When to Pull the Plug on BINKY?

1 year is a good cut off time- like bottles. I had two kids that used a binky and two that didn't ever want one. As you have already taken it away I would say keep it away and if they are out of the house altogether they can't show up later:) Distractions like reading at nap and bed time could help.

Hi L.,
I took the binkie away from all 3 of my kids around 16 months. I have a great trick for it! I cut the tip of the binkie off and gave it back to them. They would play with it and take it to bed with them, but that gave them the choice of not using it anymore. It worked great!!!

I pulled my oldest son's pacifier at 18 months. The thing that helped significantly was giving him a substitute comfort item, in his case it was a stuffed toy named fat cat :) You have already done most of the hard work. If you give it back now, it will make the next time even harder, as you will be reinforcing her crying and pleading, so she will be even more insistent if it worked the last time. Since she is older, you could offer to take her to the store to buy a new lovey of her choice, and perhaps this would be a reward to giving up the binky. She will eventually adjust and go back to her normal sleep schedule.

Hi L.,

My daughter got to use her binkies whenever she wanted until Memorial day weekend when she turned 2 1/2. We had her help us hunt for all of the binkies around the house (fun in itself) then she put them in a bag and hung them on a tree outside for the binky fairy. We explained that the fairy would take them to babies that needed them and leave her a gift for being a "big" girl. She went to bed fine and was very excited the next day to find the new toy (in our case, a Littlest Pet Shop Playdough set). She still talks about them sometimes and we remind her how much the little babies love them and that she was so good to share. We have not had any trouble...it was shockingly easy. It really helps to make them a part of the whole process (empowers them). I would suggest pretending like you "found" them and give them back for a week or two and then do the binky fairy. She didn't have the chance to say goodbye to them!

Hi L.: I can sympathize! My son finally gave up his binky at 4! He also only used it at nighttime & occasionally in the car or on airplanes (we travel quite a bit). Luckily, my sister just had a baby so I started telling my son that soon it would be time for us to send his binkies to the baby. On his own one day, he decided that that was the day. So, we made up a package for the "binky fairy" to pick up & deliver to his baby cousin (I actually threw them away!). That night, he asked for his binky & I reminded him that we had sent them to Emma. He said ok & that was it! When he woke up, the binky fairy had left him a small present in the place of his binkies. Every now & then, he'll ask if Emma got his binkies & I tell him that the binky fairy delivered them & she is so grateful that he could share them with her. He never had another problem.

After speaking to my son's dentist, he said the binky wasn't causing any problems & his pediatrician also confirmed that it wasn't affecting his speech or anything, so I think you should just let your daughter decide. Sounds like she isn't ready yet. So, what's the big deal? There is time enough in life to be upset without taking away the one thing that seems to help her sleep & give her some comfort. No one is a better judge than you as to what is best for your daughter. If having a binky makes her happy...why not?! I don't know of any kids taking a binky to college! Good luck!

First, from everything I have read here and outside, plus asking our doctor, the binky is a transitional object so the fact that she has one is no one's "fault" it is a normal part of her growing up. Asking a 3 year old to be "tough" is not reasonable...she needs something to comfort herself when you are not there - she doesn't have the emotional skills yet to just think comforting thoughts.

My doctor suggested the same thing I read here, first move to having it for naps and in the car only. Then on some predetermined date (we are shooting for our daughters 3rd birthday - but other dates would work), after making a big deal of it ahead of time with her participation, give the pacifiers to the binky fairy in exchange for something else. A woman here had a great idea to decorate a basket, etc. leaving it outside together before bed. If she has another transitional object, then give her something she has been clamoring for...if not, consider giving her a soft doll or toy, what have you, for her to sleep with instead. Remember she is just figuring out how to comfort herself, not trying to make you angry...

Something I think I read here that helps me when I think about anything the "experts" say they should get rid of at a certain age...it is highly unlikely she will head off to college still using her binky (or bottle, or blanky, what have you...) so as long as it isn't causing harm, who cares?

