Saturday, January 5, 2008

Foggy Day

Dear Pacifier,

I'm very sorry I snipped off more than I should have. H has been on my case all day about how I mortally wounded you. Trust me, no one is sorrier than I am. I just approach EVERYTHING with zest. The doctor said snip off the tip, so I snipped. Granted, M was eating her dinner and I was trying to be sneaky and I might have cut off a TAD more than just your tip. Okay, okay...maybe I cut off half of you. I never intended for this to be so painful for all of us. I know M is devestated. You were her best friend, along with Blankie, Lambie, and Baby. Now the five of you have been cut down to four and a half of you. Yes, yes, yes, dear Paci, I heard M scream, "Mommy! Paci bwoke!" when she put your in your rightful place--her warm and drooly mouth. My heart broke into a million pieces when she said, "Mommy, fix it." because I knew I was the one that caused the damage to begin with.

Purple and White paci, the one that's been here for months and months and months, at four o'clock this morning, after many hours of tears and holding, I was so very sorry I had followed the doctor's advice. All ANY of us wanted was a few good hours of sleep. Despite your significant reduction, M still loves you and is still sucking away on you.

Dearest friend of M, your life is coming to an end. It might be ugly at the Benson household, but you must go. You've only got a few weeks left. Please make this transition easy on all of us. I'll be snipping away bits of you every few nights for the next week or two. Thank you for your good and faithful service to my daughter, but I can't allow you to stay.

Love,
M's Mommy

5 comments:

Christina said...

Oh! I'm so sorry it's been so hard on all of you! I, and probably every other mother out there, can totally imagine how your heart is torn right now. Hugs! Stay strong!

Stacy said...

We did the cold turkey thing with Kai and his paci. It was a tough few weeks at night, but then he was over it and didn't need it anymore. I hope this passes quickly for you!

Anonymous said...

Oh, paci-
My heart breaks for you!! How sad to hear about your painful loss, and your coming demise. Just know that M loves you with all of her heart, and she will ALWAYS remember you!
Nat-
My precious baby girl, Aubrey, LONG LONG ago had to say goodbye to her paci, and at her daddy's suggestion,she put it in a special little box and "buried" it to say goodbye forever. She tried so hard to be a big girl, and she had several tearful days and nights. Eventually, she forgot about her paci, and life was peaceful again. YEARS later, when we were packing to move (she might have been 10 or 11), Aubrey found this same box in our dresser, and when she opened it, she squealed, "MY PACI!" I thought that was THE funniest thing in the world that she vividly remembered it and saying goodbye to it. I pray that things will get easier for all of you in the Benson house concerning the paci withdrawals!
Much love, Andi

Arizaphale said...

I don't know WHAT your Doctor was thinking. Snipping the tip is the equivalent of chewing nicotine gum when trying to give up smoking and I don't know ANYone who gave up on a substitute. Cold turkey is the most successful way. You need to set aside a few nights during which you accept you will have little sleep, a long weekend for instance. Once you have made the decision don't be tempted to go back even for a few hours or you create the conditions for a much longer battle (but you know all about behavioural conditioning...you're a teacher ;-) The average it takes is three sleepless nights.
Anyway, good luck if you decide to go through with it. We'll be cheering you on!

Kimberly said...

Boy, do I feel sorry for you and M too. I've BTDT and it was MISERABLE for both of us.

http://alteringlife.blogspot.com/search/label/pacifier

(The posts read from bottom to top.)

I tried the tip cutting thing too and that just made Bryce really mad. LOL! I ended up taking it away from him cold turkey in the end. Different things work for different people though. I hope M acclimates quickly so everyone is happy again. :)