Deliverance
One of the many, many things that I foreswore ever doing as a parent, before becoming a parent, was giving my child a pacifier. I didn't really have any good reason, other than disliking the look of them, but still, I'd decided: my child would not have some silicone dummy stuck to her face.
That noble intention was revised about 24 hours after Wonderbaby arrived. I wish that I could say that it was because the lactation consultant told us that it would help with her sucking reflex or because the nurse said that soothers were understood to reduce the risk of SIDS - and they did indeed say these things, which I later dutifully repeated to anyone who looked at me twice when I popped a soother in Wonderbaby's mouth - but that wouldn't, strictly speaking, be true. Those statements provided good justifications for the soother, but really? I padded down the hallway of the maternity ward to the tuck shop on the second day of Wonderbaby's life and bought six soothers to stop the screaming that was becoming the hallmark of any efforts to get her to sleep. To put a cork in it, as it were.
And it worked, brilliantly. For months thereafter Her Bad Father and I would, when rallying our resources to get Wonderbaby to nap or settle down for the night, casually remind each other to cork her. And, thus corked (and soothed and swaddled), she would settle down, and even if she wasn't so reliable with staying down for those daytime naps, she would always happily suck away for at least six hours of sleep at night. (I, of course, would lay awake all night, reassured by the happy sucking noises, but nonetheless on alert for the moment that a) the sucking stopped, or b) the sucking was replaced by a hungry cry.)
That she loved what came to be called her Soovy was clear early on. Once she was able to crawl, and later walk, she would advance upon unsuspecting children and snatch their pacifiers for herself (she usually imposed a swap - I would say negotiate, but Wonderbaby doesn't negotiate - grabbing theirs and offering hers in return. Occasionally, if she was lacking a Soovy, she would simply appropriate one from another child, which was cause for much embarassment, but she would always return it when asked and when offered another in its stead. I did, needless to say, keep a stock of soovies with me at all times.) So it was that we were vigilant against the development of too extreme an attachment. We tried to reserve the Soovy for bedtime and naptime (such as it was) and emergencies, and at earliest opportunity we began suggesting to Wonderbaby that Soovy (along with Toadstool, nee Phallic Lovey) be left in bed in the morning and after naps and for a time she was entirely co-operative.
Then she started part-time daycare, and all was lost. It's a long story, and one that I'm not up to writing about, but Wonderbaby didn't immediately take to daycare. We went through gut-wrenching morning after gut-wrenching morning of child abandonment as we waited for her to adapt and, as we struggled through that process, it seemed to me too cruel to demand that she - abandoned by her sorry excuse for a mother - should be bereft of her loveys. So she was permitted to keep Soovy and Toadstool with her every morning.
And she has not let go of them since.
They're like crack to her now, in a way that they never were before. Deprived of them for any amount of time, she will demand to know where they are (Where Toadstool? Where Soovy? SOOVYTOADSTOOL!!!) If we leave them at home, to, say, venture into public without our child clutching an oversized stuffed phallus and chomping on a soother, she will invariably cry and demand that we return home to fetch them (Home. HOME. SOOVYTOADSTOOLHOME!) (we do not, as a matter of course, give in to her demands. But grocery shopping has suddenly become very, very difficult.)
I'm not sure whether to be concerned about this or not. She's not yet 22 months old, and is, I think, entitled to childish attachments. I don't want to impose my prejudices and aesthetic judgments on her - I don't like the look of the Soovy, I don't like that she's so attached to it, and I would prefer that she not drag a giant stuffed phallus around with her, but aren't those my problems? (Problems, not incidentally, that I created myself. I didn't disdain the Soovy when it helped her suckling reflex and facilitated sleep. And I thought that the phallus - sorry, Toadstool - was funny at first.) There's plenty of time in our shared future for me to insist that she lose this or that offensive accessory, that she not dare walk our front door with whatever thing attached to her face, that she follow my rules under my roof, etc, etc. She's not even two years old. Shouldn't I cut her some slack?
So it is that I've decided (unilaterally; Her Bad Father still wants to fight the good fight against all things Soovy) to let it go. She can have her Soovy, for now.