K.

Hi L.,
We went longer than we probably should have with pacifiers, though we did it similarly as you, we only used the pacifiers for bed and nap. We got rid of bottles and pacifiers in the same way, based on a book that I read and really liked this persons approach. I think the title was, Pacifiers,blankets, bottles and bears: Why they are important and when to say good-bye. This author talked about the importance of using these things as either soothing objects or transitional objects, which amounts to the same thing, soothing. He spoke about given a three day warning before saying "good-bye" and even gave a scripted suggestion of how to do it. I used most of his suggestions, and of course made it our own. The gist of the three day warning, was to respect that children need to know, not to surprise them, and to also entrust that they can MOVE THROUGH the transition and to honor that there will be grief/sadness. To me it really spoke to respect, the realness of the loss and his last piece was to emphasize that at the time when you say "good-bye" it's because it's a part of the growing up process. Then he speaks about how it can be a respectful way of honoring the transition by pointing out the ways that your child is growing and changing. As I started to write this email I asked my boys, fraternal twins if they remembered saying good-bye to their pacifier. They did, they remembered taking them to the recycling center and being sad. I noticed that having done it this way, they seemed to find something else to snuggle and soothe themselves for naps and bedtime. I wish I could remember the name of the book, or the author, you could google it. I hope this is helpful. It can be hard, but it can be done.
Best of luck.
A little about me: PTWM, school counselor, wonderful husband, 43 and fraternal 5 year old twin boys.

You have a lot of good perspectives here. This is one of those topics we all seem to experience isn't it. My daughter turned 3 in Feb and we are in the same dilemna...binky or no binky? Well, I did attempt to transition them out when she was not quite 3 years old; they were getting old and worn out, so we talked about how they had to be thrown away. She was totally OK with that process. We did it over a matter of 2-3 days, obliterating all 3 of them. However, she clearly needed oral soothing (she already has a lovey lamb and that's not sufficient)...and I saw her put her thumb in her mouth. Since I was a thumb sucker until I was in 3rd grade, I didn't want to see the thumb sucking...at least the binkies are easier to keep clean and less likely to cause dental changes... So, we didn't fight the matter and bought larger, clean/new ones together. Just 1 pack of 2. And told her that this is the last set because they don't make them for bigger kids and that she is going to outgrow these soon (we told her no binkies for 4 year olds). That I hope will give her plenty of transition time! LOL. Also, like you are doing, she only gets them at bedtime and naptime. We'll see... I am going with the assumption that she is a child that needs oral soothing (apparently I did too at that age!)...and I would rather be able to control the binkie than have her suck her thumb... Hope this perspective adds to your repetoire as you make a decision! :)

I feel your pain. Been there, done that. I decided to ditch the binky with both my girls at the same time (ages 3 and 2 at the time.) I took the girls' binkies and we went to Build A Bear. They picked out an animal. We had them add the binky's to the stuffing of the bear. The folks their were great and had the girls help put their binky in the animal they selected. They had a great time. My older daughter was sad the first night without her binky until I reminded her that her binky was still with her but in her bear. She was happy with that answer. It did take her longer to go to sleep the first week, but after that, it was smooth sailing. I had no idea it would be such a smooth transition for her. She was addicted to her "B". She had it in her mouth all the time.
My younger daughter (2) wasn't as attached to hers. She only needed hers at night. However, I beleive I took hers away too soon. She started sucking her fingers to sooth herself to sleep. Sigh. You can't take those away.
Good luck!

She is three years old. She is old enough to go without the binky! I saw this on one of those nanny shows with a kid that wouldn't give up the binky (actually, I think it's the parent that's not willing to take it away....but anyways). They had her go around the house and help the family collect all her binky's (every last one of them) and then put them in a large envelope. They sent them to the "binky fairy" so that she could send them to children that didn't have any. The next morning she went to check the mail and the "fairy" had left her something special (whatever you deem cool) and bunch of fairy dust. SHe thought it was cool.
Here's the thing, it's not your daughter's fault that she is still suckin' away on the binky. You have to be strong enough to help her through this. Yes, it will be hard, she has a habit of three years to break! Yes, she will cry, and whine, and get angry...all very normal things. But if you throw those binky's away, so there's no chance that you will give in, she will HAVE TO learn how to self soothe with no binky. Be strong mama.

