Week in Review: Pacifier Detox

We had a busy week week! We had something to do almost every morning that required us to get ready and leave the house by a certain time. Sometimes that's hard! We like staying busy though, so I'm not complaining in spite of the fact that getting us all out of the house can be a little stressful sometimes! We also decided to get rid of Aubrey's pacifier during the day this week. We are still letting her have it for naps and nighttime for now. We had a few rough days, but she's been ok the past few days. Hopefully the worst is behind us!

Sunday: Happy Birthday, Aubrey!! We were running SO late to church that morning. We just couldn't get it together to get out the door on time. Poor little Aubrey cried so hard when we dropped her off in the nursery. It's always sad when she does that, but it was especially sad to leave her crying on her birthday :( She only cries for a minute, thankfully. Jude got a little "chatty" during church, so I had to take him out. I went ahead and fed him. When I went to change his diaper, I realized there were no diapers in his diaper bag. *Sigh* There were some extras in the nursery that we were able to use, thank goodness! Jude slept all the way through Sunday School. We went home after Sunday School and had leftovers from Aubrey's party for lunch. We took lots of little videos of the birthday girl after lunch. It was then time for her nap -- some things don't change, even on your birthday :) I took a nap that afternoon, and David took care of Jude. We went back to church that evening. After it was over, we went out to dinner with the Arants and my brother and his girlfriend. The restaurant we wanted to go to was closed, so we ended up at Margaritas. It smelled like something yuck when we walked in the door, but we felt like it was too late to leave. We ended up sitting outside, but someone was smoking right next to our table. Ughh. In spite of the not-so-great smells, we had fun. The company was way more important than the smells anyway! By the time we got home, it was past time for Aubrey to go to bed.

Monday: I got up before both of the kids to get ready to go to a consignment sale. I was supposed to meet Rebekkah and we were going to follow each other since we weren't totally sure where we were going. I was running late, so I moved the time that we were supposed to meet back. I ended up having to pump and change Aubrey's dirty diaper as we were about to walk out the door. Then I thought I was almost out of gas, so I had to go to the gas station. The gas wouldn't pump though, so I called David, and it turns out he had gone to get gas in my car the night before and I didn't even know it! (My gas gage is broken.) Anyway, by that point I was REALLY running late. I ended up calling Rebekkah and telling her just to go on and I would meet her there. I did finally arrive, and I'm glad I went in spite of what a hassle it was to get out of the door that morning. I got lots of good stuff for Aubrey and Jude's fall wardrobes. The prices were great! Sarah Denley was there too, and it's always fun to shop with my best friends! When we got home, it was time for Aubrey to nap. She took a good long nap. Jude was awake for the first half of her nap, so he and I had some quality time together :) When Aubrey got up, her paci was on the floor, and she didn't ask for it, so I just left it in her room. She hadn't had it all morning either. When David got home, we decided that we wouldn't let her have it while she was awake anymore. She can still have it for nap and bedtime for now. We tell her that her "bobbys" has to stay in her bed now. We went to karate that night. During karate we went to the mall with my mom. I was looking for fall shoes for Aubrey. I didn't find any fall shoes, but they had summer shoes marked WAY down, so I got several pairs for next summer. When we got back to church, karate was over, but David had to help my dad move some furniture before we could leave. It ended up being pretty late by the time we left. Even though it was late, David bathed Aubrey when we got home. I was going to Bible Study the next morning and knew I wouldn't have time to bathe her in the morning. She went to bed right after her bath.

Tuesday: Aubrey got up at 7. We ate breakfast and then got ready for Bible Study. We managed to get out the door on time that morning. Aubrey cried when I left her in the nursery. I was worried that she would be really fussy the whole time without her pacifier, but they said she did fine. After Bible Study, Rebekkah, Carver, Aubrey, Jude, and I went to lunch at Kiefer's. YUM! I hadn't been in a while, and it was GOOD! :) The kids all did great too, in spite of the fact that it was close to naptime. After lunch, we came home, and I put Aubrey right to bed. She played in her bed for an hour and a half before she went to sleep! She was just talking. She did eventually go to sleep though. When David got home, Aubrey was still napping, so I left Jude with him and ran to Wal-Mart. I needed to get a few things to wear when I go running. When I got home Aubrey and Jude were both awake. Thankfully they were in happy moods. I cooked tacos for dinner while David watched the kids. We ate dinner, and then David had to go to a Home Owner's Association meeting. I stayed home with Aubrey and Jude. We were having a nice evening until I looked over and saw that Aubrey had Jude's paci in her mouth. I took it away and she just fell apart crying for her "bobbys." It's like having Jude's reminded her of what she was missing, and she whined and cried for it the rest of the evening. It was not fun. At first I just kept telling her that it had to stay in her bed now, but that wasn't phasing her, so I eventually just ignored the whining. She finally forgot about it when she started playing with her birthday toys. Whew! David got home right after she perked up... isn't that the way it always goes?! We hung out the rest of the evening, and then I went running with Rebekkah after Aubrey went to bed. I'm not a runner at all, so these workouts are really stretching me! I guess that's the point though ;) I always feel good after they're over, so hopefully I will see results soon! When I got home, I fed Jude and went to bed.

