The Binky Fairy

As of Monday night we are officially pacifier free in our house! It's no secret that Ryla really loved her pacifier. We swore when she was a baby that we would never have a toddler that still sucked on a pacifier. Well, fast forward three years and our little girl was still using her pacifier.

Around a year ago I bought a book that was recommended with helping children give up their pacifiers. We just couldn't be cruel and take away something that she loved so much so we thought this book might help. It's called The Binky Ba-ba Fairy by Heather Knickerbocker-Silva. She is a mom and created this story to help her children give up their binkys and bottles. Ryla loves to read this book and we have always encouraged her to leave her binkys for the Binky Fairy to give to the neworn babies. She has never wanted to give them up until now. In the Binky Fairy story we told her if she leaves her binkys for the fairy, the fairy will leave her a big girl gift in return.

Monday evening she asked us "If I leave my paci for the Binky Fairy will I get a big girl gift?" We were shocked and so excited. We gathered up all of her pacifiers and placed them in a box. We left them by the front door for the Binky Fairy to pick up. Ryla went to bed very excited to see her big girl the next morning. When she woke up her pacifiers were gone but the Binky Fairy left her a princess bike in exchange for being such a big girl.

Ryla loves her "big girl" bike! She is very proud. She has only asked for her paci one time since giving them away but quickly forgot about it. We are very proud that she made the decision to give up her paci. Not only did we get to avoid being mean and cruel but it also proved that she is capable of making decisions and following through with her promises. No parent could ask for more.

Tiny Dancer

As the new school season begins so does another type of class, dancing! Ryla started dance lessons this week at Colorado School of Dance. She is taking the Pre-Tap and Ballet class which includes 20 minutes of tap lessons and 20 minutes of ballet lessons each week. There are 8 other girls in her class and she is already making new friends.

Ryla was so excited to go to her first class. She especially loves wearing her tap shoes. She calls them her clicky shoes and loves to "practice" on our floors at home. She has even learned how to say "ta-da" with her arms in the air after performing for us.

Her dance school has mid-season review for the parents and an annual recital in June that she will perform in with her classmates. The recital is held at Chaparral High School. It looks like it will be an exciting dance year that we are looking forward to experiencing.

We took video of her first class that we will edit and upload soon. Stay tuned!

A Day at the Dentist

DSC04659, originally uploaded by roman_tiffany.

You know your baby is becoming a big girl when she begins to have regular visits to the dentist. Ryla had her second dentist appointment this morning with Boraz Pediatric Dentistry. Their office is super kid friendly and Ryla had a great time. The waiting room has a ton of toys and books, they even have three Playstation consoles set-up for the kids to play. It is hard to get her leave she has so much fun!

At her appointment today, they checked over all of her teeth and gave them a good cleaning. Ryla chose the raspberry flavoring for the cleaning and kept saying "Mommy that's yummy". The dentist said that her teeth are growing perfectly. She doesn't have any cavities and her gums look really good too. They ended the appointment with a fluoride treatment.

For being such a brave girl the dentist gave her a Snow White sticker, a miniature windmill and a coupon for a free shake at Red Robin.

I know the above picture doesn't really have anything to do with the dentist - I just thought it was a great picture to share!