" @dopprunning4 suggested the family buy their toddler a dog if they don't have one already. @mccarthynick7 quipped, "My best friend was a cheap plastic skeleton my mom bought at Dollar General. Mr. Bones was a real one." @gbgb123b wrote, "My little sister had a dead Frankenstein Halloween decoration that she would carry everywhere with her. Her Frankie."

You can follow Abbie McFarland (@abbiemcfarland) on TikTok for more videos on motherhood and lifestyle.