Life
My partner and I have a running joke that, when it comes to our baby, I have super secret magical powers. More often than not, our son will immediately stop crying, and his face will light up, whenever I enter the room, he hears my voice, or even smells me. So when we joke that our baby likes mom more than dad, it's only because there's a lot of evidence in my favor.
For example, I can interpret his cries and soothe him like no one else. Or how he sleeps best when he's touching me, and learned to say "mama" before he learned any other words. It makes sense when you consider that he hasn't been apart from me for longer than a few hours his entire life, and he's come to understand that I am his person. And of course, being baby's favorite has its downsides, too. I get less sleep and can't really enjoy anything even close to resembling "alone time," and my baby suffers from serious separation anxiety when I leave his view. So when I can get away from the house, I usually return fairly quickly and after my husband has called me a few times because the baby can't stop crying and he can't figure out what's wrong.
However, the disadvantages of being baby's favorite don't stop my husband from getting a tiny bit jealous when the baby reaches for me or refuses to eat anything that doesn't come from mommy's plate. To be fair, our baby likes his daddy, too, just for different things. No one can make him laugh better than his dad can, and they definitely enjoy their fair share of snuggle-time (when I'm not available, that is).
So, yeah, there are so many signs that I'm our baby's clear favorite, at least for the time being.
They Won't Let Mom Put Them Down
Baby snuggles are the best, and I honestly can't get enough. And that's good, too, because my baby won't put him down. So I enjoy snuggles or simply put him in a baby carrier and sway, sing, or go about my day. Otherwise, I wouldn't get anything done.
They Reach For "Mama" Or Cry When Dad Is Holding Them
Our baby likes daddy snuggles too, but not when I am in view. He will literally fuss or reach for me if I try to hand him off to my partner unless I quickly leave the room. The same goes for dropping him at child watch at the gym. He'll totally let my husband hand him off to someone else with smiles and waves goodbye. Me, not so much.
They Poop As Soon As Dad Picks Them Up
Speaking of crap, even though I am with our baby all day long, he almost always poops when his dad takes over. I have no idea why this is, but I'd like to think it's because he clearly likes me better.
They Cry When Mom Leaves The Room
My baby has some serious separation anxiety. Whenever I leave the room, even if I am just around the corner or trying to pee by myself, he will cry. This happens even when his dad is holding him, which makes him feel like crap and makes me feel like I can't catch a break.
They Pee All Over Dad When He's Changing Them
You would think that, as a person with a penis, my husband would learn how to avoid getting peed on during diaper changes. Yeah, no. My baby regularly pees on my husband during diaper changes, while I can change 100 diapers relatively unscathed. Maybe it's the cold air hitting his penis, or the fact that I have quicker reflexes, but I'd like to think that it's because I'm his favorite.
They Won't Let Dad Give Them A Bottle If They Can See Or Smell Mama
Due to my insufficient glandular tissue and undersupply, my partner and I have had to combo-feed our babies from the start. You would think this would mean that their dad could take over feedings and I could get more sleep. My middle child would rarely take a bottle from dad, and especially not if I was in the room or he could hear my voice.
They Won't Eat Anything Dad Tries To Feed Them
While they were great eaters for me, especially when the food is coming from my plate, each of my babies frequently spit out or refused bites from dad. Maybe it's my special "choo choo train" technique, or the fact that they associated me with food. Or maybe it's that I am their favorite, at least for the time being.
Mommy's Lullaby Calms Them In An Instant, But Daddy's Makes Them Cry
My two older children would literally cry any time their dad sang to them, and he actually had a pretty good singing voice. It totally made him jealous that me singing a lullaby, or even soft talking, would immediately calm them.
They Can Only Sleep While Touching Mom
My baby prefers to touch me while he sleeps, which means that even though I am an experienced parent, I often make rookie sleep training mistakes, like rocking my baby to sleep or bringing him to bed with me. It sucks and makes me wonder if it's always a good thing to be baby's favorite.
Now that my older children have switched back and forth a few times regarding which parent they prefer, I know that it's only a matter of time before my youngest ditches me for dad, too, so for now, I will take all of the baby snuggles I can get and enjoy being his MVP (most valuable parent).
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