Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you decide to purchase through them—at no extra cost to you. I only share products that I personally use, genuinely love, and believe could make your life a little easier or more enjoyable. Thanks for supporting Appmanda—it helps me keep creating content for you!
For William’s first Christmas, my parents gifted him with his first teddy bear – a super soft brown bear with white accents from a small business called Lambs & Ivy. He is affectionately named “Bear”. He is so important to William that he was featured in our family photos this past January.
I have seen many social media pleas over the years from parents who are petitioning the public to please help them find their child’s beloved stuffed animal which was lost on a trip or adventure. Obviously, our goal is to never lose Bear, but life happens and we’re human so it’s very possible that it could happen to us too! Since William has become quite attached to Bear, I knew that I wanted to learn from the struggle shown in those social media posts and try to prevent any unnecessary heartache so I set off to figure out how to prevent losing Bear.
After some brainstorming, the best thing I could come up with was attaching an AirTag to Bear – but how? One thing we love about the Lambs & Ivy bear is that it is machine washable. This is a HUGE plus for life with toddlers – whenever someone’s had a virus or simply Bear has had a messy adventure at the dinner table or the park, we simply toss him in the washing machine. We didn’t want to lose this washable factor and while AirTags are water-resistant they aren’t waterproof. We considered how we could clip on an AirTag, but with a curious toddler who loves to figure out how to open things he shouldn’t I was afraid it would get disconnected. I realized then surely someone had a waterproof case for the AirTag. Cue Amazon searching and it didn’t take long to find the solution! We had found a waterproof cover and this meant I could sew the AirTag into Bear.
Shop the Solution
So with an AirTag, a waterproof cover, and Bear in hand, I grabbed my handy sewing kit and got to work. Within 5 minutes Bear’s little surgery was done. If you want to recreate this you’ll just use a seam ripper (or some small scissors) to carefully cut a seam where it likely won’t be noticed – I used his paw – just large enough to fit the covered AirTag in. Slip in the AirTag and sew the hole closed. Simple as that!
AirTags are advertised to last approximately a year. Since it was January when I implemented this, it was cold outside, and we left Bear in the car for about 30-40 minutes one day when we went grocery shopping. We did notice that the cold weather made the AirTag start alerting to a low battery even though it had only been a week since activating it. Once Bear and his AirTag were warmed back up, it hasn’t been a problem, but do note that this tracking hack may not work the best if you’re in a colder environment or you lose your favorite stuffy at the park outside on a cold day.
With the lifetime of a year on the AirTag I know at the start of each year Bear will likely need a little surgery to swap out his AirTag, but the little 5-minute project is worth it in my book to ensure Bear doesn’t get lost.
Our youngest, David, also received his first teddy bear for his first Christmas as well – the soft gray version of William’s bear. David’s is called “Gom (곰)” – 곰 is Korean for “bear”. Gom is also getting an AirTag too to ensure he stays close by as well.
Shop The Bears
Check out the video of the process here:
Let me know how it goes!
I truly hope this tip brings peace to your travels and lets you be worry-free on your adventures.
So let me know how it goes – I’d love to connect, hear if this tip helps your family as much as it helps ours, and see your stuffies you tag too!
Follow me on socials, tag me in your posts with your favorite stuffed animals, and even pop into my DMs to reach out – you can find me @appmanda on all platforms!