Whatever works... but I need some advice!

A "whatever works" mom does whatever is best for her family, and follows her instincts most of the time... BUT sometimes her instinct is a bit confused and needs some help from other sources. This is one of those times...

I knew I wouldn't have parenting figured out by the time we had #2. I was well aware that #2 would probably do things different from the first kid, but I had NO IDEA it would be SO different. So, here's the thing I would love advice, tips, etc. on:

1) Ditching the pacifier. Dois is 21 months old, and he loves his pacis. We got to a point after he turned 1 where pacis were only used for nap and bedtime (okay, and sometimes at Mass). But then he was getting his molars, and easily frustrated, and whatnot, and we started using the paci again more than I'd like. In the past 3 weeks, he's having a "verbal explosion." I put that in quotes because 99% of what he says isn't coherent, but it means something to him and he's trying to say something. And what I hate more than anything in the world is that he's trying to talk with the paci in his mouth. I've played Paci Police lately, and we've been saying "night night" pacis and leaving his pacis in the crib when he gets up... but sometimes it results in a total meltdown. And sometimes, when he's tired or just needs some time away, he'll beg to hop in the crib just to suck away for a while. And he's a good sleeper. A gooooood sleeper. With a paci in his mouth and one in each hand. I don't want to mess with his sleep habits yet. SO, I guess I'd love ideas of how to get rid of the paci for sleep (although we won't be doing so until he's AT LEAST 2) and also how to help him find some other method of soothing himself (especially during the daytime) when the pacis are "all gone."

2) Ditching the bottles. Yes, he's also still on bottles. Until he was 18 months, as much as I loathed the bottle, I told myself that at that age I'd still be nursing him (if we hadn't had nursing issues that led to weaning at 6 months), and what was the difference between a bottle and a boob? At daycare he uses only sippy cups but at home he begs for bottles--full on tantrums for a bottle when we try to hand him a sippy cup. I'm thinking we need to just make all bottles disappear, but I'd love any other gentler suggestions for getting him off the bottle. Do you think just one before bed (we always do one, then brush teeth, then bed) would be OK?

3) Potty training. No worries, Bebe is potty trained! But as I mentioned in yesterday's post, it was a LONG time coming. And after what was almost 2 years of attempts (on and off--not continuously--we started when she turned 2, and she potty trained at 3 years 9 months), I have absolutely NO confidence in my abilities to potty train a child. So tell me: Did you wait until your child seemed ready (how did you know)? Or did you do it when you were ready? Or a little bit of both? And what method did you use? Cold-turkey? Pull-ups? Naked-from-the-waist-down? I know Dois is still young but I need to store up this info for when I think it's time.

Thanks everyone in advance!