Getting Rid of Pacifier

My sister "sent" my neices to her new cousin in california, they put it in an envelope, addressed it, put it in the mailbox, then retrieved it later. But she had not problmes at all esp knowing her new baby cousin needed it more than she did. :)

I put my daughter's on a leash attached it to her toddler bed and whenever she needed it she went to her room to use it. Usually a few sucks and she would be asleep. She always knew where it was.

My son was really attached to his binky too. We eventually were able to reason with him that the baby birds (which he loved) needed the binky and would he be willing to share with them? He was! Slowly there were more and more baby birds who needed them, so one by one they all disappeared. When he would fuss and not respond to the baby bird reason, we'd give him a little extra attention and sit with him and cuddle or rock him if it was close to bed/naptime. Hope this helps! Good luck!!

My son used a Soothie pacifier. We had gotten him to only use it at naptime and bedtime. When it came time to ween him off of it (he was 20 mos.), I decided to go cold turkey and not even give him the pacifier when he went to bed. Big mistake! So the next night, we snipped the end of the pacifier off. Well, he figured out how to stick his finger in it and then pretty much proceeded to suck his finger. I did not want to have to break a "finger sucking" habit, so during the day I soaked his pacifier in vinegar (it tastes bad but doesn't hurt his mouth). When it was bedtime I gave him his pacifier and he immediately spit it out. After a few evenings of this, he wouldn't even take the pacifier when we offered it to him, he instead became attached to a stuffed animal! So within a week, our house was pacifier free! And now when I hear him moving about during the night, I go in and check on him and he's got his arms around his giraffe.

I have a nearly 20 month old son who is/was really attatched to his pacifier. We have taken it away during wake times so he only gets it during his nap time and bedtime. We plan to remove it comepletley when he is 2. Our plan is to take him to build-a-bear let him make a special bear and put his pacifier inside the bear. So it will be like a good bye ceremony and a "you're a big boy now, you don't need it anymore" kind of statement. Plus he'll have the teddy bear to cuddle when he needs to. Hope that helps.

L. -

Having been a mom of 3 pacifier girls.... :) What I found to be the best solution for us is to restrict their pacifiers to bedtime (nap/night) and when they were sick (as long as they are laying down) and they could never talk with it in their mouths (they had to take it out). I had them get into the habit of handing it to me when they woke up so that they separated themselves from it and I was not taking it away from them. Two of my girls had it at bedtime until they were almost 3 (I eventually took away their naptime). Routine is everything and if you make one that never changes, they learn to trust that change and eventually learn to make decisions (as much as a 2 to 3 year old can make) for themselves such as not needing the pacifier anymore. Eventually all of my girls gave it up on their own because THEY didn't need it anymore, not because I thought they didn't.

I guess just remember...go with what you feel is right, not what others tell you. You know your children better than anyone. Timelines for milestones are only a gauge, never what is concrete - trust this also from a special needs daughter who is still on her own timeline but is doing great!

Good luck!

Everyone has an opinion on this one. I had one on the pacifier until almost 3 and one that still sucks her thumb at 3. My opinion is that if they do it, it is because they need it. It provides security that they can give themselves, without mom being there. My dentist was never worried about either one. He said not to worry about the thumb sucking unless she doesn't kick the habit before about age 7 or 8. People get way too worked up about this one. Good luck whatever you decide.

My son had his until right before his third birthday. Everthing I read at the time said he would just give it up on his own and he did. We found them EVERYWHERE afterwards...lol. He had them stashed throughout the house! I wouldn't worry too much eventually she will loose interest in it.

When my twin sisters were little, my mom had them go to Toys R Us and "Buy" a toy with their binkys. She had them pick out a stuffed animal and then pay for it with their pacifiers, then, when it was bedtime, she reminded them that they had traded their binkys for their new stuffed sleeping pal. there were a few tears, but only for a night. They are 20 now, and still have those stuffed dogs! Good luck! J.

