Release of the Binkies

So this afternoon I did it.  I really did it.  I've been telling Canon for about 4 days now that after the weekend, he was not going to have the binkies anymore.  I told him he wasn't going to have them for nap time or for bed time, and he told me he understood.  So...I stuck to my word, and I got rid of them.  I tried to make it more fun and kind of ceremonial for him...but it didn't quite work out like I expected.

We got the balloons...

we got ALL the binkies...

attached them to the balloons...

Then we took them outside to release them into the air.  

Once it was time to release them, Canon would not let go.  I let him keep one balloon for himself as a reward for actually saying good-bye to his binkies, but maybe I should have thought of a different treat.  I think the binkies could've used that extra lift to get them up.  You'll notice at the end of the video that two of the 5 balloons popped, so they didn't even make it over the fence.  I just threw them over myself afterwards.

He seemed perfectly fine after the fact...even happy to take a picture!

Isn't he just so cute?!?!
I think the binky was starting to have an effect on the shape and position of his pearly whites, so that was a major motivator to break the habit quickly.

But it was getting time for a nap.

 I expected that he would suffer a little withdrawal; I'm not that naive!  Sure enough, when it was time to go down he cried for about 10 solid minutes...maybe longer.  After I left his room I went outside to see if I could retrieve some of the balloons or even his least favorite binky.  (Maybe if he learned that the only binky he was allowed to have was the one he didn't like, he would just give them up altogether on his own?)  When I got out there, they were gone.  Oh well, that was the plan anyway!  Once he stopped crying, and I'm assuming he fell asleep, his nap was about half as long as usual.  He woke up in an alright mood, so I was ok with it.

So, he will probably be crying for it for the next couple days, but I will be happy to be rid of that binky for good.  He's going to have a baby sister soon, and I really don't want him to resent her for being allowed to have a binky when he's not.  I'd much prefer that he's totally over it by the time she comes into the picture.  *crossing my fingers**  :-)