We had a similar response when we took our son's pacifier away at almost 3. He has never really napped the same since, but bedtime did definitely go back to normal. I think he was growing out of the nap anyway. But it's hard to accept those changes, isn't it! My daughter is now approaching 2 and is soooo attached to her "bobber", I'm starting by trying to limit it to her bed, but she goes in and gets it all the time. I think she'll be a tougher case than my son was.

Way to go, making your decision and sticking with it! Don't second guess yourself (you did the right thing, she wouldn't have weaned herself), and don't go back on your decision. She'll fall into a good sleep routine again, and even if it changes somewhat permanently, did you really want that binky around any longer? I'm guessing no.

I'm probably the only one that is gonna say "she'll wean herself". Eventually the nipple on the binky won't fit in her mouth in a comfortable way and she'll have to 'work' to keep it in....that will no longer be soothing. I don't know why we as a society are so ready to take away the things that naturally soothe our children. The binky won't hurt her teeth, it flexes as she sucks so it's not moving her teeth from a normal position (and as a thumb-sucker I can tell you not everybody's teeth get ruined, I didn't stop until I was 10 and I've never had braces). I took my 1st son's binky away at 4, he was pretty ok with it - but he started grinding his teeth in his sleep. I decided I'd rather have a 'binky habit' than a grinding habit that would for certain ruin his teeth! So I gave it back, by 5 he didn't use it anymore 'cuz it was just too small for staying in his mouth. I do agree with the "go with your gut"....but also ask yourself WHY do you want to do this? What benefit is there to taking away a comfort object from your child? I don't know of any teenagers or adults that can't get to sleep without their binky......
I know people will be shocked at me and say I'm wrong....but I just don't understand the drive to 'take away' from the comfort of our kids ~ it's not hurting anybody, it's not out in public, it makes her happy....where's the bad in that??

Good luck with whatever you do! :)

I personally got rid of the binky for my daughter at 9 months. First we would only give it to her at nap times and night time. (No more during the day) Then we starting doing only early nap and night time. Then only night time. Then one night she was mad and threw it and we couldnt find it so we decided that was the night to give it up for good. She cried for about 30-40 minutes that night and each night lowered in minutes of how long she cried for it and that only lasted a couple nights. You can pick your own times of when she gets it and when its no more, but just stay consistent. Good Luck!

*I really liked the idea of putting the binky in the build-a-bear

L.,

We pulled the plug on the pacifier for our twin boys when they started showing more dependence on it than just naps and bed also! They were about 19 months. We are now almost 2 yrs, and they are doing great.

It did take a while for the youngest to adjust, and nap times did change a bit. They go down now around 12:30 instead of 11am. We just adjusted the routine to keep the plug away.

I would not give in just to get her to sleep. Just talk with her and explain that even though she will always be your baby she is also a big girl now. You love her. she does not need the baby binky anymore...just repeat over and over each day if needed. Keep her busy and introduce a new thing like reading by herself for nap (this also helped my boys).

Good luck.

T.

Our doctor tells us age 3 is when the pacifiers should be gone. When weaning our first child, we started preparing her a few weeks before her third birthday. We told her that we would say goodbye to the last remaining pacifier on her birthday. She had a hard time for the first week, but then she only asked for it at random times, then forgot about it completely. And to make it kinda fun, you can cut the tip of the pacifier off and tie it to a helium balloon, and at the end of the birthday, let the balloon go up into the sky, and she can watch it happen. It makes it a little more final for them. Depending on the child, I think this is a great method. And don't worry about the nap times, she will nap if she's tired enough, just make sure she gets a "quiet time" in her room, and if she falls asleep, great!

whatever you do, don't give it back to her! my daughter was 2.5 when i decided it should go. like your daughter, she only used it at bedtimes & naptimes. i got rid of all but 1 and then one day the last one just disappeared! :) she cried for maybe 20 minutes, then fell asleep. the following days i'd hear her on the monitor telling her toys about it and how much she missed it. then it stopped... every once in a while i'll catch her stealing her baby brother's pacifier, she just giggles when she knows she's caught and gives it back. your daughter will be fine without it. she just needs to get used to not having it. good luck & try not to give in... you both will get through it in no time.

