I've been dreading trying to get rid of Samuel's pacifier for a while now. I knew he was getting to the point where he really shouldn't have it any more. That became even more evident when his top teeth came in spaced out and crooked, most likely from all the paci-ness that'd been going on for the previous 15 months. He carried that thing around everywhere. In a way it was nice, because it did it's job - it pacified him. Any time he wanted to throw a fit or if he woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't self-sooth, there it was, his little attachment and, for so long, the key to our sanity. But he was relying on it so much, and would go nuts any time we took it away.
So when the pediatrician confirmed at our 15 month appointment that it was time for the paci to say "adios", I started formulating a plan. I knew we would be traveling to Arkansas the last week of May, so I detailed week by week when he would be able to have it/not have it starting the first week of June. I geared up for a miserable month or so, imagining the constant screaming and crying and tantrum-throwing that was sure to occur.
Then we got the most terrible/wonderful blessing in disguise. Samuel got Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (or in his case, just mouth). It was the saddest. thing. ever. I thought he was just teething until I looked in his mouth and saw approximately 30 little ulcers on his tongue and gums and palate. Poor, poor baby. He would try to eat then spit his food out and cry and cry. He would try to put that paci in, but it hurt him so badly that he would spit it out, then just carry it around for an hour or so. He'd wake in the middle of the night and remember his sores and scream some more. The worst part was that, outside of the sores, he felt fine. No fever, no hand/foot rashes, no general malaise. He wanted to play and romp, but he couldn't be around other kids lest they get the dreaded disease. So we were confined to our house and yard and the stroller for days. NOT a fun time.
The blessing part of this miserable experience? Samuel got so disgusted by the pain his paci was causing him through all of this that he gave it up, cold turkey. All my plans went out the window. I was planning on waiting until after our trip to give it up so I could have it handy to help him chill out while traveling. That plan went out the window too (but that's a story for another day). One day it was just gone.
He's now gone two weeks without a pacifier AT ALL. It's seriously a miracle. He couldn't go an hour without one before, couldn't sleep without one. We kept one in every room, both cars, every bag. Now, nothing. I won't say he isn't a little more fussy than normal, but I'm SO thankful to not have to fight with him about it. It's a little sad that my baby is too grown up for a paci now... Eric was especially bummed when he came home one day and I told him it was gone for good. Still, I know it's for the best, and I'm SO thankful it was such a short process! God works in mysterious ways, right?
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