No more babies in my house...

Grace is getting older and is leaving all of her baby things behind. She potty trained about 6 months ago and I joked the last thing left that proved she was my baby was the paci!

I haven't worried overly much that she still used a paci to fall asleep. For one, she ONLY used it at nap or bed time. Since she wasn't like those three year olds that sucked it 24/7, I just wasn't concerned. Plus, she usually spit it out once she fell asleep, so she was using it all night.

Before her birthday, I started talking to her about it. Telling her that she was becoming a big girl now and that she would soon have to give all her pacifiers to the babies. On the 9th, she told me that she wanted to give her paci's to Beck (her friend Aubrey's little brother). I had been telling her that when she gave them to a baby, he would give her a gift.

I called Beck's mom and we met yesterday (7-10-08). Grace excitedly gave Beck her pacifiers and received a cute little Melissa and Doug stamp/color pencil set. She was so excited and we immediately came home to play.

Then...it was nap time. I tucked her in, kissed her night-night and started to walk out of the room. She sat straight up and said, "Mommy! I need my paci!" I reminded her that we didn't have them any more and that Beck had them. She picked up her play princess phone and said that she was going to call them. She pushed some buttons and then said into the phone, "Mrs. Jen, I want my paci's back.....yes, I know, but I want them back." I was trying hard to not crack up at this point. I told her again that Beck had them...and (even worse) he was on his way to Oklahoma.

She ended up sending Beck to time out, but falling asleep just fine.

That night, she did much better at bedtime. She asked for it one time, but didn't cry about it. After I left the room, she played for a little while, like she normally does. When she was ready to go to sleep, she started sobbing for her paci and begging me to give it back. I went in there, and reminded her that she gave them to Beck. I had to go with her to her closet where we kept the spares and show her there were none left. She finally went to bed. She woke up in the middle of the night and really wanted it again, but Daddy just put her in our bed and she went right back to sleep.

The next day at nap, she didn't ask for it at all until after she was in her room for about 10 minutes or so. She only said, "I want my paci" over and over for about 2 minutes...no crying. She did the same thing at night time.

Today, for nap, she hasn't even mentioned it! I think my baby is growing up!