We were getting ready for church on Sunday. I feel like Jackson looks like such a big boy, except for the paci.
Ok, let me tell you something. I. LOVE. THE. PACI. Jackson has taken a paci from day one. I think he would have taken it while in the womb, if possible (instead he used my hip bone). He rarely uses it anytime, other than bedtime. But it is definitely a comfort for him.
But the time has come (or is coming) for us to get rid of the paci. I dont want him to be 2 and have a paci (not that there is anything wrong with a 2 year old having a paci, I just want Jackson to be done before then). However, with the holidays coming, and with us traveling, I dont want to take it away until after the holidays. So I am thinking after Christmas, bye bye paci.
But here is our other predicament... we are wanting Jackson to start sleeping in a toddler bed. Craig and I are discussing our options.. feel free to weigh in. Here are the options we have discussed:
1. Take away the paci and move to the toddler bed all at one time. Transition everything at once.
2. Move to toddler bed, and let him have his paci, since it is a comfort, maybe it will make the transition to the toddler bed easier. Once adjusted, take away the paci.
3. Take away the paci, get used to sleeping without the comfort of it, and then move to the toddler bed.
As you consider your advice that you want to offer, I leave you with cutest kid with a paci. I love him.
February
4 weeks ago
8 comments:
So stinkin cute! I'd do them separately, and definitely wait until after the holidays...January is a great time to start new things. ;) I don't think it really matters which comes first. I think the bed would be my first choice - good call on the paci helping that process. Good luck! With Brice, I just picked a day (happened to be his 2nd birthday) to just quit using the paci, and we just never got it back out. By then, he was only using it during naps/bedtime, and I think we had even phased out naptime. I don't remember it being terrible. You'll do great, and just remember, he won't go to kindergarten w/ a paci (or at least, please don't let him. :))
Oh, I seriously hate to be the first commenter, but I may not get back to blog reading for awhile because we are in full potty-training mode here! ;o)
My choice would be #3. Get rid of the paci while he is still contained in the crib and can cry it out safely.
I would also like to interject that you and Craig are wonderful parents and have been given such a gift through Jackson. God has and will continue to give you all that you need to teach and train him in the way he is to go. I have every confidence that no matter how you choose to handle this one, you will all survive and be the wiser!
And as I'm typing, I see I am no longer the first responder... WHEW!
I agree, do them separately. Just make the toddler bed switch. There will never be a good time, just do it. It will take a few days, or maybe none (Jack has NEVER climbed out of bed). And I say go with Super Nanny on the paci. Have him gather up all the paci's and put them in an envelope to mail to the Paci Fairy. She gives them to the babies that need them. Then the next day, she leaves a present in the mailbox in return. Worked for my niece like a charm...she was 4! Good luck!
After we cut the paci back to just nap and bed time, we did the switch to a toddler bed at 20 months. Shortly after this switch, I kept telling Skogen that he was a big boy now and pretty soon he wouldn't need a paci anymore. I wasn't sure how I was going to get rid of it, but I really wanted to be real with him and not have to use the paci fairy trick or anything like that(although I know a lot of people have success with those ways). I also really didn't want to take it away until he understood what happened and why. So, I talked about it with him a lot. One night before bed, just a week after moving him into his "big boy bed," I asked him if he was ready to "say bye bye to paci." He took it out of his mouth, handed it to me, and waved bye bye. I did not expect that at all! From that point on, he was okay without it. Only asked for it one or two other times.
Good luck! Everyone does it differently and you'll just have to find what works for you best.
Yep, I'm with everyone! Keep everything the same through the holidays, then get rid of them one by one! Might as well not do too many transitions at one time.
Now...I don't have any children and I don't really have an opinion on what should come first. But...if you have trouble getting rid of the paci cold turkey, you might try what my mom did with my older brother. He had a paci FOREVER! So long that he would just move it to the side of his mouth and carry on full conversations. So, to help him get rid of it she would snip a little off the end of the paci each day. Eventually when it wouldn't "suck" anymore, he just wasn't interested in it and didn't need it anymore. Maybe just another option to try...but each child is different!
When we ditched Anna's paci, she was understanding the concept of "all gone" really well. So we made a trade. She got a new cuddly bear to sleep with (just right for hugging, not too fluffy, not big) So one afternoon we talked about Paci being "all gone". I mentioned it a couple of times that day before bedtime, each time commenting that Paci was "all gone now, but we get to hug bear at night time!" She cried the first night, but I could tell it wasn't a tantrum cry so after 5 minutes or so I went back in and we talked about it some more- calmly understanding that it's just different for her- and then she was fine, she laid down and went to sleep like usual. (and because she's such a big girl now, it's Hard to believe that was only Last January for us!!)
But I say, ditch the paci before the bed- not just because that's the way that worked for us, but because if he does have some issues with bonding to the pacifier, then he's confined to the bed, plus it's a smaller transition- I say start small and then work your way up.
I have absolutely no experience with pacifiers. All three of mine have been "thumb-suckers." The good thing with a paci is you can take it away. I am still trying to figure out how to take away the "thumb"!
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