But goddamn if I'm not going to have fun with it:
Portrait of Wonderbaby with upside-down custom hillbilly Soovy. Preshus.
posted by Her Bad Mother @ Thursday, September 06, 2007
87 Comments:
Haha. Love that hillbilly Soovy. We called them binkies in our house. Whenever I considered trying to displace the ever present pacifier, some family trauma happened like a new baby brother or another baby brother, moving 2 hours away from our first home, or various things. I had a blankie until I was 6, who was I to judge? They got them in the car, in bed, after nap cranky wake up time and at times of greater than normal distress. I am happy to say that at the ages of 16 and 18 the pacifiers are gone.
It was called 'pacy' at my house.
I've been reading about that for a while as Ryan was 4 years old when he stopped using it.
The doctor told them they get attached to the pacy and they give them up when they're 'ready'. Some kids are ready earlier than others.
(the day he gave it up we had a special dinner for him coz he was a BIG BOY who gave up his pacy. he hasnt asked for it since...)
My son is a little over 3. He is still quite addicted to his now-discontinued purple soother. It drives me crazy for the same reason. He looks a little ridiculous. (not to imply WB looks ridiculous. I just mean soothers in general)
BUT
He's growing out of it. He really is quite content to have it for naps (if one is taken/quiet time if not) and bedtime. In fact, I have found that for my child who does not feel the need to sleep, the lure of the soother is a remarkable way to get him to bed.
Maybe this is bad parenting, but I say use it as a bribe. And by all means if she's having a rough time at daycare let her have it. She's not even 2. If she was 6 then it would be a different story. There are much bigger battles, I think.
And, I spoke to my doctor and dentist about the soother issue.
Both agreed that 4 is a good age to give it up for both speech and dental reasons.
We've been toilet training and Matt feels like a big boy now, and has actually been saying he doesn't need his soother since he's a big boy. It will happen.
That's probably the most hysterical paci I've ever seen. We have identical twins - one doesn't much care for it while the other won't let it go. This baby searches under cribs and around chairs for what is called his "doice." When found, into his mouth it goes.
We started out with the intention of waiting on the pacifier until breastfeeding was well established. We gave up on our third night home. But he wouldn't take it! Never liked pacifiers (or bottles, for that matter). At least he eventually discovered his thumb. He's 4 now and I can tell his level of distress/exhaustion by whether or not he's sucking on it during the day. Still not ready to fight that in any organized manner.
I am grateful for the outside intervention our caregiver gave when my son was 6 months old. She said to start weaning him NOW and we did and by 8 mos, it was a nighttime habit and by 10 mos, it was gone.
I'll be honest and admit it bothers me to see children old enough to walk with pacifiers, but as you said, that's my problem b/c of the perceptions I have. As a parent, we all do what we can and fight the battles as our energy levels allow. We would rather know our child is happy and if that means carrying around a fluffy phallus or two, so be it.
Niiiiiice. We call ours 'suck suck' and Munchkin didn't get hooked until she was 9 months old. They only let her have at naptime at daycare (along with doudou, her comfort diaper -- how's that for an abject aesthetic failure?).
Anyhow. Yeah, she'll get over it, but what's the harm for right now? Especially since she's having a tough transition to daycare?
ROFLMAO at the hillbilly soovy!
FWIW, my son had a "pacy" that was a specialty type for preemies. Had a giant friggin' duck attached to it. He *always* had that thing in his mouth (well, once he got off the ventilator but that's a long story...). One day, around the age of 2, Nik simply tossed Ducky over the side of his crib and has never looked back! So there's hope that WB will simply give it up on her own...maybe.
You're on your own with Toadstool! (Snorts w/laughter...)
hurray for soovies!
we loved pacifiers around here (well the kids did). i felt really weird about them with my oldest and took it away from her at 18 months. i felt very Righteous and like a Good Mommy for do it before she was too big. but she needed it and had a horrible time and began biting and sucking on other things. I say let her have it (because by advice is so sage and smart, yeah right!)--it will pass and someday you'll wonder where they all went.
we have a binky-will is almost 2 and a 1/2 and more attached then ever. he either wants it in his mouth or nearby just in case, and if he is tired, whiney, relaxing or hurt it is the first thing he wants. my pede told me at his two year check up that i was already a few months late getting rid of it, and that it was affecting his teeth, except his teeth look just like his fathers (and i told the pede that). we are having a new baby in about two and half weeks, we are moving his bedroom very shortly. i think these are good enough reasons to not take away a comfort object!
The "Paci Fairy" visited my house on the night of the kids' 2nd birthdays and took their pacis for babies being born who needed them more than my "big kids." In exchange, she left some small presents under their pillows. Worked like a charm.