**** i didn't read your "so what happened" when i added my 2 cents... i think your right if you are transitioning her into a new bed in a new house, binky may need to appear to comfort her.

We have given both our girls a binky. We were lucky our first was very easy to break of the habit(@ 18mos). She was staying w/ my brother & sister -n-law for a long weekend & they forgot to give it to her & that was the end of it.
Obviously your daughter isn't giving it up that easy, but I would say since it has already been this many days stick to it. It will be hard for a while but do you really want to have to start the process over again down the road.
I read your update & I think moving to a big girl bed will make it easier. Explain to her that the binky is for babies who sleep in cribs & now that she is a big girl w/ a big girl bed she can't use it anymore.
She will eventually start sleeping again the way she was before. It takes them a while to adjust when changes are made but kids are resilient. Good luck!

I think that to give it back now would send the message that if you cry long enough, beg long enough, etc. mom will eventually give in. Half the battle is already won right now, if she's gone a few days without it. To give it back now means those days were wasted effort. If she's almost 3, then it isn't going to get ANY easier to take it away. She's just going to get MORE dependant on it, and LESS cooperative. Hold your ground. This is only one of many battles you will face as she grows up. I know it isn't easy. You haven't permanantly sacrificed your easy sleeper, you've just put her temporarily on hold LOL. Hang in there, you aren't the first mom tearing out her hair while the child goes through binky withdrawl.

Stand your ground, she will adjust. You help no one by giving it back. You are not being mean, you are being strong and there is a big difference.(bully vs. protector)
Happy parenting!

she is testing you. hang tough and stick with your decision. if you give in now, she will start to learn that with enough antics, you will give in for whatever the next battle is. If you really must give in, then compromise. Cut about 1/4-1/2 inch off the end of the binky and tell her she can have that much (my son used to just hold them in his hand to fall asleep when I cut the ends off and finally that lost its appeal). Tell her to take it or leave it.

At this point, my advice to you is to hold the course now that decision has been made. If she seems to be really missing it in a couple weeks, you might reconsider giving it back to her -- one of the big things that I am learning as a parent (ahh, children -- the best at delivering ongoing life lessons) is that sometimes I need to admit to myself (when warranted, and it may not necessarily be the case here) that it's OK to compromise, admit that I was wrong with a course of action/discipline, etc. This was NOT me two and a half years ago! :)

Our little girl is nearly 2, and we're OK with her continuing to need her binky until she's done with it (whenever that is). I agree with the mom who said there are just bigger battles to fight -- and when our pediatrician suggested that we try to substitute a blanky or stuffed animal as a comfort object (which we tried -- that it seems to me that this solution also comes with its won pros/cons as the item wears out, etc.), I thought: What difference does it make comfort item she needs/wants? I'd rather have her using a binky than doing other stuff that kids will sometimes do to comfort themselves!

L.,

We are having the same issues with my 14 month old twins - I decided to "pull the plug" sooner rather than later, in hopes of preventing further attachment to the addictive little things that get lost in their cribs & dropped on the floor & I have to search around for in the dark at 5:oo AM. My husband wanted to cave, but I am insisting we stand our ground. I really think you should do the same. I know it is not easy, but if you cave now, who knows when she will be able to give it up on her own.

GOOD LUCK!