Wednesday: Aubrey slept later, but she woke up wanting her paci. This was definitely the hardest day in the paci detox so far. She literally whined all. morning. long. I tried to be really patient and sweet with her, because I know this is a hard transition for her, but oh my gosh! The whining got old fast. I was trying to get ready during all of this because I was taking Jude to get his shots that morning. Aubrey actually had to get one shot too (we got behind when she had all of those ear infections around her first birthday and was on back to back antibiotics), and I was really worried about how that would go, especially without the pacifier. Thankfully, my mom went with me (I don't handle shots well at all!). Aubrey was in a great mood by the time we picked up my mom. I think it helps to get out of the house and distract her. Aubrey actually did fine with her shot. It was so sad and she definitely cried, but she recovered quickly. Poor little Jude had to get 3 shots and an oral vaccine. He did ok too, but it was SO sad hearing his poor little cry. He was fine almost as soon as I picked him up. I just HATE seeing my babies in pain. I know it's for the best though. I went back over to my mom's house after that so Aubrey could eat lunch and I could feed Jude. On the way home, I ran in a consignment store close to my parents' house and got an adorable jacket for Aubrey. When we got home, Aubrey went down for her nap and went right to sleep. Jude was asleep in his carseat, so I just left him there until it was time for him to eat again. When he woke up, I fed him and he went back to sleep. Those shots made him sleepy! When David got home from work, Aubrey and Jude were both still asleep. We were able to talk about our days in the quiet, which was nice. We had to wake both of the kids up to go to church. When I woke Jude up and tried to feed him, he was NOT happy. He was just inconsolable. I figured he felt bad from the shots, so we gave him Tylenol. I thought I might should stay home from church with him, but we decided if the Tylenol didn't help, we would just leave church right after dinner. He did calm down in the car and ended up being ok at church. He was fussier than usual, but nothing too bad. Aubrey, on the other hand, was NOT happy in the nursery. David dropped her off and she cried, which she has been doing lately. Usually she calms down quickly though, but she just wasn't giving it up that night. She stood by the door crying and calling, "Daddy!" Poor thing. I was in the nursing room feeding Jude, and I could hear her. I was going to get her and just keep her with me when I finished feeding him, but she quit crying and started playing right before Jude finished eating. I ended up just hanging out in the fellowship hall talking and waiting for David to get done with a meeting. When we got home from church, we hung out and went to bed. Jude was still fussy, but he did sleep good.