I had this insane notion that if I gave Dawson a pacifier it would ruin all attempts at nursing. This is because my family and friends insisted it was true and as a very impressionable pregnant woman I believed it!
I later tried a pacifier when he was 2 weeks old because the crying was unbearable and I was tired of nursing all damn night. I thought of co-sleeping but again with the family poo-pooing that.
So Dawson never got attached to a nuk. But he sure as hell drags his favorite blanket everywhere he goes! That's his soother, I guess.
My dad calls them "plugs" — for obvious reasons.
Our oldest clung to her "mee-mee" (bedtime, mainly) until she was nearly three.
Which is when the Mee-Mee Fairy arrived one night to take all the mee-mees so they could be distributed to babies who needed mee-mees.
In return, the Mee-Mee Fairy left behind a pair of hot-pink boots.
Daughter grieved for one day.
Then she decided a new pair of shoes can take away just about any sting.
I showed the hillbilly Soovy photo to my almost 3 year old and her reply, "Holy Choppers!"
I have a photo of WB and Pie engaging in exactly that soother-negotiation last July (on the one occasion when they met). As I recall, I think that Pie was lucky she had the clip attaching her soother to her shirt.
Pie isn't using them during the day - or, at least, she wasn't until this week (the transition back into day-care seems to have prompted a regression in this respect) - but I'm happy for her to keep using them at night for as long as she feels she needs to.
As my mother told me: "She won't be walking down the aisle at her wedding with a pacifier in her mouth". Wonderbaby will give up the goods when she is ready to!
Sucking helps neural development, it's a good thing.
My kid, of course, wants nothing to do with a pacifier.
He also doesn't sleep.
Marie Osmond said she weaned her kids off the pacy by trimming a bit off the tip each day. A dad at work (when I got to leave the freaking house and earn a paycheck) said they poked a hole in theirs - apparently when the air is let out it changes the satisfaction of the sucking.
And makes you feel all MacGyver and stuff.
I have to admit I was a little shocked when I saw the pic of WB outside the camper with a soother in her mouth, but only because you had never brought it up before.
I think you're right not to impose too many transitions on her at once.
And hey, I guarantee she won't leave for university with it.
You mothers know better than anyone how to take the kids off the soother or the bottle, but this is something that I learned from Super Nanny:
let's say we would like to replace the Soovy with Sippy Cup. We would need to create a Soovy/Sippy fairy. Have a little celebtration when the Fair comes to take away Soovy and bring the Sippy in a nicely wrapped package. (this way we know Soovy cannot come back!)
You could perhaps combine this with her 2nd birthday, so that she knows she is becoming a big girl and big girls lose the Soovy and take their sippy with them everywhere.
From what I have heard, the Soother is not very good when the child almost has a full set of teeth.
OK, your child sleeps with a phallic symbol and sucks all night long. There is just too much humor there.
My baby wouldn't take a pacifier, she preferred to scream. It wasn't much fun when she was an infant, but then we never had to deal with the weening part of it, either.
Me knows nuthin bout the English language but this might be the one item that has the most words associated with it.
We took the label Nuk combined with my mother's name for it pippy and tried to get the girls to have a nippy. They had no interest until they saw their cool daycare friends all had one. Then Sooshas became all the rage. Peer pressure starts early.
Wonderbaby represent! So cute.
Oh, she's going to get you for that one. Maybe not now, but when she's, say, 17??
No comment on the loveys from this mother of a 5-yr-old thumbsucker and a 2.5-yr-old binky man. But that last picture...it's like Precious Moments on crack (or maybe meth is more appropriate).
My first two loved their soothers ("soo-soo's" at our house) and, oh, how I tried to get #3 to take one! She refused. At the time I felt desperate, but now I am thankful that I never have to do the pocket-patting-checking-every-damn-crevice-in-the-diaper-bag-oh-my-god-we-forgot-the-freakin'-soother! panic dance when we aren't at home.
Oh, and when it does come time to say goodbye to the soother? Let's say WB is three and decides on her own that she doesn't want to take it to a sleepover at Grandmas. So you throw it in the garbage while she's gone, because she seems to over it. When she comes home and asks after her soother, don't actually tell her that you threw it in the garbage, whilst your husband looks on, incredulous at your inept mothering. Because your daugher will be devestated and cry about the soother every time she thinks about it. For months.
