Let's hear it for the Boy!!

Before

So, it's official.  Andrew has given up his pacifier..... with some gentle pushing.  I have to admit that he used it much longer than the other two and I had NO desire to take it away.  I knew it was going to be hard.  I knew he would fuss and whine and cry and I honestly wasn't sure I could handle it.  I have felt more than a little overwhelmed lately so thrusting myself into the pit of paci withdrawal was not on my top 10 list of things to try that week! 

  Hannah only took hers until she was about 5 months old and gave it up on her own after a cold prevented her from being able to suck and breathe at the same time!!  She never wanted it back. Okay, that was EASY.  

  Ethan was much more attached to his "pootie" (don't ask..... his dad called it that once and it stuck) and he could usually be found with one in his mouth and one in each hand.  But he, like his sister,  decided on his own at around 18 months that he was done.  And so he was.  EASY

Andrew, oh Andrew.  So far, in my experience with Andrew I have come to realize that he doesn't do "easy".   He is extremely stubborn, persistent, and doesn't take "no" for an answer.  So why should I assume this would be any different?   

A couple of months age he began chewing holes in the pacifiers and Kris told him that after all of the paci's in the house were gone we were not buying anymore.  Andrew didn't really react to this declaration, as I'm quite sure he had no idea what his Dad was telling him. But I, on the other hand, was fuh-reakin' out on the inside.  I had already tried asking Andrew if we could throw his paci's away or give them to a baby that needed them and he was NOT down with that.  If he didn't know where one was at all times he would whimper like a little puppy so I had a pretty good idea what I was in for when that last paci got lost, chewed up or left somewhere.  NO. THANK. YOU.

But, last week my little boy did something that I have been waiting for him to do for well over a year.  He talked.  I mean more than his usual 10 word vacabulary.  He was repeating every word he heard and was asking for things by name.  It was music to my ears and it was then that I realized that it was time.   I wanted us to be able to go somewhere without having to hunt for a paci before we could leave the house.  I was sick of having to pick paci's up off of the floor at the grocery store and out from under the table at restaurants.  I was tired of being a slave to a pacifier!  

So, last Thursday morning I pumped myself up for what torture was to come. I had it all planned out in my head.  Every time he put one down I would secretly come right behind him and pick it up and put it in a secret location the cabinet.  Eventually, putting away the last pacifier.  So, I set my plan into motion.  By noon I had put away 7, yes SEVEN, pacifiers.  By 1:oo the last paci had been put away ..... and he definitely noticed.  He was looking under things, in things and around thing in hopes of finding a straggler.  I was scared because it was nearing time to go pick up Hannah and Ethan and car rides equalled paci time for Andrew.  I was dreading 3:00!  But it came anyway and to my surprise he was fine.  He took his juice with him and eventually fell asleep!!  Afternoon came and went with only a couple of whimpers and a brief rummage through the trashcan in a desperate search for a paci.  He kept coming to me pointing at his mouth (his way of asking for one) and I told him that I didn't know where any were and he would walk off.  At bedtime he looked a little anxious so I layed on the floor next to his bed and he was out within 2 minutes. Every day since has been a breeze.  He has completely stopped asking and looking for one.  It has been wonderful and feels so feeing to be able to go places without "it"  I love seeing Andrew's whole face and seeing his little mouth move when he says all of his new words!  And I have to admit, it was EASY!!!

After