Everything in nature has a pecking order. Usually, the most intelligent species sits atop the mountain and exercises domain over everything it surveys. Mice eat bugs, cats eat mice, dingos eat cats, lions eat dingos (and everything else it can get is jaws around.) Pecking order. Scientists have also observed a similar phenomenon that develops inside households where babies are present. Not necessarily a food chain, but a pecking order of importance. In our house, the pecking order looks something like the picture above.
When your baby is just waking up and she sees you for the first time that morning, her eyes light up, she smiles, and it just warms your heart because she’s so happy to see you. During the day too, the little one focuses her attention on whatever you do and wherever you go. If you plop her down on the living room floor and run to the kitchen to grab her a bottle, she watches you all the way. That is, unless there are some type of shiny objects in her sights.
Shiny objects trump mom and dad every time. In our house, we have a ceiling fan, which, when turned on, grabs her attention and holds it longer than mom and dad can. She’ll sit and stare at that thing for hours and not move a muscle. She’ll take her bottle right there, nap right there, and when she wakes up, she just keeps on starting at the shiny. That as until the dog walks by.
When the dog is in the room, its the funniest thing in the world to her. She giggles like crazy, and somehow the dog knows exactly what her screams and squeals mean, because he plays right into it. He waddles over to her, wags his tail, licks her face and then gets his toy ball to play fetch. However much she needs mom and dad, or is interested in looking at shiny objects, the dog trumps all.
If we’ve got the baby in a high chair and the dog strolls over hoping to pick up something that falls off the bib, she is leaning over the edge of the tray, peeking down, and giggling so much that the food actually does come out of her mouth and fall onto the floor. I’m not even sure anymore if the dog comes over because she drops the food, or if she’s dropping the food because the dog is in view. I’m just amazed that both of them have the reactions they do. But then again, maybe a little amazement and wonder at the little things in life isn’t so bad.
Anyone else have a similar experience with their kids, shiny objects, and pets?
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