Operation Bye, Bye Binky :: Day 1

So, I have been doing a lot of reading lately about when is the right time to wean your child from the pacifier. The thing that stood out the most to me was doing it cold turkey (we were already down to naps and bedtime) and that 15 to 18 months was a good age to do it. One article I read said to introduce a "lovey" about a month before you try to do it so that when you take away the pacifier your child has something else to use for comfort. Well we have been putting one of Kaleb's stuffed animals in bed with him for a while now, but he just didn't seem to care for it. We noticed about the same time he was having problems going to sleep. We took away the stuffed animal last week because we thought he was in there playing with it instead of going to sleep. That theory rang true because once we took it away, he went back to falling to sleep.

I had decided the night that I did it would have to be a night when Roland was working. He just doesn't have the patience to listen to crying, knowing we could just go give him his pacifier and that would end it. So today when Roland told me he was going to work, I thought, why not try it? I could tell Kaleb was tired because he had been whining and yawning a lot so I figured, well if any night is the night, it's tonight!

So, I did bedtime routine like normal and the saddest little face looked up at me when I laid him in his bed without his binky. He looked over at his armoire (we keep his binky's in a basket in there) and started pointing and whining. Mommy said the usual night night and exited. Step 1 was complete. So, the crying began. At first, I just sat on the couch with the monitor on listening to him. He would cry for about a minute then whimper then go back to crying. The saddest part was when he would cry "maaaamaaaa" because he NEVER says mama. I knew he was crying for me and my heart was breaking. But I promised myself I would wait 45 minutes and see what happened. So I decided I couldn't just sit there listening and I went and got on the computer. All of the sudden I realized something...I didn't hear any crying! I went to listen to the monitor and he was cooing like he does every night when he is going to sleep.

So, I put him down at 6:55 (his bedtime is about 7, but I figured a little earlier start couldn't hurt when I knew there was going to be crying), and he was asleep by 7:25!! I seriously feel like I just won a medal! This is why I am a stay at home mom. Some days are just lazy days, just like today, but I must be doing something right. My goal was to have him off of his binky by eighteen months, and he will be sixteen months on the 30th. I know this is just the first night, and nap time tomorrow should be interesting because I didn't do it at nap time today, but after this, I am very optimistic! Kaleb will definitely be getting a peice of cake tomorrow for a job well done!

“Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is pure love.” -Mildred B. Vermont