Our daughter just turned 2 and we got rid of the "binky" a couple of weeks after. Here is how we went about it. We told her it was for bedtime and nap time only. She HAD to give it to us to when getting out of bed - no exceptions. It was tough the first couple of days and then it wasn't a problem. Then every once in a while, we would tell her that the binky was going bye bye soon. After a couple of weeks of telling her that, we started a countdown. We would say - "the binky is going bye bye in three days (2 days etc..) I told at nap time that it went away. It was a very TOUGH day - she did not take a nap but by bedtime that night was exhausted and went out after a few minutes of crying (I sat by her bed that night until she went to sleep). The next couple of days were very tough but she was soooo tired that she would finally give it up. She is now sleeping better without the binky then she ever did with it because she is not looking for it in the middle of the night anymore.

Pick a time that will work for you on getting a little less sleep and stick to your guns on it. She will get over it before you know it. It helped that she could see that my 4 yr old didn't use one and was fine with it. Good Luck!!

We took my daughters away when she was 2 and she only experienced a few nights of her crying for it. She didn't use it much at daycare or during the day. She had to have it all the time when she would sleep and would wake up in the middle of the night looking for it. Try to do this on a weekend, starting on Friday so that you have the entire weekend to work with her. Good luck!

My oldest didn't get rid of it until 2 1/2. At two, at his dentist visit, the dentist told him not to have it during the day, so he only slept with it. At a visit to the pediatrician around 2 1/2, the dr. said "no more papoo" and we had a "ceremony" to put them away. He asked for it a few times after that, but I just reminded him that the Dr. said no more. My other son, almost 3, still has his. I had a baby a few months ago and he reached many milestones in a few months (big boy bed, potty trained, and a new sibling) so I didn't push it. He is big time addicted, but we've been talking about how on his 3rd b'day, he'll be too big for it and we'll be done. Now, ask me again in three weeks whether or not that worked:)

Every child is different, but I just wanted to let you know that a papoo at two is not the end of the world.

Okey dokey, I've read all your previous responses, mine isn't gonna be like any of them! Probably the most unpopular one of the bunch!
First and foremost, do what feels right for you. My oldest, was way over the age of two before he gave up his binky! In fact, I want to say he was closer to 3 or 4 before he gave it up. My husband and I were still making midnight trips to Walgreens if he lost one and we didn't have a backup!
I'm sorry to all the "cold turkey" Moms out there...I personally don't believe in letting my child "cry it out" for anything. Seems torture to me. If they wouldn't understand only getting their binky @ specific times of day, why would they understand why they don't get it @ all anymore, any better?
I dealt w/ his Dr. shaking her head and wagging her finger @ me. I put up w/ total strangers feeling the desperate need to give me their unsolicited opinions on the subject.
We monitered his binky closely. If it got a hole or was really worn he got a new one. In fact, I think that's what finally turned him off. He liked the big, fat, soft, stretched out one, and the new ones didn't taste or feel the same. He just stopped using them one day.
The whole process was right for him and so UNeventful I don't even remember the specifics.
Hope that helps....oh yeah, his teeth and jaw are fine!
Float me a message and let me know what happens. No matter what, YOU do what feels right for YOU and your daughter! That's the right way in my opinion!

I guess the question depends on if it bothers you or not. I am a daycare provider and I went through a similiar situation with one of my 2 yr old girls, they are good friends of ours and I watched her, they would give her the binkie anytime the little girl wanted it. I feel if they can communicate with me, they are to old for a pacifier. I kept telling the little girl you do not need your binkie you are a big girl and binkies are for babies. I would tell her tell Mommy and Daddy no binkie I am a big girl and low and behold, she never wanted the binkie again and she even took the binkies away from her babydolls which we thought was funny. I think the idea is to put the idea in their mind and slowly find other things to occupy them with when they do want the binkie. Good Luck, it will all work out.

Hello,

Don't stress out over this. My duaghter was almost 4 when she finally gave it up. You don't want to rush them. After the age of 2 she only got her binky when she went to bed. That included nap time too and she was fine with that. She finally gave them to Santa Claus for the other children to have and her left her a special toy in their place.

