A personalised book about giving up the dummy

The dummy has been a faithful comfort – at bedtime, in the car seat, when a knee got grazed. So giving it up is less about the dummy itself and more about finding other ways to feel safe. A picture book gives your child time to think it over before the day comes, and it lets your child be the one who decides and sees it through. Reading about yourself saying goodbye, finding that it works and still falling asleep soundly makes it less frightening when it happens for real.

Families say goodbye to the dummy in all sorts of ways. Some send it off with a letter to the dummy fairy, some swap it for something the child has wished for a long time, and in some places there are dummy trees where children hang up their dummies with a ribbon. The book can follow your own way: the preparations, the moment itself, the first evening without and the morning after, when your child wakes up and realises the night went fine. Missing it can be allowed in for a little while, without taking over.

The more of your own story goes in, the stronger the book becomes. What colour is the dummy, and does it have a nickname? Where is it used most – in the pushchair, on the sofa, only at night? Which cuddly toy or comfort blanket is going to take over, and who usually sits by the bed until your child falls asleep? If you have chosen a day, it can be in the book. A big brother or sister who has already given theirs up can tell how it went for them. And if your child has their own word for the dummy – a dodie, a binky or something entirely made up – use it.

For the youngest age setting the words are few and lulling, almost a little rhyme about the dummy falling asleep in its box. For 3–5 there's room for a clear decision and a bit more feeling, and it's your child who says the words that matter. If an older brother or sister reads it aloud, both can feel big – one for having done it, the other for being on the way.

A book like this is worth reading for a few evenings beforehand, so the day doesn't come as a surprise. Afterwards it becomes proof to bring out when things feel hard: look, I'm the one who did it. Talk about other things that comfort, too – a song, a hand on the back, an extra cuddle. There's more about that feeling in the theme feeling proud.

You fill in the child's name, age and what they like, and upload a photo. The story about giving up the dummy is written for your very own child, and the thirteen pictures and the cover are drawn from the photo in the style you choose. Brothers and sisters, parents, grandparents or the pet can come along, up to five characters. If you would like to include something that has happened lately, a trip or a lost tooth, just write it and it is woven in.

The eBook is ready a few minutes after payment. Read it, change the text and ask for new pictures until you are happy. Then order it as an A4 hardback book, printed and sent to your door, or straight to the child as a gift. Do add the audiobook or the colouring pages. Start creating the book or read more about the prices. Would you like to see a finished book before you decide? Browse our example books.