Baby prefers dad

[pinkdressinggown]

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone else has this. My ds (13 months) has a very clear preference for his dad; will beam when he comes into the room, pushes me away to get to him, screams when his dad tries to hand him over to me, cries when his dad leaves him in the room with me. He doesn't do any of these things with me and never has done, even if I've been away for a couple of days (to be clear, I don't want him to - I just don't want him to so clearly favour his dad over me).

I don't think it's a novelty factor, as his dad works from home and so we see him quite a lot each day, spend lunches together etc, which is lovely. But tbh even with my NCT friends whose partners are a bit of a novelty as they don't work from home, the babies don't act like this.

I don't really know what I expect by writing this down - I'm super happy that ds loves his dad so much and feels so happy with him, but I just feel a bit rejected and like our relationship is suffering. Just to make it clear as well, I never talk about this in front of him etc as you never know how much babies pick up.

Anyone else experience this?

I have this with DD1 (2.5) talks about him constantly, always wants him etc. Being honest it doesn't really bother me but I just wanted you to know you're not alone!!

Think this is normal and they all go through phases. My DD tended to have a slight preference for her DF and a slightly bigger preference for her DGM when she was a bit younger. She's 19m and the last month or so out of the blue she has developed a much bigger preference for me. No idea why it has suddenly happened as nothing has changed in our lives. She spends more time with me than anyone else but not by a huge amount as I do work. I'm sure it's just a phase and will pass eventually. I wouldn't worry about it at all. My DH and DM are enjoying it though having more free time haha.

OP, I had this too. It really upset me at the time. Everyone said it was a phase, and it has gotten so much better although I would say there is still a mild preference for dad, but he is more fun than me so I can see why!
One easy thing I found helped was, making sure I played with him as DH did his own thing/tidied up etc. As often without realising it, I was doing the boring day to day stuff while DH played with him when we were both in the room.
It is actually a good sign developmentally. This is a good read and will hopefully make you feel better.

www.parent24.com/Baby/Toddler_1-2/the-daddy-phase-20170131

I had the same with DS1, since he was a baby, he clearly preferred his dad, no matter what I did. The hardest was when he got hurt and ran to his dad, not me and he still does it. It got really bad when i broke my leg and DH took over all his care and then DS2 arrived and he didn't even want to come anywhere close to me if his dad was home. If we were all in a room and DH walked out, he was going with him.
He got better when he turned 3, and I had a few weeks when he actually preferred me which was awesome but nowadays while there still a preference for his dad, he is a lot better with me too. DH is a lot more fun and one of those people who can play with kids for hours without getting bored.
Bright side, DS1 who is 1, seems to prefer me 😊

Totally normal, it’s not you. Your baby knows you love him he doesn’t need reassurance of that. It’s a good thing but it does hurt sometimes. My baby prefers daddy over me. I think it’s because mums do so many practical things we don’t always have fun or not as much as daddy’s do. Plus daddy’s play rough which my DS loves, I don’t dare to play rough. It’ll soon change imo. My baby goes through phases of where he prefers daddy or me

Thanks all, really appreciate your replies! Wish I could say it was a phase, but he's never shown a preference for me - but hopefully he will, so roll on that day!