The Paci Wars: Day 1, Vol.1

We actually started on this epic journey Wednesday. When Charlie awoke I told him, 'In 3 days, it's time to say bye bye to the Paci. You are going to be a big boy!' I repeated this mantra everytime he went near the bed or the car(places where he usually has his beloved Effi). As the days changed, so did the number. 'In 2 days...' 'Tomorrow...' I have also been witholding it in the car for the last two days. When he would ask I just replied that, 'I think we left it at home.' That seemed a suitable answer to him and he went on with whatever he was doing.

This morning, we walked around the house together with a plastic bag, filling it with

pacis. Charlie did the dirty work while I held the bag open. Pretty soon we'd rounded up the whole collection...

From there, we loaded up into the car and set off for the mall. I had devised a plan for him to trade his pacis for a new toy. We went to the toy store and before I let him loose from the stroller, asked the cashier if she'd play along. With her permission, we set forth on the lookout for an even trade. Walking all over the store, Charlie stopped every few feet to ooh and ahh over something new. Eventually, he stumbled into the train section and spent a good twenty minutes there. Looking carefully over the selection, he decided on a 3-pack of [Thomas] engines. I told him to take the paci bag to the cashier and she was going to ring up his trains so he could pay. He dutifully marched over to the counter and laid the bag down. I paid for the toys and made sure he physically said, 'bye bye pacis,' and off we went.

He has clutched the trains tightly ever since. We played around at the play area to run off some energy and came home. I laid him down for his nap at 1:15. Now it is 2:45 and there is no sleep in sight. He's not crying, but he did whine for Effi for at least 15 minutes. I let him take his new purchases to bed to hopefully ease the transition but it's causing him to play rather than try to fall asleep. Not sure how that will play into tonight. I have yet to make that decision. I plan to keep him in the bed until 3:15 and then he may get up and play until bedtime. That will mean he rested for 2 hours even though he did not actually sleep.

To be continued...