Kicking the Habit

First I must confess that we allowed this habit to fester for far too long. But we couldn't take the whining, the pleading, the tears. I would stand in the aisle at the store and tell myself I was crazy for giving in to his demands. Then I would give in and enable his behavior.
I am proud to say it has all come to an end.

NO MORE PACIFIERS FOR LUKE!

It's about time, you say. It's only been three and a half years! That's 3 and a half years of naps, car rides and bedtimes where he lulled himself to sleep with his delightful "binky". No going back in his room for drinks of water, endless bed time stories. There was very little whining and fussing. Just in the bed with his binky and lovey (security blanket...we'll probably wrestle that one from his grip right before he steps on the school bus for the first time).
We purchased his last set of pacifiers last Sunday. He chewed holes in them by Tuesday. I was a bit irritated. So, I told him the trash man took his binkies away because there were holes in them and they didn't work anymore. That actually went over pretty well. He only cried one time, but he has slept through his naps and at night without any problems.
Now, frequent flyers here at the blog (all 10 of you) may recall a previous post where I forced him to walk away from a certain red car that he insisted he MUST have. I promised he could have one as soon as he gave up the binkies. Do you know that's the first thing he remembered after sleeping through the night without his pacifier? Last night we all piled in the minivan and went to Fred Meyer so he could select the much-coveted Lightnin' McQueen. That car makes the most obnoxious noises. Such noises provided the background for our breakfast this morning. Steve looked at me and said, "better than having a binky, eh?"