Baby B

Oh Wubbanub, how I love thee

August 17, 2009 at 11:03 pm

While browsing at Isis on Saturday, I picked up this object called a Wubbanub, which is essentially a pacifier attached to a stuffed animal. The design minimizes the amount of times a pacifier falls out of a baby’s mouth, thereby requiring the parents to pick it up and pop it back in. It seemed like a cute concept, but not one that made any sense for me to purchase. We had given up on the pacifier idea nearly a month ago. My darling daughter has spit out every pacifier we’ve introduced to her, even the über-expensive, imported, hand-crafted-from-a-single-piece-of-rare-organic-rubber nonsense that I was convinced we needed. And I wasn’t even entirely sure I wanted her to become a pacifier kid – I worried she might become too dependent, and I dreaded the inevitable weaning if she did. I figured her thumb would suffice, and she’s been getting much better at getting that in her mouth. Nope, no need for a Wubbanub at all.

I bought it anyway.

And you know what? It was the best 14 dollars I’ve spent on this kid to date. Possibly the best 14 dollars spent ever. We have had the most pleasant three days since buying this silly thing. Gone are the screaming car rides, the embarrassing waiting-room scenes, the meltdown-filled evenings. Nap times have become more predictable and she falls asleep for them much faster. Apparently this kid just needed something to suck on. So simple. Nearly instantly, she figured out how to move the slipping pacifier back into her mouth by pushing on the frog. She even seems to cuddle with it while she’s sucking. She loves it as much as we do.

Now we just have to make sure we don’t abuse the mighty power of the Wubbanub. I don’t want to miss her hunger cues or limit her vocalizations because she’s constantly got something in her mouth. And we’re not giving it to her at night because she’s already going to sleep well on her own. However I believe, used sparingly, the Wubbanub is magical. We’re going back to Isis tomorrow to get spares.

By phillygil | Posted in Uncategorized