I think I'm being played

My boys are 26 months. For the past few weeks, when I put the down for bed and leave the room, I can hear Jake whimpering/crying. :sorry: It does not sound like his usual screaming cry. I'll go in there and he's laying in bed with tears rolling down his face. He does not get up when I go in and I'll just talk to him for a minute and then he's ok. Last night he did it while I was putting them to bed. After I got his brother in his crib, I walked over to his and the tears started.

I've noticed this past week he's doing it during the day as well. I'll tell him to sit down and eat his meal and the whimpering/crying tears start to come. Yesterday after their naps he did not want to walk down the stairs and laid in the hallway and did the same thing. I just ignored him and he came down a few minutes later, happy as can be. Last night I decided not to go in there when I heard him crying after I left the room and it only lasted a few minutes.

I think he's playing me! This is something new so that's why it concerned me, esp. with it happening at bedtime. But I now feel it's his way of getting my attention. If that's true....boy ,is he smart, because it's working.

What do you think?

 

I don't know, I am curious to hear others answers...but if he is playing you, he is a smart cookie! My DD will do this thing where she hides her face when she does not get her away and if I give her attention, she gets more dramatic about it but if I don't, then she recovers quickly and acts like nothing happened. It's so hard to tell!

 

Liam has been doing this for a while and I finally caught on!! If something happens, he'll make his little boo boo face and say "You hurt my feelings." If I react with an "Oh, buddy, I'm so sorry", he cries. If I look at him and say "You are a phoney baloney.", he laughs.

I think Jake may have found your soft spot and is playing you.

 

I've read somewhere..I forget where..that children can go through different phases of attachment anxiety. That's almost what it sounds like to me. I think putting him down and leaving the room is okay to do, especially since he seems to recover so quickly. It sounds like a phase he'll have to work through. Maybe a little extra cuddle time after naptime may help him and you both.

 

Hi! This is my first post to the forum, we're finally getting "back alive" as our 25 month old girls give us a little more free time than we all had before multiples.

I agree with the "being played" -- my more sensitive daughter truly does cry and get generally bummed out more than her sister - but occasionally the other one will start crying etc. for seemingly no reason about 15 minutes after her sister gets hurt, cries, then gets "special attention" from us. We size up what we know , then either realize something is wrong, or do the whole "hey, you're faking" thing in a funny voice back to her. Probably 90% of the time we're right, and she starts laughing. The other 10% we feel like we have once again taken ourselves out of the running for "parents of the year". :unsure:

Jeff

 

At that age, any number of things would trigger "hurt feelings" in my boys. They would get this horrible pouting face and look just pitiful. Anything could trigger it, and I fell for it all the time.

Ha...now they tell me "you hurt my feelings," "you're not my best friend," (where this one came from I don't know) etc...I have to try very hard not to laugh because it's usually over something very minor.