Getting rid of pacifiers

[missliss55]

My DD also only used them when she went to bed too, but it was time so we "sent all the pacifiers to our friends baby"....wink...wink. I got out a box and put them all inside and then colored and decorated the outside of the box. We put the box on our doorstep for the mailman to take. The mailman took the box and left a thank you present from our friend. That night we had a party. Favorite foods at dinner, balloons, dessert...the whole nine yards. Made it super special and a how she was such a big girl. Had a great time and never had a problem with them being gone.

[BabbyO]

Already she doesn't ask for one until in her crib and getting tucked in. But I am sure she will freak out if I don't provide one and not go to bed. That's what I don't know how to handle! Is it better to have prepared her with the fairies beforehand or just not make a big deal and tell her at bedtime we don't have anymore and move on?

I'm not really sure. We didn't do a party or fairies, or anything like that. We just stopped giving them to the boys. We told them we didn't have anymore and shifted to another subject. We had a night or two that was a bit more difficult, but in less than a week no paci was no problem.

Ironically, a friend recommended keeping one in case they got sick etc (both boys gave them up as we headed into full on winter). We never needed it...and I actually tried giving it to Stachio thinking it might relieve pressure when he had an ear infection and he flat out refused it. Peanut's paci's were all collected into a seldom used bowl on our top shelf....I found them a few weeks ago popped one in each of my boy's mouths (including DH) snapped a picture and then tossed them. Keeping one seems pointless to me in retrospect.

[Simon]

It sounds like you're worried about how it will make bedtime go for you. Will someone else be around to help you with Dd while you're with the newborn or are you okay with Dd1 CIO if it comes to that? Not saying you'll have to, but I'm just thinking of logistics. If you're worried its going to be a problem, I'd show her the broken ones, throw those away, and then say something like "Here are the last 2 paci, when they are broken we'll have to throw them away, too." Or, I'd just buy another package and tackle this when Dd2 is 6 months old and it isn't cold/flu season.

[123LuckyMom]

My kids would never take pacifiers, but I'm a big believer in celebrating transitions! I wouldn't do the fairy bit, but I would have a "big girl" party and send the pacifiers on their way. Since we make up songs for everything in our house, I'd probably make up a song, too. Any excuse for a song!

[arivecchi]

We cut the tips to all of them and DS "decided" he no longer liked them.

[s7714]

Our dentist offers rewards if kids bring in their pacis to "pass them on to new babies." They can get a bag of toys or money in exchange. They've been telling DS since his first visit (at 2) about the deal. I don't know if he's going to choose that route or leave them for the fairy. Either way we told him when you turn 3 you are "too old" for pacifiers and we're getting cloe to that date.

[carolinacool]

I'm not really sure. We didn't do a party or fairies, or anything like that. We just stopped giving them to the boys. We told them we didn't have anymore and shifted to another subject. We had a night or two that was a bit more difficult, but in less than a week no paci was no problem.

This was us, although our transition was a bit different. DS is in full-time day care, and when kids move to the 1's room, they get another week or two with the paci and then they take them away period. But he hung on to them at home for another year and a half (naps and bedtime). When he was 2.5, DH decided that was enough and told him one weekend we didn't have them anymore. But we might have been helped by the fact that he had been napping at day care without one for more than a year.