No More NuNu's

Well, the taking of the NuNu that I dreaded for so long, turned out to not be as bad as I thought.  I really hated to do it because it was the last thing that made him a baby.  These last few months he has turned into such a "big boy". He now asks to do everything by him self!

I cut the nipple off the NuNu and told him that Bailey (our dog) chewed it up.  He was so sad..."Mommy tix it, tix it. Let's go find the piece outside and tix it".  He ended up not taking a nap that day. Later on he said, "Mommy let's go outside and see Bailey".  Thinking to myself... I wonder how this is going to turn out, he goes into the shed outside and grabs his blue plastic bat and starts beating  her with it, saying, "Don't chew my NuNu!, Don't chew my NuNu!"  For his relief, I just let him do it.  That night wasn't too bad because he was so tired, and he fell asleep watching Tractor videos.  He does ask for it occasionally as if he has forgotten what happened, so I just give it to him and remind him that Bailey chewed it off.  He just looks at it in disbelief and tries to bite on whats left of the nipple.  

I think the other night was the worst of it...we were running errands for most of the day and he didn't get a very long nap, so the few hours before bedtime he was a total wreck!  Of course, while we are preparing for bed he wants his NuNu, so I lure him into bed with it and again remind him of what happened, but this time he is not settled by it.  His crying fits go on for several minutes, so I told him that I would lay with him in his train bed.  So I do my acrobatic moves to get in the bed and lay next to him.  He settles down as I sing Rock a By and stares at his "broken NuNu". By now he is past tired, and I watch him try to put it in his mouth several times just wishing that nipple was still there. Finally he falls asleep with NuNu in hand.

I start feeling so terrible...how could I take away is comfort, his soother, the one thing that I can rely on to make him stop crying.  I wanted so bad to go get the NuNu I had stashed away and give it to him.  But I didn't, then all my efforts would have been wasted.  But I think we got through it... He just will probably never be the same towards Bailey...poor dog!