You'll always be my baby

It only took my son just under 4 months to figure out that in order to get my attention, he should act like a baby.

I shouldn't really be that surprised, since every excuse I give him always has to do with Margot.

"I can't pick you up right now. I've got the baby." or "The baby is crying. I have to go get her."

I guess I should be a little disappointed that he didn't pick up on it sooner. What a slacker. A second born, obviously. (ha!)

But then, he figured it out.

"Feed ME milk, Mommy" he said, his little pointing finger precariously close to my nipple. It wasn't the first time he asked for a nibble.

"Well, that milk is only for babies, honey," I replied.

He paused for a few seconds.

And then he fake cried.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!"

Smart ass.

At first I thought it was sort of cute, mainly because he's yet to actually pretend to be anything, except a annoyingly loud dog and a really bratty, defiant toddler. Well, that's what I tell myself when I'm chasing him to change his poop or when he's trying to take a chunk out of Quinlan's arm - "He's just pretending to be naughty. What a smart and creative boy."

Right.

But surprise! Since I thought it was sooooo cute, he does it all the time - "Wah, I'm a baby, mommy. Carry me. Hold me. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah."

Part of me can't blame him since he really is still sort of a baby, and has had to share the latter part of toddlerdom with a baby sister. But most of me knows it's not the greatest way for him to get attention.

So I remind him that babies can't play with trucks or eat ice cream. And I try to reinforce his "big boy" behavior in an appropriate way.

Lord knows we don't need another dude getting what he wants by acting like a big old baby, right?

Comments

[mothergoosemouse]

I may not buy the whole birth order business, but there's something to this middle child syndrome.

[b]

Oh geez I am getting this with our 3rd. She's 21 mos and a little tyrant and it's all my fault. Thank GOD that #4 is a calm little guy. But the time has come for the little tyrant to be bumped off her pedestal and back into my snuggley toddler.

[californiagirl]

He is a smart boy! I can see how this can be tough and somewhat hard to deal with. But he seems like such a cute kid!

[Marie]

i found that letting my kids be a baby and humouring them was the easiest thing to do. They quickly get bored of it, it's really not that fun after all!

[Christina]

Abso-freakin-lutely.

[Linda]

Hmmm, is it possible we have the same son? And that we just live in a strange "Lost" style time warp, where sometimes he's with you and sometimes he's with me? Heh

[chivet]

This post is hilarious, and reminds me of my older son (who actually has a different mom). When he wants to do something that my son can't do, he's "big and strong," but when he doesn't want to, say, pick up his toys, he's "chiquito."

Also, last week he came over to our house with a sippy cup! He's four and we haven't given him a sippy cup in at least a year, but the weekend before we refused to give him his milk in his brother's sippy cup so he apparently made his mom get him one and brought it to our house to show us that his mommy buys it for him. Yeah...I put it away and he didn't see it, or ask for it, the entire weekend.

[The Rich Mama]

Lord knows we don't need another dude getting what he wants by acting like a big old baby, right?

...yes, please do the women of the world this one kindly favor.

[Fairly Odd Mother]

Happens too with girls who are 'forced' to grow up quickly when their baby brothers are born when they are barely out of the baby stage themselves. My Jilly asks to 'snuggle' all the time---it's her way of getting me almost all to herself---something I can do now that my youngest is 4 but couldn't do when she was younger.

[Melissa]

My 2 1/2 year old likes to play baby too. (I have a 1 year old) He keeps telling me "When I'm a baby, I'll sit in the high chair, you'll cut my food up small, etc." like he's Benjamin Button or something!

[abbyjess]

I love the little dig at the hubby there in the end. It's those little quips that make me love reading your blog.

[Mom101]

This is why you need videotape.

And the opportunity to pull it out in oh, 13 years or so.

[katie]

Poor little guy.

[TR from Experiencing Motherhood]

ha!! Smart kid - you gotta hand it to him. :) Can't be easy for you though!

[tanyetta]

True, True :)

[MommyNamedApril]

LOL, amen.

[Nadine]

We're going through the same, Monkey is 3 and his sister just turned one. Overall he's been pretty good about it.

[Jill]

He'll get over it. But in a pinch, there's an episode of Calliou where he pulls the same thing. In typical Calliou fashion, his parents handle it with aplomb. I learn all my best parenting tricks from cartoons. Doesn't everyone?

[Natty]

LOL... I laughed out loud at this post, because this morning my husband threw a huge fit. I snowed last night and then freezing rain and then the stupid snow plow driver stuffed our driveway full of ice balls. I am always the rational one when it comes to shoveling snow!

We are currently trying for our first, and I love reading your blog. Our household seems similar to yours, albeit minus a few little ones. My husband more or less makes up for not having a baby (yet)!

[SusieQ]

I have an old grade school friend whom I have heard say, "Let him (2 year old) have whatever he wants (toy/market/food). He missed his nap (or it's past his bedtime), and he's too tired for me to deal with right now." Now that's not going to create any future problems, now is it?
I had to train myself not to give in to "the noise" that my younger daughter made as a baby when she wanted something her sister had. She's toughie as it is now, so I can only imagine what she'd be like if she learned to get her way by behaving badly.