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How to get rid of a pacifier and other such stuff that requires consistency
Published 02.02.2009 | Permanent Link | Comments (11)
By Amy Turn Sharp of doobleh-vay
Photo by cesarastudillo
1. Choose a date and plan.
Much like giving up the Parliament Lights or deciding to train for a marathon, you must mentally commit to a date on the calendar and a plan of attack. Ignore the doctor and the dentist and calculate your own time frame for operation pacifier expulsion. There are bad times to go about this like the week before a sibling arrives or in the middle of a particularly petulant stage.
2. Be strong and do not wilt against the scary world of what other people think.
If you tell your wee one that he can only have his binky/paci/booboo or diddy (that is what this British household calls em) at night then only give it to him at night. Let him scream like little frickin banshee while you hug him tightly at Target. This is the beginning of the rest of your life with consistency and children. Start strong and ignore your BFF’s sideway glances at your parenting.
3. Well…you sometimes have to ask for advice from the seasoned mamas. I go to my mama mentors often for nuggets of wisdom and beg for the many techniques might work. I was a sucker for the old bribery trick that I learned from veteran mama Rosie O’Donnell. I heard her talk about placing a shiny new Thomas the Tank engine on a shelf above the potty for her son. Thank you Roe! I had to buy a few more of those overpriced devils than I wanted to, but my kid was potty trained in a flash and is just fine.
4. Partner up on big issues. You must agree to be united as parents.
I had a good-cop/bad-cop family and it is a difficult family dynamic to end. Try and stay on the same page as our partner and refer back to your goals together. I think even for the youngest child, seeing his parents as strong and loving is a wonderful thing burned into a brain. Bite your tongue and weep behind a closed wooden door but know that setting limits and a loving sense of consistency is a good thing for all.
5. Tell the story of the Diddy Fairy and really play her up to the max!
Make her sparkle and shine and carry golden gifts and toot magical wishes. As a parent you must play the Pied Piper sometimes and the pacifier fairy works beautifully. I had sold the idea of other wee babies needing Finn’s diddy so well (along with promises of golden Thomas trains) that it really was a defining moment for us as we left the box by the dumpster that Spring morning. He squeezed my hand and informed me that he was a big boy and it was one of the first of many obstacles we would face together. And no matter what, you are stronger than you think. Just believe and breathe.
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Comments (11):
moosh in indy. said:
I put all of the moosh's in a bag, let her take them to the store and pick out a bike. All she had to do was give the worker (a nice grandmotherly woman we found in housewares) the bag of binkies and she could leave with the shiny new bike and butterfly helmet.
She made the decision herself. It was one of the hardest things to watch as a parent, your little kid grow up. I still cry when I think about it.
But it worked, and it was her choice, not mine. I ran ahead and paid for the bike as she rode it out of the store and out to the car, never looking back.
Posted on February 2, 2009 10:21
Issa said:
I took my youngest daughter to Toys R Us and told her she could pick one thing, whatever she wanted, but all the bubbies were going into the trash on the way out. We talked it up and she was okay with it. She walked around the store with three in her mouth, but in the end, she did throw them out.
I got off easy too; I only had to buy a $9 Littlest Pet Death Shop thing.
Posted on February 2, 2009 11:18
rowena said:
Oh, BoBo, BoBo, how he loves thee...
Will trading him in for a robot really work?
Posted on February 2, 2009 13:11
SAJ said:
le sigh....
good post. :)
Posted on February 2, 2009 14:40
april said:
We told my son that Santa takes them to babies that need them. So on Christmas Eve, after we talked about it all week, he hung his "ni-nites" on the tree like ornaments & went to bed without one. They were gone in the morning, but all his cool toys were there. It worked really well. If he asked for one afterwards, we just said Santa took them. He's only two so hopefully it won't ruin Christmas for next year.
Posted on February 2, 2009 15:47
Momo Fali said:
You're really going to hate me, but I took my daughter's away when she turned two and she never even asked for it again. She walked around with that thing hanging out of her mouth constantly up to that point. It was a complete shock. My son never took one, because you can't keep a pacifier in your mouth when YOU'RE CRYING ALL THE TIME. Anyway, sorry. I have no advice.
Posted on February 3, 2009 07:28
Jenn said:
When I was 2 or 3, one of my friends' parents told her that pacifiers were given to the Easter Bunny so he could make them new again for other babies, and my friend was SO PROUD of having given her pacifiers to the Easter Bunny that I went home and told my mother that I was ready to send my binky to the Easter Bunny, too, for the babies. After she ascertained what was going on (and pretended she'd known this all along, from the Mommy Handbook, but had kind of forgotten), we made a box, I put my pacifiers in it, we put it on top of the mailbox, and my mother called a neighbor from her room: "Jan, there is a small box on top of the mailbox. Please get rid of it and make sure my daughter never sees it again. Thanks."
Hey, it worked.
Posted on February 3, 2009 12:09
Jenn said:
P.S. Especially amusing to me is that my parents basically never told me things that weren't true--any fictional characters of my childhood I got from friends--but were excellent at playing along when it suited their needs.
Posted on February 3, 2009 12:11
Bella said:
My friend emailed me a link to a free site that has a publication on losing the binky (it makes money by advertisements). I have not tried it yet because my son is only 6 months old, but I think I will try the method out when he is around 1. It is www.bye-bye-binky.com for anyone who is interrested. If you do, let me know your thoughts....Bella
Posted on February 6, 2009 18:56
rachel-asouthernfairytale said:
I know so many people who can use this help!!! Great article and awesome comments, too.
Posted on February 18, 2009 17:38
peapodsquadmom said:
we talked it up for about a week so they (triplets...only two of whom had pacis) knew what was happening. we told them that since they were getting to be such big boy/girl, we needed to give their pacis to new little babies. we promised a big kid trip in return. when the big day came, i got a pretty little gift box and they each dropped their collection into the box and said "bye-bye." they were actually fine. i, however, was a mess. it was the final vestige of their infancy and it killed me to see it go.
Posted on March 4, 2009 22:45