Friday, October 3, 2008

Bye Bye Binkies!

Last Saturday, in between rain squalls, Austin agreed it was time to send his binkies off to the Binky Fairy.
Well, he may have been more excited about the present than relinquishing his binkies, but nonetheless the binkies were going.
We had been prepping him for days and he was ready. Of course, we hadn't counted on the nearly constant rain. But, shortly before the sun set there was a break and we headed out with his four binkies and six balloons to send them off.
I tied the binkies to the balloon ribbons and immediately knew we had a problem. The binkies were an effective weight to ground the balloons. I removed one. Plunk! Right to the ground. I removed another one. Same story.
I looked at Mark and asked him what we were going to do if six balloons wouldn't even raise one lone binky. He shrugged and said, "I don't know try again tomorrow with more balloons." No way! The current balloons would be deflated by then and I would have to go and waste even more money on balloons.
I was determined to make it work.
I removed another binky, leaving one, and prayed that it would float.
Float would be a loose term for what was happening when one binky was tied on. I looked at Mark and he just shrugged. Thankfully, during all of this time Austin was busy stomping in puddles and didn't realize that we had thrown the other binkies in the trash. We decided to pray for a breeze and release the balloons from the top of our hill.

Shortly after releasing them they were hovering, though moving, just a few feet above the grass.

Austin took off after them saying, "Uh oh! I get em Mommy, I get em." We were cracking up laughing at our luck. Our plan was failing miserably! Austin was chasing the balloons and was only a few feet from catching them. What would we tell him if we couldn't get this to work? I was sick of the guilt I was feeling over the fact that he would be three in a few months and was still using binkies to get to sleep.
Suddenly, God heard my prayer and a lovely breeze swept through.

Up went the balloons and one little binky. Austin waved bye bye and cheered the balloons to go higher.

Success!!!
Well, until that wind died down and the balloons started heading for the tree line. Mark pointed out the potential for disaster and I quickly called Austin to come back up the hill to distract him. When he reached the top of the hill the balloons were about to find a new home.

I pointed high into the sky so that he wouldn't see them get stuck in the trees. I told him to tell the Binky Fairy to take good care of his binkies and send him a good present. He asked for tractors, waved to the sky and went back to playing in the puddles.
That night he did fine. He didn't even ask for a binky. Though it took him a little longer to fall asleep, he didn't shed a tear. I anticipated a much harder time, but it was no problem.
In the morning, he found a note attached to a gift outside his bedroom door. It read

Dear Austin,
Thank you for sending me your binkies. I will take good care of them.
Hope you enjoy your present.
Love,
The Binky Fairy

In the box were a few new miniature John Deere tractors that he had been eyeing at Target. He has played with them non-stop since then. He now sleeps with tractors instead of binkies. What a relief!

This morning I went out on the deck to check on the balloons. Yep, still there nearly a week later.

However, thanks to some very windy weather today, this afternoon they were finally gone. Whew!!!

PhotoStory Friday
Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

28 comments:

Juliana said...

wow..nice catch to follow those....bye bye binkies....

Mine : in HERE. Hope you have time to visit also. Thanks

Cecily R said...

That's a great idea...I guess it won't work for bottles though. :)

Great pics!

Lacey in the Sky said...

That's so cute :) He was such a big boy! He don't need no stinkin' binkies! I love that idea!

imbeingheldhostage said...

What a great idea? Where were you when I bribed four of my five to give theirs up?!
Nice PSF! :-)

Leslie said...

lol! That is just too cute. I can't believe that those balloons barely held up one binky. I've heard many stories about giving up binky, so I've tried to avoid it happening here. I've gathered up the binkies and put them up in the cupboard. I only give one to Alexa if she asks. She used to need it ALL the time. She hasn't asked in a while. So I'm glad its going smoothly now. I don't want to fight her later. Glad Austin did so well with giving his up to the binky fairy. Cute pics!

The DeBolt Family said...