Also a friend of mine took her daughter to Build A Bear Workshop and they put her binky in one of the bears and she sleeps with it every night.

With my friends son, he put his binky's in the mail box and Santa's Elves came and picked the up and left him a nice surprise. They were both about 4 years old.

D.

First, try to get rid of the pacifier as soon as possible. They can be very dangerous for kids with teeth. During the night one night my daughter almost chewed the top of hers all the way off...it was dangling by a very small piece and had she chewed it all the way off she could have choked to death without me knowing about it. SCARED ME TO DEATH!!! Afterwards, my pediatrician said that he knew of several kids (none of them his patients) who had asphyxiated themselves with their pacifiers. Had I known how easy it would have been for her to rip it apart, I would have checked it WAY more thoroughly every day.

That being said, you don't want to be too drastic with removing the pacifier....Just make sure you check it OFTEN to make sure there are no cracks in it at all.

Start by only giving her the pacifier at naptime and bedtime. Keep it in the crib and tell her that's where it stays. Then eventually take it away at naptime and finally at bedtime. Since we only allowed our daughter to use it in her crib, she had no problems giving it up when I just stopped giving it to her. I thought she would cry and scream for it, but she didn't. Also, now would be a good time to introduce a blankie if she doesn't have one already. Again, keep the blankie only in her bed and eventually she will replace the binkie for the blankie. I find that it helps if you don't say "no we can't take the binkie/blankie", but instead just cheerfully say "time to put your binkie/blankie away" and have them put it in the bed making sure to tell her that she did a great job of putting her stuff away. Then THEY are doing it and you are not withholding anything. Eventually it will just become part of the "getting up" routine that they need to do before leaving the room to get breakfast or snack or whatever.

I don't think she will revert to her thumb. It has been my experience (with just my 4 kids) that you are either a thumb sucker or a paci sucker and not both. However, I would watch her to make sure she doesn't start chewing on other things. I still have a problem with my oldest son (3 yrs) absent-mindedly putting his toys in his mouth.

Good luck!!!

Hi L.,

One of my children was very attatched to his binky. After trying several different methods of taking it away, at age 2, the one that worked was....1 week prior to taking it away I talked to him about it on a daily basis, I talked with him about how he was a big boy now and big boys don't need the binky, I also took it away from him except for nap and bed time. Then on the date I had been telling him about came, when I put him to bed I gave him the pacifier, and reminded him that it would be gone in the morning. After he went to sleep, I went in and took it. He did ask for it for a few days, at nap time, I just reminded him of being a big boy, he did some whining, but it didn't last but a few days.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

I love, love, love Ruth's idea.

We took the pacifier away from my son, cold turkey. We went to the doctor for my son's two year check up and the doctor told my son he was too old for it and we then went through the motions of 'throwing' it away. He never even asked for it again!

My daughter was weaned from her pacifier while on vacation. She was so busy with all of the activities that she forgot all about it. She was nine months old. When it was time to wean her from the breast, finally at 20 months old, we gave her the pacifier back as our last resort. It worked for weaning, but we had to then wean her from the pacifier all over again. We gradually took it away and she was only allowed to have it at naptime, bedtime and in the car. The whole process took about three months and she was 2.5 by the time we achieved this. We are still working on her teeth not sticking out, but they are getting better. My son's teeth were never affected by the pacifier. I say, go with your instinct. If you feel she still needs it at bedtime, just limit it to that time. Keep the pacifiers out of site and do not even let her know where they are. If she sees them, she will want them.

Ruth, I love the idea of the bear as well. We just weaned my 2 1/2 year old daughter two weeks ago. She isnt' completely sleeping soundly yet, but the key for us was that she voluntarily gave it up!! Somehow she must have known we didn't have the heart for it?! Anyway, I kept telling her that the Binky Fairy was coming (thanks Super Nanny). One night she went into the drawer, picked out the binkies and told me it was time to give them to the fairy. So we put them in an envelope, she put them out front and the next morning she had a package waiting for her, it included a stuffed bear and a certificate to go to Peter Piper for pizza and games. She hasn't asked much for it, as a matter of fact maybe only one or two times and we just explained that the binky fairy now has them and she gave them to another baby. Strangly enough she is even ok with the baby brother having binkies and will even put his in his mouth!! Whatever you choose, good luck!!