When they start biting through the nipple it poses a health risk. Be firm and stick to that, no matter how much she fusses. My kids fussed for a few days but I was firm and didn't relent, I told them they were big kids now and big kids don't use binkies. What I did to ease the transition was to find a "lovey" like a small blanket or stuffed animal they like already and let them have that. Ny daughter had a blanket she always slept with, now she's 7 and has graduated to sleeping with a stuffed animal.
My son slept with his favorite matchbox car for the longest time and now, at 10 he just sleeps with a teddy bear. Hope this helps. Best of luck

I need help too, so I wanted to see what others responded to you with. Great question!

good ? I am trying to figure out the same thing???????

L.,

Stand firm!! She's had three years with the plug, and only three days without it. She is going through a type of withdrawal.

With my kids it went away the night before they turned one. My husband and I refused to have our children be 3-4 years old and trying to talk around the plug in their mouth. Seeing as how your daughter is a bit older there are a few things you might want to try.

If you still have them have her help you decorate a small box to put them in, then leave it outside for the "Binky fairy" to come get one night. The fairy can also leave a small present for your daughter to find in the morning.

Just totally cutting her off from the things may not have been the best idea, but she is definitely old enough to not need them. You might want to check out SuperNanny.com for some more ideas on how to get rid of the things, with your daughter's help.

Hope this helps,
Melissa

I just read your response about maybe letting her keep it for a while because of getting used to the big bed. While, of course, that is an option, with our son, that was actually when we made the transition.

Around the time he turned two, we put him in a big boy bed and that was the same night he no longer got his soother. We prepared him for a few days in advance so that you could ask him, "What does it mean when you turn two?" and he would respond excitedly "a big boy bed!", and then we'd say, "And what else?", to which he would respond in a sad voice while shaking his head, "Nooo soother." It was actually very cute and he got hugs for that. When it was time, he was sad but not tantrumy for the first two nights, and then everything was fine.

It just takes a little bit for them to learn other ways to soothe themselves to sleep, but they will!

(As for weaning themselves, I know someone who was allowed a soother for years and at the age of ten, still liked to suck on one when she came across them. Seeing as she didn't do it all the time, I don't know if you'd consider that a problem or not.)

Do not give it back. If you do it will never go away. My grandson was 4 before my daughter finally took it away. It effected his teeth growth according to the dentest who told my daughter that a binky is fine in the first couple of months but should be taken away soon after, and why give it to a child to start with. I agree, I can find no good reason to start a child on one to start with, except with a child who may have a sucking problem and it is used to help them in learning to suck. When my daughter was born 42 days early, the peds nurse showed me how to use a bottle to help her learn to suck, just putting enough formala or breast milk in a bottle using a Nuk nipple, the reaon for the milk in the bottle was that it would prevent her sucking air which could result in colic.
If you give in now you lost the battle to ever take it away. I realize it is not only h*** o* her but also stressful to you. Beleave me, in time, which will seem like it will never end, that it will,
Good Luck, Be Strong

I prepared my son, by telling him that when he turned 3, he had to get rid of his binky. He wanted to go to preschool so bad, that I told him no binkies at preschool. A few days after his 3rd birthday we went to build-a-bear and put the binky in a bear. He can feel the binky in the bear and cuddles that if he needs it.

Stick with it! I was terrified to take our 2 year ols binky away. One night, he decided he wanted to take a new stuffed kitty and dog to be, so we decided it was time and we took each binky and gave it one last suck and then put each of them in a ziploc baggie and then he placed it in the garbage can for final closure! I was so worried about him not sleeping, but he actually slept better, not waking up looking for it. When he would ask we would just tell him he was a big boy and that he threw them all away. The stuffed animals served as something else to soothe him and he loves his kitty and doggie and now we don't leave home for overnights without them, but they are better than a yucky binky! Good Luck and it will only get better!!