Just a little tip from me to you.
Wonderbaby is this close to hillbilly world domination!
I hated the sight of the pacifier, and was justly rewarded by a child that would NOT take one, no matter how hard I tried. After running through every damn type of soother, she eventually took to one. For exactly 10 days. Just enough time for me to run out and stock up, only to have her give it up. Precocious four-month old.
Eventually I found out, to my horror, that eschewing the pacifier also left mommy without an easy method of soothing when necessary. Oops!
KayTar has the Bedtime Brigade. Gee (the blanket she can not let out of her sight), Dolly, and Bunny. Gee is a requirement, Dolly and Bunny are called upon at specific times, but always needed at bedtime. Gee has been a life long attachement, Dolly and Bunny were added in the last 6 months. She needs the attachments and comforts, and we allow it. She has gone through so much, doctors, tests, and the like, and handled them so wonderfully, that I don't mind the loveys at all. Anything for her, I'm afraid. Oh, and she's on the bottle...but we aren't fighting that one for medical reasons.
All of that is to say, it is up to you. At 22 months, it surely won't hurt to allow her those comforts.
This post was great, but I snorted, audibly with the bucktooth binky....oh lordy
Well, I said the same thing. Pre-Pubescent One sucked his thumb, so it was non-issue. Short of duct taping his hand to his hip, there wasn't really anything I could do to stop it. But Diminutive One...oy. He had so many issues...severe reflux, a hole in his heart...and didn't sleep well. A pacifier helped him, and thus, it helped me. When he got to be a toddler and I realized he was "different", there were just too many other battles to fight, and I learned quickly to picky my battles carefully. He ended up having a pacifier until he was 5, although around three we prohibited it's use except for bedtime.
It was one of the things that taught me to never say never when it comes to parenting. Humbling, it was.
When my Princess was an early, colicky infant, she would try to sooth herself by sucking her thumb. Her neuro system was not mature enough and she would scream in vain trying to find her damn thumb. So we got her a Bink. She LOVED her Bink. As she got older, I made a rule that the Bink was only for naptime, bedtime and car-time. She was fine with it. When she was 2, I explained that she was a big girl and needed to throw her Bink away. I thought she was ready. She also seemed fine with that-------until I went into her room later that night and she was sucking her thumb! Sound asleep. For the first time in 23.5 months! She sucked her thumb until she was 8.
Let Wonderbaby keep the Soovy a bit longer.
Yet another irony of childhood and time. Now, out of sheer desparation, we try and soothe and silence. Later on, in different contexts and in other situations, the "Toadstool and Soovy" of life will do the same.
Ha - that last photo was like the comedic rim shot on the snare drum: Ba-dum-bump.
But let's just say: if the addiction persists, Bossy recommends Lindsay Lohan's Treatment Center.
We do what we've got to do.
(Love the name Soovy. And I honestly don't see anything wrong with the Toadstool.)
Ah, we recently had the "tete battle royal" in our house. I was perfectly o.k. with leaving him with his pacifier, but his teeth were beginning to looked all effed up because of it, and it was visions of expensive orthodontic bills that got me to move on it. He's still allowed to use it at bedtime, though.
And the funny thing is, for us, that we never used a pacifier on him until he was about 15 months old. It just never occurred to us (seriously, and I know. We're idiots). All those months of fighting sleep probably would have gone much more smoothly.
Yep I could have written this, almost verbatim. Although it's "binkie" and not scoovy. Every night before bed "binkie/baba?" which became binkie/bottle which now is just binkies. Lots of them four or so.
Sigh.
Em loved her "Mine" -she would run with one in her mouth and one in each hand....
We called it being "Binky rich!"
At Four we said good bye to the last of the mines, when she was down to them at night only.
I always said to child care parents that no one goes to college with a binky in their mouth, so don't sweat this stuff. Your sleep is FAR more precious.
I found that BY two - and not a minute earlier - both of my older kids were completely cheerful about giving up their soothers. It ended up not being as hard as we feared.
The Baby never took a soother, and MY GOD we wanted her to.
In our house they were "plugs" for the literal effort of plugging that gaping hole. Rosebud will be four in a week and she just gave hers up last week (cold turkey and her idea) on our trip. They were only in her room for sleeping, but still she is almost four!
