After a crazy last few weeks in which Aaron got bronchiolitis (and his pacifier back), mommy got a great job offer and historic wins happened in the elections, it is nice to have a quiet day with our tiny family.
Aaron is officially off of the pacifier! After having losing it during the night and not crying for it we decided to put him down without it. He cried for it for only a minute then fell asleep and slept through the night. That was about three nights ago and he has been without it since. I am so proud of him and so relieved that we haven’t had to do some of the tricks and schemes that friends have to rid him of the addiction.
The Paci Fairy seems to be the most popular way to break older kids of the habit. Convincing them that this fairy must give their pacis to tiny babies who need them has been the key to success for many of my friends. Aaron is too young for fairy stories so we had to do it cold turkey and I was skeptical as to what would happen with this method.
In talking to a friend who is a dental assistant I have learned that now we need to be on the lookout for finger interest. If he begins sucking fingers we need to give him back the pacifier immediately. They are specially made to correctly form teeth while fingers and thumbs are not. My husband and I agree that we are saving for college and not orthodontia and are now on finger watch.
The joys of parenting continue.
Last night was the first night that Joe and I let Aaron cry it out regarding his paci. Basically the kid is lazy and we have been going into his room when he looses his paci and cries for it during the night. We would find it somewhere in the crib or on the floor and pop it back into his mouth. We decided that he either needs to find it himself or simply go back to sleep. The truth is he really does not need it as he naps without it every day at daycare. But these habits die hard in little ones and it is hard to imagine he is getting to an age where he should no longer need it.
Last night before bed we popped in our earplugs and went to sleep. Although the husband never heard it I was awoken at 3:43 to Aaron crying,
“Mommy, daddy, paci!” This lasted for about thirty minutes until he fell back to sleep. It was not easy but I was glad I held my ground and resisted going to him.
This morning he was still upset and asked for it until he was at the breakfast table with milk and waffle to distract him.
Tonight Joe let him go to sleep with it. “We can take it slowly,” he said. Earplugs it is then.
The husband and I had a wonderful time at the 2012 Decatur Beer Festival. For those of you who could not get tickets, They sold out in less than 30 minutes, you missed some good tastings. A complete lists of participating vendors can be seen at www.decaturbeerfestival.org
Our method is to first hit the vendors who are new to us and then hit our tried and true favorites. Local guys Blue Tarp Brewing was one of my favorite newbies. The brewery offered a taste of things to come from their new roost in Decatur and I must say that taste was a good one. They join the league of other local loves of mine and I look forward to buying their creations soon.
One of my usual beers Ommegang, from Cooperstown, New York, brought in some great beers for the event and I fell in love with their Art of Darkness. It had the slight bite of most dark stouts but was still creamy with a warm chocolate finish. The day offered a few dark brews including…..
Taking my taste buds across the country to Boonville, California I found another dark option. Winter Solstice by Anderson Valley Brewing blew me off of my feet and made me linger at the table for a few more tastes. The carmel and vanilla notes in this one definitely make it a dessert beer without being sickly sweet like some Lambics and pumpkin ales can be.
While I generally won’t turn my nose up at brews there was one offender at the event that I have to mention. Stoudt’s Scarlet Lady Ale was not a good one for me. In searching the web I have found several favorable reviews but the only way I could describe the taste it left on my palatte was “Off.” I’m not really sure what they were trying to do with this one but if I see it at another festival I will steer clear.
I hope you all had as good of time as we did. And I hope you all gained some new favorite brews for your future package and growler store excursions.
Cheers!
Maria Pinkelton 