If you don't like violence, please turn away. I'm about to beat myself up. See, I'm a big old faker pants. A giver-inner. A not-stand-your-grounder. A one-step-forward, two steps backer. I'm no baby whisperer, that's for sure.
I gave Punkin' her higgie back.
We did really well with the taking it away. REALLY well. All week, every time she asked for it I would remind her that we put it in the trash and she would say "Oh. Okay." (She always sounded so resigned when she said this it always made me a little sad, like "Why did I have to say we threw it in the trash? That sounds so wasteful." My mom compared to having someone tell me that they threw chocolate in the trash. The horror. The horror!)
So anyway, she woke up Saturday morning with the beginnings of a cold. And THEN she refused to take a nap on Saturday. For the record, this is the second time this has happened since we gave up the higgie. I am NOT ready for her to drop her nap. NOT READY AT ALL! Back to the story -- for the most part the day was good, but on Saturday evening the you-know-what hit the fan. The cold plus the lack of sleep made her uber-cranky. And when Punkin' ain't happy, ain't nobody happy. She makes this lovely whining sound (and when I say lovely I really mean nails on the chalkboard annoying) over and over. And remember? If she cries a lot, she'll throw up. Yay!
So, I decided to put her to bed early to compensate for the no nap. With no higgie. And she whined. And she cried. And she whined. And she gagged. And gentle reader, I couldn't handle it anymore. When Mr. Daddy suggested that we give her higgie, it was already in my hand (we had never really thrown it away. What am I, NUTS?). I went into her room in the dark and handed it to her. I could tell she was confused at first. It didn't go into her mouth right away. But then she made this little noise -- it could only be described as a little mew of contentment-- popped that sucker in and rolled over and went to sleep. And she's had it ever since.
I know I'm going to regret this down the road. And I knew it Saturday night when I gave it back to her. But ahhhh! The sound of silence! Like a balm for the soul. And the ears.
Mixed Bag
12 years ago
Posts
9 comments:
Aww, poor sick little baby. She needed it. You did the right thing. Try again when she's healthier. I am truly terrified of the day I decide to take Charlotte's bippy. I figure I'll wait till she's 17.
Ah, the simple joys of motherhood. Look, is there a "right" answer to most of it? Do what works. And try not to beat yourself up over it. Save your strength for the next battle--you know there will always be one.
Hope Pun'kin is feeling better. Poor baby!
Poor little Punkin'! I would have done exactly the same thing. She NEEDED her higgie, dang it! You are a good mommy for that.
Ah, we went through this many times with Little Brother and his passy, so I know exactly how you feel. But there's nothing like a peacefully sleeping child, especially when it's been a hard day and you'd give anything for a few minutes of quiet. Right?
I read your blog before breakfast then saw this on the comics page in the paper: http://www.gocomics.com/boundandgagged/ (If you don't look today, click Oct. 8 on the calendar.)
hehe, no higgie worries, it'll be gone for good eventually! you gotta do what you gotta do, girl!
Hey - whatever works! You did the right thing!
It's really hard to take that comfort away. We're almost 4 weeks in (with no naps during that time!) and I'm just so grateful she hasn't gotten sick yet. Don't beat yourself up!
you're fine...we didn't even attempt to take Gavin's binky away until February (he was 4 months shy of his 3rd b-day), meanwhile I got to listen to my sisters-in-law and friends and other random family members (gaw! that binky must've annoyed them since most live a good 6+ hours away!) brag that their babies were done with their binkies by 3 months blah blah blah. Sorry...I have an orally-fixated child. He wanted his binky, I wanted peace-and-quiet in the privacy of our own home (plus, it came in handy during my grandfather's funeral so that he's quit chirping loudly at all the people and toys during prayers). She's your Punkin and if you decide to let her have it until age 20, that's your perogative as a parent (and higgies and binkies seem way less dangerous than other things, like those damn tonka trucks when they've become airborne).
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