She would rub her nose with them mostly and if she only had one she never sucked only rubbed. With Papoosie Girl we took them away at about 2 1/2 cold turkey and she was fine. When we tried that with Rosebud she practically stopped eating and sleeping.
Even if it was our dirty little secret and mildly embarrassing it brought her comfort and that is all that mattered.
WonderBaby is fine and I say let her have them...trust me I didn't see one kid in JK sucking on one!
Hey with a soother like that she'd totally fit in with my British relatives... some with dental work reminiscent of the "big book of British smiles" variety. She's adorable!
the paci saved my life, thrice over. i swear, i wouldn't have survived those first few weeks and months without it.
one of these days we'll get around to taking Isabella's away. i just don't have the heart right now...
We had buppy (soovy) and becky (blanket). We lost becky on a bullet train in Japan, and at 7, my son has never let me forget it. The buppies just magically started disappearing everytime one fell on the floor (into the magic trashcan) at around 2 1/2.
Just show WB that photo when she's 3 and wants to be a princess. That should break her of the soovy habit.
I.could.not.refuse.that.face.ANYTHING.
Hysterical. That should be the shot on her 16th birthday party invites.
I have yet to break Boo's binky habit and it, too, seems to be getting stronger rather than weaker. Maybe a few hillbilly binkies will do the trick.
Three. She has until three. How 'bout it?
I too tried to keep my daughter off the pacifier until breastfeeding was well established. I too threw in the towel and did whatever was necessary to calm her. She took to the pacifier right away, which was a huge relief to me as I didn't want to become a human pacifier. Breastfeeding was still hard work, but I don't think the pacifier interfered. Nothing was easy with my P-chan, and still isn't, so I'm not trying to brag when I say she weaned herself at 10 mos. I think the trick was that I just never bought a bigger size - we kept the original size 0.
Sorry - I didn't finish before I accidentally hit enter. Anyway, I was cheap and lazy and never got a bigger size pacifier and my daughter just quit using it on her own. In fact, she throws it if I try giving it to her. But, we are still co-sleeping, and waking up every 2 hours for comfort nursing, so it's not all roses....
I promised Cordy a pony if she would just take the damn pacifier as a baby. Didn't work. The offer still stands for Mira, too, but she is also uninterested. Maybe I need to offer a car when she's 16?
You're right - she's not even two yet, so I wouldn't worry about it. Work on it once she's a little older and better understands altruism. Then you can ask her to give it up so you can give her soovys to the babies who need them.
Her eyes look so forlorn, and yet the teeth, so dang hilarious!
LOL at the hillbilly Soovy!
I was just like you - no no no to the pacifiers. Later, when Preston was born and wouldn't take one like his big brother? PANIC! :-)
I wanted Matt to get rid of his when he was 2ish. For the record, with daycare, sleep issues and a new little brother coming, it became a non-issue. In due time, I figured.
A few months ago,(he just turned 4, btw) the "last" paci was lost. Oddly, he never looked back. He had a few minutes here and there where he wondered where it was, but mostly, he was just over it.
I attempted the Paci Fairy thing too - Matt was an emotional wreck just talking about it, so I dropped it. They seem to get more addicted for a while and then suddenly, it's not as big of a deal anymore.
As for the lovey of my son? Well, that is another story.
I must find one of those soovys. That is hilarious.
Poor WB.
My daughter loves her Binky. She sleeps with 6 of them in the crib, in the hopes that one might still be in arms reach if she wakes up really early. I wasn't going to give her one as per the breastfeeding advice I had gotten. But we did, and I loved the binky as much as she. I've thought about when we will end the binky affair, but I can't do it. In a world that must seem huge and sometimes scary, it gives her comfort. I can't deny her that. She carries around and sleeps with a beanie kitty, not a phallic lovey...however, I really do see the humor in it and almost wish kitty was a little bit funnier.
Lisa B - it was acquired from a shop in Yorkville, the name of which escapes me (across from the Starbucks at the corner of Bay, more or less). Billy Bob Pacifiers, I think the product is called.
Dude, McH and I are having the same battle. I say, whatever makes her happy. He's trying to limit to nap and bed. They'll give them up when they're ready. (WB will give hers up sooner once she catches a look of herself in a mirror ;)
Man, that hillbilly soother freaks me out.
I found a soother on the web and was going to send it to WB - it said "bad to the bone" on it.
Personally, I feel that if you try to force her to give it up, it will only make her want it more. She will outgrow it.
