It's funny how good you can feel about both the small and the big achievements.

Just a couple of mornings ago, I wrote a post about the dangerous legislation proposing to redefine "rape" in the Hyde Amendment to "forcible rape".

I was one of millions of bloggers, tweeters, and other utilizers of social media to speak out against this issue. And, behold! The power of the people (with a hi-speed connection)!

The new wording of the bill has already been recanted. Props to everyone who called or wrote their congressperson to protest the rewording of the bill; your voice was heard. As much as we love to criticize the internet, isn't it cool how well it serves to spread information and opinion?

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An addiction that really sucks

My son has almost fully transitioned from "baby" into "toddler". He sleeps through the night. He eats regular meals with the adults. He uses and understands speech. He knows rules, and how to follow them. He even finally got his first haircut. None of his outfits include onesies anymore.

But, though he's 18-months, he still uses a pacifier. And I hate it.

I hate to see my walking, talking, exploring little boy marching around with a little baby binkie in his mouth. He doesn't really need it, and it looks ridiculous. They're easy to lose and hard to clean. I'm so ready for this paci-habit to be over.

We've got the pacifier-use limited to sleepy times, but he still wants it when he gets upset or tantrumy. If he digs it out of his diaper bag when we're not looking, he'll pop it in his mouth and go about with it while he plays, trying to talk around it. And, while I'm not generally a very strict or structured mom, something about seeing the pacifier in his mouth drives me crazy.

So I'm ready to ditch the pacifier. And, like any new mom with an internet connection, I've been researching online for the best methods by which to do so.

Here's the methods I've found, and why I'm almost 90% sure they're not going to work:

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