As a baby, I wasn’t trained to use pacifiers and even with my sister and brother, my mom didn’t really rely on it to calm us down. If I have done a decent observation, I remember that not many babies in the Philippines use it as well.

Arriving in France, I was quite shocked to see kids around 3-4yos still use their “tetines”. Naturally for these kids, they also have their respective “doudous” — it’s something like a cuddly toy or a blanket to keep kiddos comforted, and normally they bring this every where they go. Mind you, if it gets lost and you replace it, the kids would know and good luck with the drama after.

So it’s just one of the differences as to how we raise children. I must say that I was shocked in the beginning but I have gotten used to seeing it. But when I had Antoinette, I still found it more natural, or instinctive, to not train her with pacifiers and relying much on doudous to calm her down. I bought one pacifier when she was little, just to try. She used it 3-4x but didn’t really get attached to it. As for the doudous, she has her toys and likes co-sleeping with them. I find it cute. But she leaves them at home.

I don’t know what other moms’ view about it, but I suppose when something is working, we just continue doing, right?

*I used this photo because I find it really funny. My husband bought this mustache pacifier for fun and she never used it. Out of the blue, she found it from a box and just started playing it with. She knows it’s a “tetine”, as seen from her friends. But how she played with it, she didn’t even know that it should be sucked. She kept on biting it! Haha.