Well, after fighting it for a while, we did it. We took the plunge and decided to start trying to "wean" Ivy of her pacifier (paci as we call it). Months ago, we had decided to only let her have it during sleep times - that was a good idea as her vocabulary exploded at the same time so she quickly became the chatter box! She knew we couldn't understand her as well with the paci in her mouth so it wasn't a hard transition for her. Well, I was a little "flexible" with the rules and she was getting it more and more in the car. Hey, it makes her less demanding in the car. I don't have to hear "Mommy, fish book." Or "Mommy, Elmo song." Or "Mommy, water." So anyway, after a talk with Richard's cousin-in-law (thanks Graeme!) we decided that we should give it a try. The first night wasn't great - at all! She cried before bed, I tried to tell her what a big girl she was. She actually told me "No big girl!" which made me feel bad. So after about 20 minutes of sadness, she calmed down enough for me to turn off the light and exit her room. She went about 10 more minutes of crying spells until finally she was just sobbing continuously. So we gave in...
She wasn't allowed to have her paci all day yesterday except at nap time (I needed the 2 hour break!) and then at bed time, I offered her the "broken" paci (it has the very tip snipped off). She started to cry again, but this time with less ferocity. We finished our normal bedtime routine. As I lay her in her crib, she says, "paci" in the smallest voice. I again offered her the broken paci. She again starts to cry. I quickly start reminding her of all the ways that she is a big girl. She has pooped in the potty twice (too much info, I know), she pee-pees in the potty all the time, she wears pig tails, she goes up and down the stairs all by herself - those are all things that big girls do! For some reason that seemed to work! She was quiet and calm. I told her to hug her blankies, put them over her eyes, and she replied back with a quiet "Okay..." I kissed her goodnight, told her I loved her and that I'd be back in the morning. Again another "Okay." and out of the room I went. That was it. She talked for a while. Played with her hair on and off. Put the blankies over her face. But no crying. And no asking for her paci! She did wake up at about 1:30 but never asked for her paci. I went up to her room to check on her and after I gave her both blankies and tucked her back in, she fell back asleep. Still no paci request!!
So here I am, it is 6:45 AM the next morning. Ivy is wide awake watching Yo Gabba Gabba while laying in my bed. She woke up at 6:15, never asked for her paci, and has been talking non-stop! So we made it! I'm sure we'll both be exhausted by the end of the day, but that's okay. Hopefully that will make tonight even easier - or it will make it harder because she will be too tired... Let's hope it's the first option...