Hi L.,
First of all I want to say good job. Keep it up. I would say stand your ground. My son got rid of his binki on his own. I did the only at nap time, and only bed time or in the car. Then soon car time got taken away too. Then finally one day, at nap time he was upset didn't want to take his nap he fought me in his crib... threw everything out, includeing his binki. I snuck in there to check on him and he was asleep, and binki was on the floor and cup too, and i took both out and after his nap he woke up and didn't even ask for it... and to this day he hasn't had one, and that was about 8 months ago... we thought it would be a reminder to see his cousins, one who is older by 6 months and one who is younger by 6 months to have one, but he knows that they are theirs and not his, and he has never asked for one again. But as my mom tells me, every child is different, they will when they are ready. So you can keep up what your doing, and being persistant, and soon it will all be over... I think however if you do give it back to her, you might be showing her that you are giving in. But when I was in that position it was hard for me to say no to. Good luck!!!

Ps. SAHM mom of a 2 1/2 year old all boy, and 8 year old soon to be step daughter!

I have no idea, but I will be in the same boat, so I want to know what you found out.

Okay...here's my two cents. My first child was a binky baby. Around 2 or so we told her she could have her binky any time she wanted as long as she was laying in her bed. This worked fine. Sometimes should just go lay down for 10 minutes in the middle of the day and then be done. Sometime between 3 and 4 she lost the binky down the crack of her bed and we just said "bummer I guess it's gone." I fished it out later and hid it just to see what would happen and she ended up being fine with it. So that was that...I got off easy I know. BUT...I would have given it back to her if she wasn't ready to part with it. And by the way, her teeth are perfect, she doesn't need braces.

My 2nd child is a thumb sucker...she's 5 and a half and still sucks her thumb. And you know what? I don't really care. I figure how many 10 year olds do you see walking around sucking their thumb or with a binky in their mouth? None. She'll give it up when she's ready. I've got bigger battles to fight than to take away a comfort habit she has. As far as her teeth...I don't know. They coming in perfect so far. Maybe that will change and she'll have to have braces. Again, who cares? Not me. Lots of kids have to have braces and don't suck their thumbs or have binkies.

Anyway, to recap...I'm sort of a "don't sweat the small stuff" type of mom. To me, this is small stuff and isn't somthing I worried/worry about. So if you want to give her her binkies back and get the sleep routine back then go ahead!

Good luck!

L. H

PS I'm a sahm to 9 and 5 year old girls.

PSS...If you're really determined to get rid of the binky, a friend of mine snipped the ends of her daughters binkies so they had a big crack in them. The daughter was immediately done with them because it didn't feel the same.

after about 18months the binkys are only for bedtime in our house.... i dont make them go away until age 4. this is after a few converstaions with our pediatric dentis and our pediatrician.... its not the end of the world. no child goes to kindergarten with a binky.

You are right to stand your ground. You started down the path...stick with it. We went cold turkey one Thursday night (our daughter got it at night, naptime and in the car - bad, i know). Oh man...was she cranky! But, we substituted "pinky" (bear) and now that's what she wants at bedtime. (Naps & the car are binky/pinky free with no crankiness.) By Monday, she was totally over it. Good job - stay strong!

My son used his binky until a couple months before he turned 6 years. He was very attached to his binky for sleep time, and we let him decide when to discard it. He would not let his friends,cousins or anyone but his dad and I know about this - as he would always hide it in his pillow case. When he finally brought it to me and said he was done - I stuck it in a ziploc bag with a note, and the date he surrendered. No worries from the dentist - his teeth were fine. For whatever reason - that was his security and comfort.
Today my son is 13, my only child, I work from home so I am here before and after school each day. FYI - I am now 53 -- sounds like we were both 40 yrs when we had our babies.
Good luck and enjoy every moment!

Ohhhh...that's tough. I'd say, at this point, stick it out. You've made a choice, and a h*** o*e at that, but you've already toughed it out so far. To go back on your choice now would send her mixed messages. She'll think if she just complains enough, you will give in.
Yes, she wants it. But I bet she wants a lot of things that you don't indulge her (junk food, staying up late, etc.) because they are bad for her. I'd say the longer you let the binky continue can cause speech developement issues and tooth growth probs.
She may have already been ready to give up that nap, but was taking it and soothing herself with the binky because it was easy.
Kids her age need sleep and I suspect that after a few days adjustment she will tire her out enough to start going to sleep at night at her regular time.
Good luck!