I get looks from others when the Boy sucks his thumb. I just let it go. It's something he needs, and he will stop in his own time.
Here's the main thing. WB has something other than your nekkid breast that soothes her in public. Oh what I would have given for that with my sweet Pumpkin. I actually flew from Dallas to Norfolk (3.5 hours) with my entire right breast exposed (in the very last row of the plane - you know the row where everyone waits for the lavatory to empty - because generally the loud engine noise would soothe said Pumpkin) in the middle seat between two unknown men. When the Pumpkin was an few days short of two years old I had some unexpected medical tests that necessitated the end of breastfeeding for 36 hours. I backslid a few times, the kid was a FIEND, but now he has a blankie and we don't leave home without it. On the other hand, I get to cover up my breasts. (the Pumpkin's 21 year old brother sucked his thumb until he was seven and a couple of years of braces at the same time that all his friends had them fixed it up just fine.) Let WB keep her lovie (although maybe you could find a new set of the rings for the TOADSTOOL on Ebay just for public purposes - I'll probably email you some links later, I LOVE to be helpful) that is why the universe has orthodontists. At least the Toadstool doesn't sing or hum or something if you put in batteries...
my kid just turned three and won't give up the sucker.
who's the sucker now, i think.
Ha! I featured those on Drool.icio.us and got reamed for making fun of people who don't have access to dental care. WTF?
I say have fun with it - those things are great and it's not like she'll be using it till she's 16 or anything.
Baby 1: Horrified by pacifier. Refused to use it.
Baby 2: After a week, gave him a pacifier. Horrified by the fact that my baby had a handle on his face. Then I loved it. Took it away at 6 months.
Baby 3: Gave him a pacifier almost immediately. Let him have it for a year.
You do what you have to do. Nothing wrong with a pacifier. And 22 months is pretty young. If it's comforting, good for her.
Love the last one. Leah never took to a pacifier. She did have one for the first few months. Then she found it. The thumb. And I can't break her of it. She gets tired and BAM. It goes in the mouth.
And I am dying thinking about the looks you must get from nonparents in the stores with Wonderbaby carrying around the plush penis LOL.
Well that's the cutest thing ever, there is nothing that makes a cute child cuter than over exaggerated hillbilly teeth.
Ahh, the binkie dilemma.
I have to admit. I'm one of those who cringe slightly when I see mobile children with binkies stuck in their mouths. It just looks so wrong to me.
We were advised by the midwives (surprisingly unanimous on this one) that if we were going to use them, only for the first 3 months, and then cut them off because they'll never miss them at that point. So we did, and it worked.
I wish you luck in breaking the habit.... although I do love that last picture!
Oh My God!!!! I am cracking up over here...didn't see that picture coming
*LOL*
You know, my middle child had her "binkies" until she was three. I used to get all sorts of looks, and some of my family members felt it was their job to remind me that my child was too old for her pacifier. I ignored their advice because I, like you, feel that it is perfectly healthy for a child to have an attachment. They DO give it up. The reason we transitioned her out of her pacifier by 3, was to protect her teeth. And I can tell you, she is almost 6 now, with beautiful teeth and no pacifer or other object in sight. She is confident and a secure little person.
I wouldn't sweat it too much.
In the early days of Chicky's life we would beg her to take a pacifier (have you ever begged a newborn? thought so) if only to give my poor breasts a break. But she was having nothing to do with it. Now we don't have to deal with getting her to give it up, but those early days would have been so much easier with one.
I say let her have it. She's a smart girl, she'll tell you when she's ready.
When my youngest son was 3 he developed an attachment to a small kitchen plunger. It was a love affair no one understood. He took it with him everywhere...preschool, the grocery store, grandmas house (who, incidentally found this the most amusing.) We were always prepared for any kind of impromptu sewage emergency, but honestly, one never arose. He is over the plunger now...at age 6...but still has an affection for them that no one understands.
Hysterical picture!
My son's pediatrician told me that he needed to learn to self-soothe at 6 weeks. Sh#t! I'm in my 30's and can't self-soothe... that's why we have art and literature and music and liquor. So the Soovy and the Toadstool? I say they stay. :)
I had a mostly unhappy, hard-to-soothe infant. Before she was born, I had no plans to introduce a dummy. It took us 3-4 weeks after she was born to change our minds and see it as the holy grail. Sure, she became addicted, but it did help life and save our sanity. (It's called NukNuk in our house, after the brand name.)Around the age of 2, we tried (not always successfully, but it was easier than we expected) to limit its use to bedtime and long car trips. She is 4 now and still uses it to fall asleep, but she spits out soon after. Her dentist expresses mild concern, but I think it's mostly harmless and, in my house, it saved lives. I say: don't fight the Soovy and make a huge issue of it, but try to find ways, if you can, to limit its use.
