Acting babyish

[knee_deep_with_1]

Does anyone else have a 7 year old or around that age that still acts babyish? My daughter is 7 and still demands me to do things for her like getting dressed to pouring a drink. She still even wants to be carried to bed! She will throw her arms in the air and say uppie mommy. She thinks its cute or funny to act like she is 1 or 2 years old again. She constantly does the baby talking which I have tried ignoring and or telling her to use her big girl voice because I cant understand her. She doesnt suck her thumb per se but she will put it in her mouth and "pretend" to suck and attempt to talk to me with it still in her mouth. When we are in the living room together doing whatever, she will start crawling around on the floor giggling saying look mommy, I am a baby! I hate to say its embarrassing but when she does that in public or when we have company or when visiting someones house, I just want to crawl in a hole in the wall. Is there anyone else going through this or have gone through this with an older child before? Thank you everyone for your time and have a wonderful day!

Mary

[knee_deep_with_1]

Is there anyone that is experiencing the same thing with their child? I am hoping I am not the only one because lately, I feel that I am. None of my friends children do this so I am not sure on how I should handle it. Thank you everyone.

Mary

[JElaineB]

I have a 7 year old and he tries to get away with as much as he can in this category at home, but not in public or in front of others like your daughter. For example, he is pefectly capable of dressing himself, and does so most of the time, but if I am around he flops on the bed and makes me dress him as if he was a rag doll. I do let him get away with it somewhat, but I would probably be much more frustrated if it was to the level you described. Sorry I don't have any great advice!

[One_Girl]

When my dd hasn't had a lot of time with me or we have had some really bad days together she gets more clingy and asks to be carried or wants to constantly hug. It isn't a long term thing and she does most things independently even then. Is there a lot of change right now? Do you think she has learned that this is the only way to get attention because of a hard time previously and she hasn't been able to get out of that cycle now that things are good?

[Rose-Roget]

Ds is almost 6 and still likes to talk baby talk and pretend to be babyish, even in public. He doesn't seem to understand that people's expectations change for older children. I've written a social story about it for the baby talk and we have talked about how now that he's older, it's pretty unexpected to hear him talk or act like babies do. People think it's cute for a baby because that's all babies know how to do, but they feel uncomfortable to see an older child do it. We also talk about the privileges that come with being an older child - the freedoms, independence, special treats that younger children and babies don't get - and that there are many things people think it's cute to see an older kid do that babies can't do. Sometimes that helps, sometimes it doesn't. Good luck.

[cowboyjunki]

I have an almost 6 yo who baby talks every day. He goes back and forth between a big boy voice and baby talk. I have no suggestions - we have everything you tried, with limited success. He still sleeps with about 30 stuffed animals, and when he is talking to them or his baby sister, it is 10 times worse. My husband thinks we should get rid of all his stuffed animals, but that just seems cruel to me..............

[annethcz]

My almost 7yo is the same way. I think that it has a lot to do with the fact that she's the baby of the family. I occasionally indulge her, but not most of the time.

[meemee]

i think its an age thingy.

however i join my dd. she is an only and just a few months away from her 8th bday.

honestly i dont care about what people say or feel.

my who has never done baby talk is all about baby talk these days.

at a restaurant she is the baby who has to sit on mama's lap.

*shrug* i dont know. she is my only. i see these as her last moments of actually being a baby before she turns into the girl she is growing up to be.

i kinda welcome the babyness because i get to hold her and hug her for a little while longer.

already sometimes i do a double take because she looks sooo much older and behaves so much older than her age.

i am honest with my dd. sometimes her babytalk is v. jaring so i tell her to quit it as its irritating me and she does.

my dd goes thru her emotional growth spurt during the winter holidays.

i know this is it. her last bit of babyhood. and i will never hear the baby talk and all those baby behaviours again. that's why i guess it does not on most days bug me. they always show me time slipping away.

sorry. not really helpful for you i imagine.

[pianojazzgirl]

My soon-to-be 6 yr old dd does this as does her soon-to-be 8 yr old best friend (and unfortunately they feed off of each other). It really does drive me nuts I'll admit, but I try to just let it roll off my back. I do explain sometimes how difficult it used to be to understand her when she was really little and how happy I was when she started being able to talk like a "big kid" and I was better able to understand her. I also sometimes make her repeat things in her "normal" voice so that I can understand her.