Daddy's Girl

E went through a long, painfully long phase of being a Mommy's girl. While part of me loved it, it got a bit tough at times when she only wanted me for everything. And I felt pretty bad for J, who kept trying, through the screams and the tears and the tantrums. He had to fight for his hugs and his kisses, and often just go without them. He wasn't allowed to read stories, he wasn't allowed to give baths or feed her dinner. He tried giving her space, he tried bribes, he tried pretending to be mama, but in the end it was just a waiting game. He has a thicker skin than I do, I'll say that for him.

Now, finally, the tide is turning. Dada gets to read stories at bedtime. Dada gets to have her all to himself while Mama cooks dinner with not a single complaint. She has games that she plays with Dada that she won't play with Mama. When we read books about mamas and babies, she changes the mamas to dadas. When she plays with her stethoscope or her pens she says "Like Dada!" When she gets dressed in the morning she runs out to "Show Dada!" And if he wants a hug or a kiss, he never has to ask twice. She even has a special hug for Dada called the "squeeze hug". They go on dates. They do "running high fives", and I'm sure as she gets older there will be more things that they share, just the two of them. This is what J has been waiting for after all those months of playing second fiddle or, more accurately, no fiddle at all.

Oh, and he lets her play with computer way more than mom does. That helps.