September is here and it's officially fall season...what a glorious season with wonderful colours surrounding you. Scaredy Cat was having a picnic outside with his great friend Bob and it seems Bob came hauling a trolley of what looks like stuffed toys. Upon close inspection, it turned out the entire trolley was full of stuffed plush teddy bears. Scaredy Cat was amazed and wondered why he brought so much.

As if sensing the curiosity from Scaredy Cat, Bob explains why he brought all the stuffed plush teddies. "Do you know what happens on September 9th?" he asked casually. "It's National Teddy Bear Day!!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Well, a few days ago was National Cheeseburger Day but I didn't see you celebrate it with hundreds and hundreds of burgers,” said Scaredy Cat. "Teddy Bears are different, it's something that invokes fond childhood memories and nostalgia. I can bet you that everyone has their own favourite kind of teddy bears...I'm sure of it" Bob said. "Did you know that the name "teddy bear" comes from former USA President Theodore Roosevelt who refused to shoot a bear during a hunting expedition? When the incident was portrayed in a political cartoon in the Washington Post in 1902, toymaker Morris Michtom saw the cartoon and made a tiny bear cub stuffed toy and put it in his shop window with a sign that said, "Teddy Bear" which became an immediate success. I don't want to bore you with the history, but you can find out more (and other interesting and fun facts) at: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teddy_bear *** Oh – as a little sidenote, let’s not forget a couple of the most famous teddy bears around, Paddington Bear and Winnie the Pooh!

Bob continued "Did you realize that PnF has had their own teddy bear plushies since forever and in almost every round of their Fruit Machine game. I would like this week art challenge to be about teddy bears, so that means using any of the teddies available in the shops. It will be so much fun because I know a lot of our users love them so much". So, dust off your childhood teddy bear and give it a squeeze because it is National Teddy Bear Day! If there are kids in your life, consider buying (or making) them a new stuffed animal. You also can donate stuffed animals to children in hospitals and other care facilities. What else can you do with your teddy bear? Have an adventure together? Maybe have a teddy bear picnic? Passing your favorite teddy down to your own children? Do you have a collection of favourite teddies? There are so many things that you can feature in your art. We are looking forward to you showing us all those adorable bears in your entries this week!!

Here's the basics:
* Your submission MUST be related to the theme.
* You must submit your art to the PnF art gallery - only entries there will be counted.
https://www.pets-n-friends.com/community.php?id=20
* Put “I Love Teddy Bears” in the title or description
* The entry with the most votes will be declared the winner.
* To vote, click the "vote" button - you may vote for as many entries as you want
* Voting will be open immediately
* This challenge will be open from now until around 12:00am GMT September 13, 2022 (around 8:00pm Tuesday night in the USA)