A new habit: the first of many

Jack has started sucking his thumb. That's OK with me, I suppose, and is really OK with Nanny Delaney since she doesn't have to worry about Jack and the other kids trading pacifiers; surely they wouldn't share thumbs. The problem is, the thumb doesn't always work as a pacifier. In fact, sometimes it really pisses off the poor kid.

Jack, you see, is horrible at thumb sucking.

First of all, he still has really poor aim/coordination and tends to repeatedly poke himself in the face, missing his mouth. This annoys him, but also, he really wants to suck his thumb, and the frustration of not being able to make contact in a timely manner makes him cry. On top of this, once he actually does make that thumb-to-mouth contact, he doesn't know what to do with his other four fingers. Sometimes the fingers go into his eyes - again, there is crying. Or sometimes he smushes his nose like a starfish is suctioned to his face and, being unable to breathe, he gasps and fights for air. He does, however, grab his ear with his other hand, a move I think is part of his genetic make up. (I used to still rub my ear for comfort.)

It takes a while, but if he can get the thumb to the right place and keep his fingers straight (out of his eyes and nose), he can calm himself.

The whole process is pretty cute to watch. Still, we keep the paci close.