Looking back, was your child's personality obvious when they were a baby?

[missesschmisses]

DS is 15mo, I often wonder whether his little quirks now will go on to be his personality, and one day I'll look back and say 'oh yes you did always want your own way, even as a toddler!' Or whether he is just very much a typical toddler.

He seems very cheeky, loves performing for the crowds with loud fake laughs, throws EVERYTHING really well (future shot putter ) and can be very impatient. Also so lovely and cuddly and warm and affectionate.

Can you look back in your children as little ones and see their personalities?

Yep. Feisty was the first word that popped into my head when DD was born.

Also anxious, clingy and complicated. Often angry.
She's still wonderful though :-D

I can definitely see glimpses of my children's personality through their baby years. They are four and seven now. My eldest was the most chilled out baby... She would nap for hours and was very happy in a playpen once she had a few toys to keep her happy. She's now the most relaxed child ever. To our detriment at times when we are rushing out the door .... My youngest, was the opposite... I swear we have very few photos of her smiling as a baby as she really was a most discontented child she was late to walk and loved waking up her mommy for late night feeds... She's now four and full of fun, though still very demanding... We joke that she hated being a baby and I think she actually did... She's so much happier now she's independent and can do stuff for herself.

My ds was one of those babies who'd happily be held by anyone...now he's ten, he's very popular and confident socially, so maybe.

Yes. It's funny, there were quite a bit of things that came through they still are like now.

Your ds sounds adorable

Yes, completely. DS1 has always been determined, very upset if he couldn't achieve something (you've never seen a baby so desperate to roll, crawl, eat solids). Same now as a teenager.

DS2 actually smiled in the delivery suite. Still smiling now.

Yes. DD was very needy and always needed to be centre of my attention. She was also bright, funny and never shut up. At almost 17 she is still the same! Ds was much quieter and was a very chilled, easy baby. At 13 he is so laid back he is horizontal.

Definitely yes. They are in their 20s now & still have a lot of the characteristics we began to see in them as babies & young children.

When they started school the teacher asked parents to write a letter about their child, telling them about their personalities, likes, dislikes etc. I found my copies of the letters a while back & it was so interesting to re-read them and discover that my now adult DC hadn't really changed much at all!

I wish I'd taken notes but in hindsight I think so. DD1 was very sociable from the start, enjoyed going to activities and being on the go, and was very physically active - these characteristics are still very much part of who she is. My DD2 entertained herself, was clear about what she would or wouldn't wear, loved being at home and could engage with her toys or drawing etc for long periods of time; all these traits are still clearly evident in her personality.

Yep, both so similar in personalities to the traits they exhibited as babies. And polar opposites of each other, you’d think they had different genes. Good job they both look like DH or I think he might be asking questions

Yes, he is still very affectionate and cuddly at 11, is good tempered and loves food!

Totally. Even before birth if I’m honest.

He’s 12 now. Never learnt anything new that wasn’t his own way. Diagnosed with ADHD at 8 but I should have seen it earlier. Wouldn’t eat food until he could feed himself. Wouldn’t read until he was ready, wouldn’t do maths until he’s was ready (went from way behind to working ‘in advance’ during year 6).

I can still count on one hand the times he’s let me help him with homework.

Yes, all of mine (now young adults) had character traits as babies/toddlers that I can see in them now. One was feisty and argumentative, one was easy-going and placid, one was eager to please but a bit of a closed book, one was in his own little dreamworld most of the time - none of that has really changed.

My youngest is 21, my eldest 34.

They all had obvious personalities from crawling and kept them.

So did a lot of their Friends, good and bad.

It's funny how many still get hangry etc. It's something that you never seem to grow out of.

looks like I'm going to have a loud teenager who is always hungry and has an excellent throw one day then!

I remember telling the health visitor that my Dd had a silly sense of humour when she was about 8 months old. At 18, she still has an advanced sense of the absurd, and is quick to laugh, although a minor problem can quickly become a three act tragedy, which has always been the case, whether that was losing a welly as a toddler or finding that her A level art folder is too heavy to carry to school.
My son has always been chatty, interested in the world around him, and very caring about others. These are traits he's carried into adulthood.

Yes DC1 was very active and lively, an absolute whirlwind. They are now very motivated, independent, hardworking and driven.
DC2 was a very chilled baby and now needs a lot of encouragement to do chores and do activities.

Yes absolutely and are complete polar opposites of each other.

DS1 was born with his bottom lip sticking out in a sulk! He screamed his head off if he didn't get his own way. I used to do Hitler salutes at him when he was asleep.

DS2 was an angel, slept 7pm to 7am from very young and was just delighted at everything. And played nicely whilst waiting for you to be available.

They're both adults now and exactly the same.

Yes.

Ds1 (now 10) - I remember telling him to calm down and have a quiet sit for a minute at about 6 weeks old. I still need to tell him that. A good friend told me he seemed 'very talkative' at 6 months. He never shuts up. Also been a 'mummy's boy' since first few days.

DS2 (now 9)- been very observant since he was a few hours old. We could tell he was 'clever' by a few months old (actually we thought we were a bit nutty to think that) - but turned out he is very very academically able and generally savvy. He's always been strong willed and prone to stroppy. And he has always been a very early riser.

Also the two boys together - they've basically been messing about lieing on top of each other since the afternoon after DS2 was born.

Yes. The stubbornness. The nursery said they never had someone so stubborn.

One yes, the other no.

Ds2 was always a stubborn baby and toddler. Absolutely concerned with what was fair and justice being served and not being controlled. His life was always lived on the highest of highs and the lowest of lows and he bore a grudge with a vengence. He is an easy going 17 year old but still into justice and fairness and heading to Uni to study Politics. We have a great relationship and he loving and a lot less tantrummy. He is still thrawn though.

DS1 was the happiest, outgoing baby and toddler, loved women in particular and would bat his eyelashes at them and wind them round his little podgy fingers. He would also stand up for himself with other kids. He's now 18, painfully shy, anxious and socially awkward. Has the dryest sense of humour though and is very very clever (computer geek). He was bullied in primary, but if i'm honest, he'd already started to be shy and awkward by then (probably why he was bullied).

Very much so.

Dd1 - quite content baby. Spoke very early, very wordy and very strong communication skills. Now 9, very studious and year group leader in reading and writing. Walked at 18 months, bum shuffled in between - now she is not a herd or trend follower, airy fairy in her own world and very thick skinned. Otherwise very easy going and even tempered. Never tantrums she's had all of about 5 strops in her life. She is independent and rarely clings or ever did.

Dd2. Very high maintenance baby, like a limpet. Still is at 6. Smiled at a day old and seemed to understand humour at weeks. Not anxious just very very loving and would choose to be with me all the time and her sister.
Walked as soon as her legs would hold her. Talked early too. Now she is 6 she tells me her friends want to be just like her. She is a trendsetter, very outgoing and loud and very funny.

Yes, very much so, even down to eating habits - ds is a 3 (or 4!) square meals a day kind of boy, and used to breastfeed for up to an hour a time, and then have long gaps between feeds. Dd was little and often with the feeding and is much more of a grazer now.

My Mum has always said of me and my siblings that we are the same as children/ adults as when we were babies.

Yes. Cheeky sense of humour from around 3 months. Lots of traits that have continued into childhood.

Only with DS2. He's very probably got ADHD, he's just been assessed and we're waiting for a diagnosis, and he spent much of his very early life awake.