Oh my goodness, Susan, what a great idea! And how funny is that!!! Hilarious!!!

tiarastantrums said...

that is really cute - and a great idea - poor little guy running after them!

Lisa @ Boondock Ramblings said...

Oh! That is so cute!

I wish I could have done this with my son's binky...but they were attached to my chest.

*sigh*

Congrats on the success!

Unknown said...

Hehe! I was giggling at how they were in the trees a week later :)

What a great idea for a binky fairy! I must use this method for Isabella :)

Anonymous said...

How Sweet. I love that God gave you the wind you needed. :o)

Lacey In The Sky's comment has me cracking up. In the really Out Loud way, not just "lol." Hoo! Good times, good times.

Blessings, Whitney

AutoSysGene said...

Oy, the binky's that just wouldn't leave, huh?

I'm glad that Austin didn't have a hard time adjusting to be binkyless. And the note from the Binky Fairy...genius!

Danyele Easterhaus said...

super fun! a good idea! we buried #1's pacifiers in the backyard and tried to grow a pacifier tree.

Midwest Mom said...

You are such a creative parent.

My oldest son was the only one who had a 'binky'. He sucked it so hard that it left a red mark on his face. We did the tough thing and gradually weaned him off of it by restricting the places where he could have it in his mouth.

It took us about 6 months.

(How I wish I read your blog back then!) ;)

-MM

Weeksie50 said...

What a great idea. And how fun for your little guy..

I teach pre-k and every year.. I have a couple of kids who still have one and try to sneak it in their backpacks.. 4 year olds.. can you believe it..

Anonymous said...

*LOL* Doesn't that just figure?! I'm glad it has been easier than anticipated.

Unknown said...

Great idea, glad it finally worked. BTW, thanks for your comment on Home Schooling. I don't think I could ever do it, but I think hard about it. I just hate all the time that is wasted.

Anonymous said...

Hey! What a brilliant idea. Love it! We don't have a binky issue but the next time we come across a stubborn habit I'm going to try to adapt the binky fairy idea. Thanks!

Kristen said...

That is just too funny!

That so would have happened to Chet and I.

Glad to hear that he was easily distracted by the tractors.

Wish I could use this same technique to get Cade to stop sucking his thumb. Hmmmmm.

Have a great weekend Susan!

Chris said...

The first day without binkies is such a liberating feeling. This is a great idea. Sometimes kids just surprise you with how well they cope with things. Don't feel guilty about the three years -- each kid goes at his own pace.

Anonymous said...

THAT IS PRECIOUS!!!

what I great idea!!!

Carrie and Troy Keiser said...

I've never heard of the binki fairy, I might have to tell my brother,he's got one that is quite attached!
Glad that he did SO well!

cherish.photography said...

you are super mom with super ideas! Thanks for sharing your tips and tricks!

Wendy said...

Susan, Kind blogger friend. I was tagged and now you have been too! I can't wait to read about the 7 quirky/random things you tell about yourself. Come to my site for details!

Carol said...

Oh yay!! Binkie-less. That is great. I need to do this for Eli. He only has his to sleep but he is almost 2 and a half. Thomas left his for Santa maybe we'll do the same this year.

Laural Out Loud said...

That last picture had me laughing out loud! How funny. At our house, the binky fairy just showed up during the day and took them while Gabi was playing. She was so angry at the mean binky fairy, but that night went right to sleep. So much easier than I thought it was going to be, and such a relief.

Wendi said...

Hilarious!
Talk about things not going according to plan.
Ugh!
I am glad you were there armed with a camera.
The story was priceless...the story plus photos...even better!

Casey's trio said...

Well, my girls are past 3 and still have their binkies, but only in their crib. I like this idea and when it is time for ours to go, I'm totally using it.

Amanda @ notsoextraordinary said...

if i end up having to take binkies away later on in life i'm totally using this idea! buuuut... i'll take a lesson from your experience and get a few more balloons ;)