Unfavored

Over the past two weeks, Troy has not really asked for his “favor” (what he calls his pacifier) when going to bed. This includes both at night and for naps on weekends. I had read somewhere that some kids will take longer than others to finally give up their pacifier. I had also read that usually a kid will just decide one day that they’re done.

We had employed the “don’t give it to him unless he explicitly asks for it” method, which helped to slowly wean him off it. But to truly make this method successful, we had to distract Troy when we were putting him to bed. If he didn’t see or think about the pacifier, then he was less likely to ask for it.

Of course there’s a downside to him giving up the pacifier. It takes him a lot longer to finally go to sleep, especially at night. Most nights he’ll be up a half hour to an hour after we put him to bed singing. You can hear his clear, beautiful voice resonating throughout the house as he contentedly entertains himself with song. My wife said he’s a night owl like we are. Maybe. But either way, singing is a much better alternative to the pacifier.