I would say if you can hold on your daughter will get past this just fine. Explain to her that she is getting to be a big girl, which you have probably done already, and it is time to do what big girls do. I have never hear of a 3 year old being scared from this.
Lots of Luck
L.

2 cents for other mom's looking for advice: We took the binkies away when our kids were around 9 months, and the children were quick to recover. I think the older they are the harder it is for everyone.

Hold your ground, she will get over it. If you give it back it will be ten times harder next time because she will remember you gave in the first time. She will eventually learn she is not getting it back. Does she have something else for comfort at night, like a favorite blankie or stuffed toy, for this can also help the transition. As for weening her self, I just moved from England, and there they are big on the whole weening ones self, and I constantly saw children as old as 5 and 6 walking around with binkys!! I weened my son at about 16 months. I have always felt that once they are walking around well, and sleeping in a toddler bed, it is time to continue becoming a big boy by losing the bink.

stand your ground now. dont give in. she will adjust in a day or two. but kids are smarter than we give them credit for. stand your ground now because she is now figuring out how to push moms buttons to get what she wants. You can stand your ground and be kind about it but it is important. It will help you both with future issues. My kids know that Mom means what she says most of the time. You always have to be reasonable but there are issues where the parent just needs to be the parent.
good luck:)
J.

You are doing it just the right time. My daughter's doctor said they should be done with the Binky by three for sure because it's bad for their teeth.

I lost almost a week's worth of sleep when I went through the weaning process. But think of it like any other vice, such as smoking and you'll get through it. I know it's hard, but you're doing great!

My 2 yrd grand daughetr was the same way..I started telling her when she was three she would be too big for a binky and cuase she would be a big girl then. this was repeated everytime she got her binky .
On the day she turned 3 in an effort to make her daughter stop whining my step daughter offered her the binky. My grand daughter took the binky and threw it away because she was a big girl.
End of Binky.
Oh and she stopped whining too. That day anyway!

Hi L.:

I took the bink away telling my daughter that Santa Clause wanted as a present for him this coming X-mas her binky and that he was going to bring her something special in return. But she needed to work on not using it becuase it was going to be for Santa. So I've put the binky in a nice box togehter with her. Everytime that she wanted I've remindered her of the special present he will bring her if she does not used it because it was her present to Santa. We had a hard time for two weeks and after that she was fine. Also my when she turned two she did not took afternnon naps and when to bed at 8:00pm. If she napped then she went to bed at 10:00pm.
Hope it will work for you.

Rossana

hmm now that i think about it, my daughter did quit napping at home (she would do it at preschool, the nerve) after we took away her binky. also getting her to bed was a pain too. but you've already started down that road, you might as well finish what you started. i think the farther away you get from 2, the harder it will be to take away. hang in there! she'll catch on eventually.

My son still uses his binky too and he'll be 3 in a few months. A friend of mine actually did something really neat that I will try in the fall. They took their 3 yr old daughter to the Create A Bear store at the mall and let her pick out her own animal to create. There's a station where you can place a heart into your animal and that's where they placed her binky inside of her animal. Anyhow- they made it really fun and this way she gets to keep her binky too. The first couple of nights were tricky as she asked for her binky for bedtime. However they reminded her that her bear was holding her binky for her and she went to bed with her new bear instead.

Stay strong mom. You can do this. It is hard to take something away, but I promise it will get easier. We had this problem when we had to take away my sons bottle. Bedtime and nap time became a battle, but we held strong and we won the battle. You can do this.

I suggest not letting the binky appear again...it will lead to a much much harder letting go later. We had gotten rid of the binky and then my mom found one when they visited a month after we got rid of it and gave it to our daughter and it lead to a 4 months struggle to get it away again and a lot of tears and I can't survive with out its. This was also just for night time. Do you let your daughter fall asleep to music we do that instead and it works great just a suggestion.