My 2Yr Old Has Stopped Calling Me Mommy

Deb J. has some good ideas...

I realize this upset you but I would try to find a way to laugh this off to yourself or laugh about it with your husband privately so you can internalize it a little easier on the heart--He loves you dearly no matter what name he is calling you. And you know he's testing you b/c that is the age and there are more tests to come.

What do your stepchildren call you? Maybe your toddler just hears you being called something different by them whereas everyone calls your husband "daddy" so he is a little confused? Can your husband refer to you more as "mommy" in front of your toddler for a while and see if this influences him? If you have a small photo album with pictures in it have DADDY go over them with him and insist he uses the term "mommy" at your picture.

My toddler has responded really well to my relationship with my mom and mimics me talking to my mom using the term "Mom" affectionately toward me. So if that is an option then a little extra exposure to you and grandma could help too.

I think you just need to relax and let it pass like every other phase. He is calling you baby because he hears your husband calling you that! And because of that he feels it is ok to do so. So what you need to do the next he does that is just explain that only daddy is allowed to call you that and he is to call you mommy and if he does it again you do not answer him. And then explain to him that you will not answer him if he calls you something other than mommy. But thats it, don't say anything else or make a big deal about it or get upset and raise your voice. Just say it in your normal tone. Trust me he will get the hint when you don't answer him. 2 yr olds understand alot more than we think!! good luck

Hello A.. I have 3 adult kids and 3 grandkids ages 10, 7 and 3. It is my experience as a parent and grandparent that that children ages 2-4 approx. go through phases of calling their parents by their name or nick name. I would suggest that first of all you need to try and not get so upset. I think children can sense that. Your son is too young to know how to be malicious. He is copying what he hears. You can try refusing to answer him when he calls you something other than Mommy, but I strongly urge you not to over react. If he comes in and says something like "Baby can I have a cookie?" you can ignore him or say somthing to him like, "There's no one here by that name." and don't give in until he calls you mommy. But try to keep it light. Believe me you have many years ahead of you and this is a very small battle and neither of you should be in tears over it. Hope things work out. Take care, Debbie J.

I think this is probably one of those toddler things that the harder you try to change, the more he will resist you. Can you try to ignore it a little longer (as long as he's calling you something semi-appropriate like 'daddy' and not totally inappropriate 'dumbhead')? I also liked the previous poster's advice about "there's nobody here by this name" if ignoring is not going to work for you.