Daniel, My Daniel

When Allison was young, she went through a phase where no one could hold her except me. This lasted from about 6 months to 18 months. At 18 months, she was still shy but started to become more social with other adults and children. At 2 1/2 she really opened up and today there is not a single person she won't talk to (which of course is good and bad). Daniel, on the other hand, only slightly went through the "no one is allowed to hold me but my mommy phase." However, he is very cautious when it comes to interacting with other adults. In fact, he is a completely different person at home around me, Jeff, Allison and even at my parents house then he is when we are out anywhere else. Whether it is at someone's house for a playdate or at the park or at the mall. He would rather hang out next to me with his hand attached to my pants that go on the swings or the slide. Everyday, I take Allison to school and he sees my friends there (Allison's classmates moms), as well as Allison's teachers. He will not acknowledge them in any way, shape or form even though they love to talk to him. He will avoid eye contact at all costs and will hardly crack a smile. However, if you ask him for a high five, he will happily oblige. The funny part is, if these friends come over to my house, they realize he is a completely different person - he talks! They wonder where this little boy comes from. He's certainly not the little boy they see everyday. The only other thing he will respond too is anything food related. We were at the park the other day and of course Daniel was as close to me as possible, until someone mentioned the word "lunch". at which point he started running towards the picnic table yelling "Lunch! Lunch!" This kid is all about food. You'd think he doesn't get fed but I swear he eats all day long. So the moral of the story is, if you see Daniel and I out somewhere and would like to get a response out of him, either ask for a high five or offer him some food.