The Great Binky Give Up - Phase Three

Today we packed up half the house and moved this circus to Golden Gardens Park, which is as beachy as Seattle gets. Little Sir was torn, he was excited to go to the beach (sand and water are his two favorite forms of matter) but he knew why we were going, and he wasn't very excited about that.
I knew that we had to get the Mimi business out of the way first thing so we could enjoy the rest of the day. Little Sir was not as ready to get down to business.



This was his reaction very soon after arrival when I told him it was time. He recovered quickly, though.



He "held his Mimi in his mouth" for a few moments while holding onto the little boat that would carry it away to the new baby who lived far away.



He placed the Mimi in the boat along with some special pretty rocks we picked out on our way down to the water as a present for the baby. (Rocks are his third favorite form of matter, and more readily available than sand and water, which is a major bonus.)



He held the boat for a few moments to say goodbye,



Then he place the boat on the ground near the water and told me that the water would come to take it away. (Yes, my child understands tides, he is brilliant.)



He turned



and walked away.



His understanding of tides is still limited and it was clear that the tide was going out, so I offered to walk it out into the water for him.



He agreed and stood on the beach to watch me as I walked it out about 20 feet. (I did NOT want it to come back!)




Away it sailed.



If you look close (or click through to photobucket and look at the full size photo) you can see an orange speck floating out to sea.



When I came back I didn't ask him how he felt, it was heartbrakingly clear. I just snapped a series of photos as he watched the boat sail away.




We quietly ate lunch and after a while I told him I was very proud of him. He said "Yeah, I'm a big boy, but I'm still sad." And then I shoved a hand full of sand down my throat to make myself feel better.
The seagulls helped lighten the mood. I started throwing the remains of Little Sir's sandwich up in the air and they would catch them in mid air while putting on the Seagull version of an ultimate fighting match. It was very impressive, especially for the boy.



Little Sir decided to get in on the action and spent some quality time chasing seagulls.



He was much happier when he returned.



Then we built a sand castle together.



He dutifully destroyed it.



Later I took him for an ice cream cone and for awhile all was right with the world.

He fell asleep in the car without the assistance of a Mimi but was rudely awoken by a hungry little brother who screamed half of the way home from Golden Gardens. There were some tantrums and tears over the Mimi and after some time I decided to skip the nap.

Tonight I put tomorrow's Mimi on his pillow for him to use when he went to sleep. However, I told him that he could only use it while he was actually in bed. He could also choose to come sit with me in the big red rocking chair and I would rock him and sing him songs, but the Mimi could not come. He held the Mimi in his mouth for just a few seconds, then threw it back on the bed and joined me on the rocking chair. He fell asleep not long after as I rocked him and sang to him, no fuss, no tears, and no Mimi! I am so proud of him and I think we are both going to be OK.