Since the day she discovered it as a baby, Miss A’s soothing agent of choice has always been her left thumb. She never needs to worry about it falling between her mattress and the wall or disappearing into the black hole also known as the back seat of my car, especially that pesky little area where you buckle the seat belts that tends to collect Dum Dum sucker wrappers and pennies.
Her thumb seeking has dwindled down to bedtime or when she’s feeling a little puny and she needs a quick pop of comfort. The other night I was teasing her about sucking her thumb and as I curled up next to her in her twin size bed I playfully grabbed her thumb and plucked it from her mouth. “I’m gonna get your thumb Miss A! You’re 4 now, you’re too big to be sucking that thumb!”
She giggled and before plopping it back in her mouth she said, “Mommy I need to take my thumb a bath. It’s dirty.”
I’ve never heard her say such a thing (and such a cute thing I might add), but I suppose at 4 she’s starting to justify the thumb sucking. And that makes me a little sad.
Yesterday she woke up a little snuffly and I covered her with a warm afghan my mom made years ago and as a tousle haired Miss A curled into the couch pillows she plopped her thumb in her mouth.
I guess she thought I might intervene because she said, “Mommy you know why I just give my thumb a quick bath?”
“Why baby?” I asked.
“Cause it was a little dirty. But it didn’t taste bad,” she hesitated for a moment. “It was good dirt.”
This post is a little heartwrenching because how can she possibly start growing up and leave the thumb-sucking behind? It’s so cute! She’s so adorable!
But it’s also very endearing. What a precious little girl you have.
those are the comments that make our mama hearts melt, huh? what a sweet picture & story Jamie!
it’s such a cute thing when they are teeny…little Miss A is still young enough to get away with it. Addison finally quit at 6! We had to agree to a kitten for her to stop. I never see her do it anymore….but the other night after the thunderstorms I went in to check on her and she was fast asleep with that thumb in her mouth! She will be 8 next month! AH! can you say braces?
Absolutely adorable!
A little ‘good dirt’ never hurt anyone!
hehe I don’t know about the thumb sucking business, but with a face like that, who can resist!
~K
Is it weird that I totally know what she means?
We’ve had a ton of thumbsuckers in the family…shockingly enough alot of them made it to double digits before they could fully be stopped! you’re still in good shape shes only 4! haha
my son is 13. he STILL sucks his thumb at night…with his blankie. but shhhh….don’t tell him i told you, ok?
Omigosh… brings me back to when my kiddos (now 9 and 12) were tiny… when my daughter was 3, we decided it was time to say goodbye to the binkies. So together we packaged them up and sent them off to our daughter’s baby cousin. Sara herself popped the package into the mail. From that day forward – she didn’t need the binky!
It’s like that blog “Power of Small” talks about – the tiniest things can be the most powerful!
Lisa
That is so darn adorable
LOVE IT!!
OMG!! That is sooooooo sweet. My 8yr old boy is weaning himself, now just at sleep time and really feeling bad time. He knows that if he can crawl in mom’s arms, get a “sticker”, and suck his thumb, everything will be ok.
I’mthe one who doesn’t want him to give it upKara
Thanks you didn’t think i actually would eat the dirt I was just curious! Thanks I thought it was freaky when she told me so I just wanted to make sure!