To refuse to kiss 70 animals a day?

[DueyCheatemAndHow]

DS has slowly got into cuddly toys more and more. It got to the point where he had some on his shelf and some in his bed and he wanted me to kiss them goodnight, so I did.

But now he is insisting on having all of them in his bed. There's at least 35 if not 40. And he has a nap as well - so they both need two kisses a day.

Am I being a total bitch to refuse to kiss that many soft toys? He was 3 in September.

You're a better person than me because they'd be discretely disappearing one by one in my house.

How does he fit in the bed with that many soft toys?

It's ridiculous, they are all piled in at the bottom.

But he is sobbing his heart out cos I've said no to kissing them today and I feel like a total bitch

How about one kiss/day? That cuddly can pass on the kiss to all the others for you.

Is that you Elizabeth...I mean Your Majesty?

I kiss the ones he has up with him - today that was 3.

He's a high maintenance specimen he really is.

Could you do a big air kiss with a bit of a spin meant for ‘all of them’ or will your son know better

@Hedgesfullofbirds haha

Is he Prince Andrew, OP?

(See current thread in Royal Family for further details.)

@Sparklesocks that's a good idea thanks I'll try that

Cross Post!

I tell my little one she can choose one toy to take to bed each night and the rest are in her teddy box in her bedroom.
Can you try that? Occasionally I have to kiss the one she has with her.

A few kisses into your hands and “sprinkle” them about?

This is too cute.

it's fine to introduce some limits or toys taking turns. My son's autistic and had enormous attachment to every toy so for him it had to be slow and gradually and with lots of warning. Maybe get him to help with the toys when you change his sheets, and start identifying his favourites.

For years we had a rule of only 17 toys on the bed . I think that was just how many we had when I drew the line and decided it was one in, one out from then on.

A toy hammock above the bed may help.

You kiss one of them and then when your son is asleep, it will go round the room and kiss all the other teddies on your behalf.
I learned this for myself when I was around 7 or 8 and got tired of having to say goodnight to all the Flower Fairies on my wallpaper, plus the cuddly toys. I used to send my favourite fairy to do the job.
I am completely and utterly normal by the way 😳

Come on, there's a way around this! Do a group hug and a few air kisses to the group, and it's done in 10 seconds!

I probably drove my poor mum to distraction with this when I was little, but I was exactly like your ds. All I can tell you is that it really, genuinely mattered to me that they each got a kiss, and I really worried about them feing unloved if they didn't.

Occasionally, my mum would make the mistake of giving me a second kiss after she had gone round them all, so she would have to start going round all of them again!

@Hedgesfullofbirds

Is that you Elizabeth...I mean Your Majesty?

Stop the nap and you've halved your problem. Why does he need a nap at 3?

Awwwww, kiss the fluffies, he'll be out the door without a backward glance soon enough (🥺)

@stingofthebutterfly

Stop the nap and you've halved your problem. Why does he need a nap at 3?

I'm 26 and I love a good nap...

@stingofthebutterfly

Stop the nap and you've halved your problem. Why does he need a nap at 3?

Do you have children? Some of them are much happier with a midday nap even at the age of three or four. As a parent it’s a win-win because you get a block of free time and a happier kid! At some point it may affect their bedtime but until then why would you take the nap away?

Just blow some kisses (and subtlety donate the least loved cuddlies to charity)

I normally loathe the "childhood is so fleeting embrace every moment lot but in this case...

Kiss the fluffies.

@Hedgesfullofbirds

Is that you Elizabeth...I mean Your Majesty?