As our son has grown up I have really tried to make sure we have bonded as much as possible.

He absolutely adores his mother who is his primary care giver, and naturally there was a period where he did not want to be held by me if his mom was available. If I remember correctly this was when he was about 12-15 months old. From what I have heard this is very common, some fathers however can get a little insulted and not feel loved by their little ones.

So how can fathers increase their bond with their baby or toddler?

Here are some things I have found that have really helped. The result is that I have a smiling toddler who at 18 months old loves to run, giggle and leap into my body and arms whenever he gets the chance....

• Swimming Lessons
• or swimming without lessons
• the water is a great soother and a fantastic place for father and bub to have very close personal contact whilst having heaps of fun.
• Reading Books
• They normally sit in your lap.
• They are relaxed and learning from you.
• Being on the floor with them... get down to their level.
• They don't like people dwarfing them.
• You can play side by side with them here even if they don't initially want you to play with them.
• They will get curious eventually.
• Playing on the swing
• For some reason he really enjoys me swinging him.
• He seems to associate the swing with relaxing and being with his dad.
• He loves his mom swinging him also.
• Bath time.
• I always bath our son at 6.45pm every night. It is a special event he shares with his father.
• Saying goodnight.
• I am always the last to say goodnight, give him a kiss and turn off his lights.
• I think I started this routine from about 9 months on.
• Rachel (my wife) is also very conscious of making sure Codi bonds with me. She is the one that insisted and set up a couple of the times above. I am very happy that she really pushed for this early on. I think it is important that the other parent realise that your child needs special one on one activities with each parent.

I hope this helps.