I lost the pacifier battle too, although it took a month for me to give in to the inevitable.
Now I keep telling myself that we'll be getting rid of it when Myles is old enough to self soothe. I'm living in fantasyland, aren't I?
We called them a mimi. We were around 2 years old, we got to put the mimi under our pillow one night and the mimi fairy came and left us a toy on the end of the bed and the mimi was gone. I think it helped my parents because when we got tired of the toy and asked for the mimi, they could say they were sorry, but the mimi fairy took it. I wanted to use that on my kid, but she is a finger sucker and never wanted the mimi. I wished for the plug some nights though.
That is hilarious. At least the giant phallus isn't the one she wants to have sticking out of her mouth. That would be troublesome.
Jane, Pinks & Blues Girls
P&B - would it disturb you if I told you that Toadstool - aka the Phallus - is sometimes hanging out of her mouth? She sometimes likes to chew on the long end.
Yeah, I know. Nice.
I LOVE that last photo. Laughed out loud and actually spit some of my soda onto my screen. I love those big, blue eyes. And that Soovy. AWESOME.
I gave into the sucky once I gave up on getting a latch. Before that, I had avoided anything that might invoke the dreaded nipple confusion. But I did enjoy her having it, and once she went to daycare, she had it for naps and bedtime, but it was there if she needed it for comfort at other times. She didn't need it much, and they kept it out of reach unless she needed it. Then, gradually, they stopped giving it to her for naps. A little while later, we started "forgetting" it at bedtime, and after two days, she didn't even ask. done. if it had been harder, I may have let her keep it a bit longer, but she was about 2.5 when I took away the bedtime sucky.
My daughter did not care for the "binkie". She used it a handful of times as an infant, then only as we went into Wal-Mart as a toddler (who can blame her?).
My son loved his "ginkie"
http://coolzebras.blogspot.com/2007/01/my-son-loves-his-ginkie.html
He gave it up fairly recently.
http://coolzebras.blogspot.com/2007/07/another-good-and-bad-day.html
But I have all sorts of things that I do my own wrong way!
http://coolzebras.blogspot.com/2006/06/confessions.html
Do things your own wrong way!
Oh, Catherine. I could've written this post (though not nearly as eloquently as you).
The binky was the first of many things on my Things I'll Never Do When I'm a Parent list. As in, 24 hours at home and with bleeding nipples, I put a cork in Henry.
He loves his "innnnkey" and we try to only allow him it for the crib (which is only for sleeping) and the car. And since we're rarely in the car (YAY city living!), it's mostly just at bed. And we say "Bye bye binky! See you at nap time" as he uncorks himself and pitches his Nuk to the mattress. He even waves.
But lately? He's been asking to go to his room, and we think he's sleepy and ready for a nap. Not so much. He'll go and have Binky Time for a half-hour, happy as a clam in the dark.
I was never going to do binks.
Then it came time to take them away. (Not for any reason more than I was judging myself)
I will avoid all binks next time around.
Oh, and I have all sorts of posts about the binky bye bye trauma. I'd be happy to share.
Soothers saved our sanity. I held out at first, because our initial trial with them interfered with Sacha's ability to nurse. But after his marathon nursing sessions that made my breasts raw and my husband seeing me wince everytime he latched on, we went for it. Now, Sacha is hooked. He's 1 now, and in NO rush to give up his suce. In fact, he likes to have one in his mouth and one in each hand for good measure. I'm not going to worry about it until he's 2...lol!
I hate pacifiers. Really hate them. Especially on 5 year olds in the mall.
That being said, The Happy Boy did have one - i needed it to preserve my sanity when he was 2 months old and crying all the time.
He was so attached to it. We eventually got him down to bedtime and naps. ANd then, when he was just over 2, he decided to give it up. Just like that.
So there is hope!
(never did give one to the baby boy, though. He just used me!)
1.) I think pacifier attachment is quite common at this age, and although WB's behavior is obviously annoying you at times, I don't think you should feel guilty about it. It's one of those things that sneaks up on you.
