We did not meet our goal of getting rid of pacifiers by the end of February. While I am glad that the girls only use them at night (with the exception of rare occasions like surgery/getting shots), I have to admit we aren't brave enough to make the girls cry themselves to sleep. Mate and I justify letting them keep their pacifiers passed the recommended age of 1 because our girls still have the occasional middle-of-the-night wake up. Plus, they still don't sleep much later than 5:30. Just last week, Ava and I were playing in the living room by 5:00 a.m. Those pacifiers really come in handy when we groggily stumble into their room hours before anyone should be awake.
Anyway, I had to confess that the girls would probably give their pacifiers up without too much of a fight, but their parents are taking the easy way out. A lot of people gave me great advice about books and stories to use when making this transition. Our girls aren't old enough to comprehend any of that now, so I figure we're probably okay waiting a little longer. At least, that's what I tell myself.
I took my kids didi's away the week after they turned 2. They only really took them at night for the 1st few minutes of falling asleep. The week after their 2nd birthday when we put them from the crib to big beds they were SO excited they never thought or ever asked about didi's. They just mysteriously disappeared w/out question & all was well. I think any suggested dr ideas are not carved in stone rules. Perhaps more like "guidelines" to quote Pirates of the Caribbean. Each parent should just do what works for them. I don't have any friends who still depend on their pacifiers. ; )
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