We slowly weaned down the pacifer, my daughter only got it for naps, bedtime, and at the babysitter (whre she would promptly leave it and the sitter would pick up and put away until nap. Finally we took it away at the sitter and nap time. She had it for maybe a month until they disappeared. We told her the Pacifier fairy must of came and took them to the babies that needed them. She was 2 1/2 when all this happened, we never had a problem with her teeth, she just wouldn't talk much until the pacifier was gone.

A friend of mine cut the top of the nipple off when she was ready to wean her daughter. I never could get any of my kids to take one. You might try taking her to the store and letting her pick out a special stuffed animal to replace it. She is attached to it so she probably wont want to give it up too easily.

When i took my son to his two-year wellness check up, the doctor showed me how his top teeth didn't touch his bottom, b/c of the gap there for the pacifier! I was horrified!!! We went home, and i cut an upward slit into each nipple... I told him, "let's throw it away," to which he countered "NO!" I then said, "okay, suck on it." he put it into his mouth, pulled it out, and looked disguisted! I said "is it broken" and he said "yes." i responded, "ew! gross! let's throw it away!" he agreed. he never asked for one again... (lucky break!)

Hi L., Ruth has a great idea! My only point is to get rid of it and do it soon! My son LOVED his and had his until he was 5, yes FIVE!!! it seemed it was never a good time to get rid of it...starting day care, moving houses, starting potty training, etc. JUST DO IT! Finally about 2 months before turning 5 he said he was going to throw away his "suckie" when he turned 5. Sure enough, the morning of 10/16/2007, he woke up, took it out of his mouth, threw it away and that was it. WHY DIDN'T WE DO THAT SOONER???? Good luck!

We created a chupita (pacifier) fairy who comes in the middle of the night and takes away all of the chupitas in the house and leaves a nice surprise in place of it. My daughters were both 4 when I took theirs away but I could never get them to attach to anything else. Not toys or blankets or anything. They only had it at night and when it fell out it went away. They are only babies once and so I didn't feel the harm in waiting longer but I think you should still be able to create a fairy that takes them away.

My son was not a binky baby. He's a breast baby, and at 2 1/2, he still is. I hear all kinds of things about how "old" he is to still be breastfeeding, and get shocked stares if strangers notice us and see how old he is. La Leche League promotes child-led weaning from the breast, and the ever-growing myriad of research into weaning says that it takes place naturally somewhere between 3 and 7 years. I'm inclined to say that the same philosophy would work for the pacifier. Certainly if you're wanting to work toward complete weaning, your 2 year old is old enough to understand that her binky now comes with some restrictions-- no binky except at bed, no binky in the bath, no binky outside--those are reasonable boundaries, and seem to be working for you. I doubt forcibly taking it from her will be a pleasant or successful situation. If she still wakes at night and needs it as a source of comfort, what would make you believe she should be denied it? Her need is met, and as she grows up, and out of it, it will go away. Have patience and confidence that you are doing the right things for your child when you believe in her.

I have a suggestion which worked for me. I cut the tips of my son's pacifiers off which he then decided on his own that he didn't want them anymore because they felt/"tasted" different to him. That way, I didn't have to be the bad guy and take it away from him. It took 24 hours and he was done! Also, I don't know what it's called, but I think there is something you can put on your child's thumbs that taste bad to avoid thumbsucking. My son was incredibly attached to his binky and even without it, never sucked his thumb.