2.) Be thankful that she is attached to things you can one day take away.
My son refused all pacifiers and loveys as a baby, and instead chose to soothe himself by sucking on his right index finger.
As a matter of fact, I am convinced that his blurry ultrasound picture shows him sucking on that finger.
He used to do this eagerly whenever he was frightened or tired, and as a result, he developed a permanent callus on his finger, and he disdained to use it for pointing or picking things up with, even though he is right-handed, which means, of course, that he was constantly flipping people off.
He sucks on the finger less often these past several months, and he has gotten a bit better about using the index finger, but only through constant reminders.
He still does it now to get to sleep at night, and I've no way of stopping him, ever. I've tried putting soap on his finger to make it taste bitter; it doesn't work.
I can't chop his finger off, for heaven's sake.
At two and a half, Q hasn't given up his "pup" yet, but he only gets them at sleeptime. We keep them in the fridge, because he can't open the door and get to them. Chilly pacifiers, the world's latest fad.
My oldest gave his dummy up on his own at 3. I was fine with it. He needed it. He is 6 1/2 and still has "oral" issues -- he sucks his t-shirts, licks his fingers, chews his nails.
My youngest (almost 3) never needed a dummy like the older one. We took it away at 12 months and he wasn't bothered.
It is difficult because there is a bit of social stigma attatched. I say just do what works for you! She won't have it forever!
I'm sorta the pacifier.. and that attracts some criticism. HEck what's a parenting day without a little fear of society's ambiguous expectations?
There's 81 people above me who have shared their opinions, I'm sure. But I still thought I'd add mine in.
I'd let her keep it and don't say anything about it for awhile. My best friend, who's a nurse let her kids keep them until they were three and by then they were old enough to understand giving them up. At not yet two, WB wouldn't get it and it would be horrible for you.
In my pre-children days I'd internally tsk when I saw older toddlers running around with pacifiers. I swore my kids would never use them.
Well, yeah, you know how that goes. Mimi gave up the paci around 2 1/2, but sucks her thumb. We stopped giving Rosie the paci about 3 months ago -- went cold turkey at night (she wasn't using it at naptime, so we knew she could sleep without it). One night of hell, a second night of half-hearted protests, and she's fine.
So it's doable. But if you don't want to go that route, WB will surely give it up when she's ready.
My boys never really cared for pacifiers, but they loved their bottles. I let them drink out of the bottle till they were 3. Then the bottle fairy came and took it away. Then they switched to sippy cups and my older son was in third grade before he decided he didn't need his warm chocolate milk in the morning sippy cup. My younger son is 8 and just started 3rd grade, and he's still drinking from a sippy cup. Okay, the rubber stopper thingy is gone from the lid, but it's the best way for me to get a good serving of milk into him each day. It's not that he CAN'T drink from other cups, but since he still gets his milk in bed in the mornings, I'd rather he use the cup with the lid.
I'm an educated woman. I read child-rearing books, my older son is well-adjusted, well-behaved, in the gifted program, and kind to his classmates. Letting him have a bottle till he was three and a sippy cup till he was 8 did not hurt him one bit.
WB will give it up eventually. So for now, relax and let her have it since it seems she really needs it. Hey, I sleep with a stuffed dog and I'm 43. If I don't have the damned thing, I'm not getting any sleep that night. Substituting my husband just isn't the same.
What a picture! Wonder baby's eyes in that picture are so intent and almost sad, as if she knows what you are contemplating.
My 22 mo old has her attachements, "miniiiii" is blanky and she's got to have it. If I took her somewhere, I would make sure to take it in the car...just in case. I JUST broke her of the bottle recently. It was not nearly as bad as I thought. Hopefully this won't be so bad for you. ;)
I was from a non-binky family, and quite proud/releived that my first two kids 'found' a finger or thumb within hours of giving birth, that comforted them until, well, they quit sucking it.
But baby #3 was clueless about this, and I reluctantly introduced a dummy (I'm in UK, so...) at about 6 months of age. Heaven. He can have it as long as he wants. Though I hope by this time next year, just after his 2nd birthday, when we go home to a big family wedding, that he will have given it up. You know, just to save ME the hassle of disapproving family members. cause it's all about me, right?
I have a thumb sucker who will likely never be broken. Kinda karma since pre-baby I made fun of my husband for his lengthy thumb sucking career.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home