Thursday: This was our stay-at-home day this week. We didn't have anything planned, and I was hoping to accomplish a good bit around the house. Jude was still pretty cranky when he woke up that morning though, so I decided we needed to get out of the house for a little while after all. He likes to nap in his carseat, so I thought that might help his mood. We ran to Target. I was looking for some cute, inexpensive "play shoes" for Aubrey. I didn't find any, but she did have fun trying shoes on. I told her we were looking for some new shoes, and she kept asking, "Where's Aubey's new shoes?" Ha! Jude was sleeping peacefully, so after we left Target, I got brave and decided to go in Old Navy. They had some cute shoes on sale, but I couldn't decided if they fit Aubrey. I really needed her to stand up and walk in them to be able to tell, but there was NO WAY I was getting her out of the buggy. I'm not THAT brave! ;) So, I decided to go back when I had someone with me to help. We drove through Chick-Fil-A to grab some lunch on the way home. There was a little drama when we got home: I had noticed that our front door was unlocked when I got up that morning. No big deal; David said he probably didn't lock it back after he watered the plants out front. Well, when we got home, I went upstairs and saw that Aubrey's bathroom door was open all the way (we leave it cracked with the light on at night) and one of her cabinet doors was open. I also saw that one of our side tables in our living room was slightly turned -- silly little things that I never would have noticed if it hadn't been for the unlocked door. I was still ok at that point, but then I talked to my mom and she said she had heard that there was a shooter on the loose in their neighborhood. They live about 15 minutes from us, but that just sent me over the edge. I became convinced that there was someone in our house hiding upstairs. Ha! I called David and he assured me that we were FINE, but I was still nervous. My sweet grandmother was going to be near our house at the mall, so she came over and looked in all the closets and nooks and crannies with me. Thankfully, the coast was clear! :) Haha! I know I can be a big scardy cat! I put Aubrey down for her nap, and then my grandmother held Jude so I could take a quick shower. After she left, I fed Jude and tried to put him down for his nap. Every time I laid him down he woke up and cried. I ended up just holding him for most of his nap. He needed some extra attention after his shots! He eventually was out enough for me to lay him in his carseat and clean up the house a little bit. By that point Aubrey was waking up. I fed Jude, and then I loaded the kids up and we headed to church. David was teaching karate at church after work for my dad's ministry, so we just met him there and hung out with my mom. We fed Aubrey dinner, and then we went back to Old Navy with my mom. We decided that the shoes did fit Aubrey, so I got them. They are kind of dressy shoes, so she still needs some casual ones. When we got back to church, David drove the kids home, and I took his car and stopped and got us dinner. (I REALLY need to go to the grocery store!) We ate and went to bed.

Friday: I took a shower, bathed both kids, and got us ready because we were meeting Sarah Denley and Ann Peyton for lunch. I feel like it's always a mad rush to get all three of us out of the house no matter how much time I allot for us to get ready. When we are finally all loaded into the car, I just have to take a deep breath! Ha! We met at Mellow Mushroom, and it was fun except that Aubrey was a little wild. We ended up shattering a salt shaker on the ground. Oops! Aubrey decided she didn't like the pizza I had gotten for us and about had a FIT for SD's pizza. Sarah Denley was sweet and shared with Aubrey, but that whole thing just kind of ruined her mood. It was still fun chatting though, but I'm sure the employees were happy to see us go. Haha. When we came home, it was naptime! Aubrey and Jude both took good naps. When David got home, we went to dinner at Red Lobster. Both of the kids were good, and we had a nice dinner. I ran in Target to get some eye makeup remover before we went home. When we got home, David and Aubrey sat on the back deck and hung out and I fed Jude and watched TV. After Aubrey went to bed, I left to go running with Rebekkah. We upped our run time, and it was tough. Hopefully it will get easier next time! It would also help if it wasn't so darn hot outside! When I got home, Jude was asleep, so David and I hung out and talked for a while and then we went to bed. Aubrey woke up several times coughing and it was that croupy cough. Ugh.

Saturday: David got up with Aubrey when she woke up, and he said she sounded bad when she breathed, so he called the after hours clinic, and they said to bring her in. Sure enough, she had croup AGAIN. She just had it 3 weeks ago. The doctor said there are several things that make a child more susceptible to croup, and one of them was reflux, which she had when she was a baby. He gave us medicine to give her for the next 3 days. The thing with croup is that as long as she is upright, she is totally fine. You would never even know she had anything. He said she wasn't contagious as long as she didn't have fever, which she didn't. Meanwhile, Jude and I were at home sleeping in :) When we got up, David and Aubrey were almost home. When they got home, we talked, and then the kids and I got ready to go to lunch. My aunt from Dallas was in town for the day, and we were going to lunch with some other family to see her. For some reason, I just couldn't get it together that morning, and we ended up being pretty late. Ugh. David stayed home to get some things done around the house. Lunch was right in the middle of Aubrey's naptime, bit it worked out well, because the doctor had said we might want to keep her upright until the medicine kicked in, which he said would take 6 hours. She felt totally fine, and acted good at lunch. We ate outside, and she had fun running around with my little cousins. It was SO hot outside! It was fun to see my aunt though! When we finished with lunch, my mom and the kids and I went to Shoe Choo Train. I found some cute shoes for Aubrey for 50% off. Whoo! I took Aubrey home after that and fed Jude while I was at home. I then had to take my mom back to her car (we had met and she rode with us to lunch) and we went to Target while we were out. When I got home, David was watching the beginning of the Auburn game. After a while, we grabbed dinner at Corner Bakery and then came back home. Aubrey went to bed, I fed Jude, and David watched the game. I left David and Jude and went to the grocery store. When I got home, the Auburn game was just ending. Now we are about to call it a night and head to bed!