Hi I have a two year old son who does not have his binky anymore. I started wheening him off right after the new year. He turned 2 in feb. His father and I thought it would be better. So what we did was take all the binky's and throw them away. The out sight out of mind thing helped. He started out only having it at bed time, as soon as he would wake we would ask for it and he would hand it to us. Then we completely took it away, when he would cry and ask for his binky we would tell him that it went by by. Now my son would cry and throw fits so you have to make sure your ready to take it away. She will most likely cry and have fits but you cant give it back. When we did this it took him a good week to forget about it. We didnt mention that word and it helped. It will be hard at first but it will work out. We also started giving him a stuffed animal that he likes instead of his binky for his comfort. Good luck

My daughter loved her binky and it took both my husband and I to be on the same page and not give in! We ultimately did the whole "you a big girl now and you don't need to have it" story. When she would ask for it, we would take her outside to play or read her books. We did anything to keep her mind off the binky. I kept her binky as part of her memorabilia and when she sees it her eyes light up and she says " I loved my binky, didn't I mommy." It was certainly easier during the day because they would not allow her to have it at the daycare. We also knew that if she didn't see it, she wouldn't want it.

I had the same issues w/my daughter. Let her "lose" the binky. If you find it--HIDE IT! Tell her it was the last one and there are no more. After I did that w/my daughter I told her that now that she is a big girl...maybe the binky fairy will bring her a prize for giving up her binky to be a big girl. Then the next night leave like a snuggly little stuffed animal or something you know she'll like. You could also let her know that if she leaves the binky somewhere like a window sill or somewhere that the binky fairy will leave a prize. If you want to do it that way. Good Luck!!

Hi L. -

I see you have lots of advice on this one! My 2.5 year old still uses one as well. At her last well check I asked her ped about it and he said don't rush it because you would rather have her give it up on her own than end up a thumb sucker. So we aren't because of that reason. I limit her use of it to mainly nap and bed time and she will ask for it at other times and I just say "you don't need it" and divert her.

Also, I saw this article a while ago and flagged it for our future. http://www.mambaby.com/articles/en/186/aW5kZXgucGhwP21vZG...=

It's a bedtime story and method you can use to help wean your child from the paci.

Good Luck!!

I have two girls an a little boy on the way. My oldest is 3 and youngest girl just turned 2. They have both used pacifiers but we restricted them to their cribs and beds. I would rather them have it if it helped them sleep at night. When my oldest was a little over 2 I asked her if she wanted to be a big girl and get rid of the pacifier and get a new toy for at night. We went to Target and took her pacifiers. she threw them in the garbage and then went and picked out any toy she wanted (with in reason). The first night she cried and said she wanted to take her toy back and get her pacifier, but we held her and she fell asleep fine from then on. My youngest still uses them for naps and at night. She knows when she wakes up I take them out of her bed and put them on the dresser. I'm planning on doing the same thing with her soon, before her brother arrives. She just turned two last month, and we just moved here 3 weeks ago, and she moved into a big girl bed from her crib so next step is getting rid of the pacifier. It might take a few nights for them to get use to not depending on one but I think you have to be consistent for it to work and if you throw them in the garbage you don't have any way to give it to them. Hope it helps.

shortly after my daughter was 1 we starting only allowing her pacifier at night and at naps. in reality this transition took much longer because i allowed her to use it the car sometimes and when she was sick. she stopped needing it for naps when she moved to the walking class at daycare at 13 months. shortly before her 2 year doctor appointment we were at the doctor with yet another ear infection. she has had a hard time with ear infections and had tubes which had fallen out as they do after several months. i let her use her pacifier at the doctor because she was miserable. he saw it and asked about it. i told him we only use it night and he told me that for a kid with chronic ear infections night time is the worst time to use a pacifier. when he explained the biology it made a lot of sense. a couple of days later when she was feeling better i explained to her in very rational and brief way that she was too old for her pacifier and the doctor told her not to use it anymore. this explanation seemed more for me than her but she seemed to be listening. at night i reminded her that she didn't need her pacifier anymore and she accepted that. i tried not to be anxious about her reaction because she would sense that. we didn't make a big deal about it and neither did she. i believe we were very lucky but a simple explanation may be worth a try. good luck!

