I was the favourite at nighttime and my wife was the preferred parent during the day. However, 2 months ago, my wife started co-sleeping with my son, so now it’s completely switched. My wife is far and above the favourite at nighttime - not that I don’t try to get my snuggles in. My 10 month old son is a smart cookie and is very aware of my many snuggle attempts.
So last night at 2am, I am finishing up some work and can see on the baby monitor that my son is starting to stir. It’s not quite his usual night feed yet, so I decide I am going to get some snuggles in. I go to his room, my wife is on the left side of the bed, curled up - my son is in the middle, on his back, has his eyes open and playing with his hands.
The right side of the bed is against the wall for his safety. So I carefully climb over my wife, making sure I don’t wake her. I look at my son, he has his eyes on me completely silent. I settle down on the right side of the bed, and am about to reach for him when he rolls onto his stomach away from me, then rolls over once more to his side. His back now pressed against my wife’s chest. My wife instinctively put her arms around him. My son looks at me and smiles. He plays with his hands for a few more seconds, but quickly falls asleep.
Well, I guess I know when I am not wanted lol. I get out of the bed - both wife and son asleep. The next day, I ask my wife if she recalls, she does not remember at all. I thought she wouldn’t believe me but then she replied, “well I am his favourite after all.”
Wes said:
Looks like your little one already mastered the art of subtly flexing their favorite parent status.
Sometimes, it’s not subtle at all. The day before this, he wakes up in the night. Wife and I do his feed and change together. My wife then leaves to use the bathroom. The ENTIRE time she was gone, he was staring at the open door making murmuring distressed sounds. I am literally holding him back on the bed because he is trying to crawl head first (self-preservation be damned I guess) onto the floor to get to his mom. I usually try not to speak to him at night to avoid waking him further, but I definitely tried to calm him by saying ‘mom will be back in a minute.’ When my wife comes back, my son smacks both his hands on the bed with joy. So yeah not so subtle sometimes.
@Oren
Y’all are adorable. Thank you for sharing your cute moments.
Side note, we taught our son to go feet first about that age, or started to at least. We would say feet first and when he was trying to crawl off the bed/couch we would physically turn him around and help him dangle his legs of feet first until he was on the ground. He learned pretty quickly, I think, and was also much safer with stairs early. Not a 2am job of course, but it was really helpful for us.
@Jamie
Oh, I really like the idea of saying ‘feet first’, turning him around and helping him down. I think we will be doing that now, thank you for the advice!
Oren said: @Jamie
Oh, I really like the idea of saying ‘feet first’, turning him around and helping him down. I think we will be doing that now, thank you for the advice!
As someone who has been there and gotten through, it works so well.
Oren said: @Jamie
Oh, I really like the idea of saying ‘feet first’, turning him around and helping him down. I think we will be doing that now, thank you for the advice!
We used to tell my daughter “on your belly feet first”. Worked great!
@Jamie
we’re doing this now too! (8m) fun fact, he started doing it on his own to escape from the bouncy chair (not sure what it’s called, the baby bjorn) simply because sliding is easier, gravity-wise, than toppling over (which has - ahem ahem - happened…) and now we’re trying to teach him to do it from other surfaces. I love the verbal cue, will implement it right away!
that’s so cute! I’m breastfeeding and haven’t been able to snuggle my little one WITHOUT him being on the boob ever, from newborn to this day 8mo. I don’t know if it just distracts him, or that I’m just a boob to him. Papa gets all the honest cuddles.
Mine was the same as a baby. Smiled at dad when he got his way and cuddled me, instantly falling asleep with me. Now as a toddler, he turns 2 in a week and last night he ran into our bedroom, squeezed between our pillows, and would ONLY sleep with his butt in my face. If I moved him or moved myself he’d cry
