Today we threw Carter a Bye Bye Bottle Party. Carter is 2 yrs old and still demands a bottle at bedtime, during the night and at naptime. I decided that in order for the weening of his bottle to work, it needed to be a BIG deal. So we threw a party and told him that for every bottle he throws away he gets to open a present. We bought him a new toothbrush that sings, a football nightlight and a bedtime book. His final present was a back pack full of small prizes. Every night he goes without a bottle he gets to pick a prize out of the back pack the next morning. I also bought him new sippy cups, which we decorated with stickers. We also decorated Averys bottles with stickers too. We made cookies and had milk in fun animal cups. We invited our parents so that Carter would really think it was a big deal. Every time he threw a bottle in the garbage we all clapped and cheered and high fived him. Grandma Kim gave him a horse on a stick (which he used to hit all of the balloons with) and a giant bubble wand (which also used to hit the balloons with.) We had a really good time. After he threw all of the bottles away and opened gifts he tied up the bag and put it on the porch, where we told him the Bottle Fairy would come and pick them up and take them to the hospital for all of the new babies. This whole bottle thing has been such a struggle for us because he is sooooo attached to them and its hard to ween him when Avery still drinks bottles. Tonight will definitely be the test to see how he does. Im anticipating it NOT going well but praying for the best. We said a special family prayer tonight that it will not be too difficult for him or for us and that he will enjoy all of his new gifts. I hope everyone will remember us in their prayers. I will update everyone in the morning on how tonight goes. It should be interesting.........or a nightmare! :) Wish us Luck!
I went to bed at midnight and talked to Nick for an hour. At 1:45 am Carter came into our room (not crying). I picked him up and carried him back to his bed and he asked me to sit with him. I did until he fell asleep and then went back to bed. Five minutes later I heard him crying for me so I went in his room and laid on the floor next to his bed with a blanket. For some reason he wouldnt go back to sleep but he still hadnt asked for a bottle. I asked him if he wanted to sit on the recliner in the living room with me and he jumped right out of bed with his Cars blankie. When we sat down he started crying again and then finally asked for a bottle. I reminded him that he threw them away so the Bottle Fairy could take them to the new babies at the hospital. A few seconds later he stopped crying and fell asleep. I put him back to bed and shut his night light off since it was pretty bright. I figured that may be the reason he couldn't go to sleep. As soon as I did that he never got up again!!! At 7:07 am he came walking into our room. When Nick set him up on the bed he asked to pick a prize out of his bag.......he wasnt gonna forget! I got up to go get the bag from his room and he yelled to me that he wanted the M&M's! He already knew which prize he wanted. He was so cute. He picked the little baggie with Smarties, Sixlets and of course M&M's. He put them in his mouth pretending to be an walrus. Nick and I gave him high fives and told him how proud we were of him. He just grinned from ear to ear. I think we have a Big Boy on our hands now!!!