I always had a great fear that my children would suck their thumbs, as I did until I was almost 10 (resulting in 5 years of braces), so I gave them all binkies, and they took them with no problem. I decided that at age 2 I would take them away. I began gradually by only allowing a binky in situations where the child was forced to be immobile (car seat, stroller, bed, and church). One of those binkie tether ribbons helps with this, so the binkies are not floating around the house, but stuck to the child or the stroller. After a couple of months of this, all the binkies except the bedtime one mysteriously became "broken." I cut off the bulb with scissors. The child could still see the binkie tethered to the stroller, etc, but could only hold it and not suck it. We were very sad with her, but told her we could not fix it. After a month or so of this, she was used to it, and the binkie carcasses went away. We only had the binkie in the bed. I used a diaper pin to fasten the end of the binkie ribbon to the mattress itself. This way, thorough out the night as the child tossed and turned, she was sleeping without the binkie in her mouth most of the time because those binkie ribbons are only about 6 inches long. If she woke in the night, she could just find the binkie and suck it again, but when she fall asleep again, it would fall out again. After about 2 months of this, the binkie in the bed "broke" as well. Again, we mourned with her and the binkie plastic remained in the bed for a little while until she was ready to let it go (it doesn't matter how long this takes at this point because she is not sucking it and it's stuck to the bed, so no harm done). Luckily not one of my 5 ever resorted to thumb-sucking. I hope you are able to find a good way to help your little one move away from the binkie. Good luck!

My daughter was 22 months and in to throwing things away. So we let her throw away her pacifier. She cried for it once.
Or you could send it in the mail to the pacifier fairy or a baby. Let them put it in the mailbox, and then have them get something in the mail in return for sending the pacifier. A letter with stickers, or a toy etc.. Good luck, and try to make it lighthearted and fun.
T.

We poked a hole in it & explained that it was broken & that was all that it took,after seeing it thrown away ..never asked again (got rid of the rest during her nap time
Also, saw on supernanny (did this for my daycare kids)we wrote a book w/ illustrations about the pacifier fairy needing it for new babies..took a pic of them w/(before) as a small baby w/ it for one page,then (after) w/ no pacifier...then created a gift bag of pacifiers for the Fairy and left it at the door for her..next morning there was fairy glitter & a "big girl" present to thank the child....pages in the book of the present...& so forth..good luck.. My background is in Speech & Language & yes! it is time to get rid of it..actually harder on the parents then the kiddo's

I don't think there is anything wrong with her sleeping with it at night but if you do want to take it away here's some encouragement... We decided that when our daughter turned 2 we would try taking it away and if it was just a nightmare then we wouldn't worry about taking it away. Well the first night we told her that she was going to be a big girl like her sister and go to bed without it because she is 2. And she said "Big girl like sisi? I'm 2" then smiled and went to bed and hasn't had it or asked for it since. Kids will surprise you and it might not be as hard as you think to take it away.

I see your post about the pacifier and it brings back memories. My oldest daughter who's 21 now was so attached to it, our joke was, "If she gets rid of it by prom we will be happy". When she was about 4 years old I bought her a baby doll she had wanted, but she could only have it if she gave up the pacifier...that doll stayed in the trunk of my car for about a week, while she decided what to do. Every day I would open the trunk and show her the doll and remind her it needed its mom(her). She finally gave up the pacifier on her own after a week. I also told her that the pacifiers would go to a baby who needed them and we wouldn't throw them away. I think she was worried about them being thrown away, but knowing they would go to another baby, seemed okay to her. Also I don't think a child will pick up thumb sucking if you take away the pacifier. My middle daughter was a thumb sucker and I tried to give her the pacifier, but she wouldn't have any part of that...so it's probably the same the other way around. Good luck, and just remember, I haven't seen any adults with pacifiers...at some point they just go away on their own, other kids will shame them into giving it up if nothing else works.

