The Great Pacifier Break-Up

The great pacifier break-up.....question mark? 

We are on day four of being pacifier-free over here, and dare I say....it's going pretty great? 

Ever since his 18-month appointment, I've been worried that our pediatrician (who we actually totally love) would call the authorities on us because we were still letting him use his pacifier. Any day, I was sure a SWAT team would show up, carrying away our babies and confiscating all pacifiers on the premises. Then I remembered that they have food in their bellies, more toys and clothes than they need, and get about a billion kisses a day. Yeah, I'd say they're doing just fine. 

Anyway. We've been putting it off and putting it off because of one reason or another. Travel. The holidays. We enjoy our sleep. Etc. Etc. 

But, I decided that if he was fully capable of saying, "I want my pacifier" as clear as day, then chances were good that he was probably too old to be needing one. 

We thought about going the same route we did with S. With her, we decided to go the aviation route. After putting her down for a nap, sometime before her second birthday, I found myself blurting out, "No more pacifier! It's gone. It's somewhere on a plane in the sky." (This was after I had cut off the tops of her pacifiers...didn't work. She would either keep sucking on them or throw a huge monster fit.) She looked at me like I had lost my mind. Like, "What on EARTH is my pacifier doing on a plane, woman?!" Good question. Good question. 

So, naturally, for days S had been asking, "When is Pato's pacifier going to go on a plane?" Like the little mommy that she is. 

Then, on Monday, I decided it was time. Pato has been saying he's a big boy lately, so I thought the "big boy" angle was the ticket. 

All morning I kept telling him what a big boy he was. And I reminded him repeatedly that pacifiers were for babies. He kept saying, "Yup!" 

So when I went to put him down for his nap I said, "Okay, Pato! No more pacifiers! Because pacifiers are for babies, right?" "Yup!" 

Annnnnnd.....that was that. Hasn't asked for it since.

*****

Just you watch. He's going to magically learn how to find this entry, learn to read, and will decide to start screaming for his pacifier just to spite us. 

Also. He's less of a baby now. Well, not at all a baby. 

That makes me the tiniest bit sad.