Hi there. I don't think there is anything that would work for every kid, but here's what worked for us:

When our son turned 2, we made the "rule" that he could only have his nuk while in bed (naptime & nighttime). There was a bit of a transition, but the thing that worked was this: When he whined about not having the nuk, we told him he could have it as long as he went to bed and "rested" (not as a punishment or anything, we just gently told him that he could go and rest and look at some books, etc in bed while having his nuk). He'd do that the first few days, and we got him into the habit of leaving it in his bed (or putting it up on a shelf if he would try to run off with it). After several days, he just got sick of being in bed, he'd rather play, etc. After several months of only having it in bed, we got down to 1 nuk (we had 3) by telling him that Grandma was having trouble sleeping and needed the nuk (he even talked to her on the phone about it). He gladly gave up the others and we only had one. When he was about 2 1/2 we told him he was going to have the nuk for only THREE MORE DAYS cause he was such a big boy and big boys don't need nuks anymore. We talked about it alot each day . . . in TWO days, tomorrow, etc. Much to our surprise, by day three, he was ready to be done with it. There was some whining at bedtime, but we let him pick out a small "safe" toy to hold in his hand at night. We hid the nuk and when he'd ask for it, we'd simply say "we don't have it anymore cause you're such a big boy". It also helped him, I think, to point out babies we know (his baby sister) who has a nuk and he knew that nuks were for smaller kids, not big boys.

We did not throw it away, just in case, and about 3 weeks after he gave it up, we did get it out one last time when he was very sick. Then it "disappeared" again and that was that.

That being said, every kid is different, but I just wanted to tell you our story. Good Luck!

S.

I've heard you can start clipping the tip off of it. as it becomes shorter and shorter they lose interest. Haven't tried it myself. good luck.

A friend of mine did this when their daughter was getting too old for a pacifier: There was a toy at Target that she REALLY wanted. So, mommy and daddy told her that she could use her pacifiers to pay for it. They "worked" it out with the check out girl and she brought her toy up to the register and "paid" with her pacifiers. Then any time she asked for or wanted her pacifier they reminder her that she used them to buy her toy and wouldn't she rather have that than her binky. I also saw something clever on Super Nanny. She had a little one decorate an envelope addressed to the Paci-fairy and put all of his pacifiers inside the envelope. Then the next morning the Paci-fairy mailed him back a decorated envelope with little toys inside. It was cute...hope those ideas help!

Ruth that is the best idea I ever heard!!!!!!

My daughter used hers for naps and bedtime until she was three. She knew that when she turned 3, she was a big girl and wouldn't need it anymore (we prepped this for weeks). We wrapped them up so she could give them to another baby who needed them. Since it was right after Christmas, she decided she should give them to baby Jesus. So I said we'd take them to church and leave them for baby Jesus to celebrate his birthday and hers. She quit cold-turkey with no complaints. If she asked for it (twice i think), I just reminded her that we gave them to baby Jesus, and she was fine.

This works really well if you know someone is having a baby near you, so she has a tangible "recipient" (even tho obviously you throw them away!)

Dear L.,

I am a mother of five and each of my kids had a different experience. I would not fret over this. I have always said that a binky is a mothers blessing. Your daughter will probably let go of it on her own by the time she is 3 or 3 1/2 . Enjoy her and don't let other people's comments bother you. She will only be small for a blink of an eye. When the time comes, you can limit to bedtime. Eventually she can give it to her baby doll and she will probably do it on her own and surprise you. My daughter surprised me on her 4th birthday when she said, "Mommy this is for you, I am a big girl now". I will remember that for the rest of my life.

This may not be right for you, but we went cold turkey with my daughter at 1 1/2. It was best for us, because I felt like we were teasing her by only offerning it to her at certain times. She didn't understand why she got it only at certain times. So we just chucked them. I was scared to death how it would go, but after a couple days it was no big deal. She would wake up at night and cry for a minute or two, but after a couple of days, she got use to it. We didn't make a big deal about them going away, but my daughter was much younger. You can try the pacifier fairy or something like that. Put them in an envelop and mail them to Santa, whatever works. OR cut the tips off. He will not like them and probably just hand it to you.