I always wondered whether L would be clingy like other kids.

For the first 13 months of her life, she seemed to shun this common quality, instead displaying a fierce independence about which Powergirl and I could only joke. No, guys, the baby seemed to say, I won’t let you feed me X—either I give it to myself or I’m not eating it, period.

These tendencies finally appear to be changing. Over the last ten days or so, the baby has developed a bit of a co-dependent streak. The object of her clinginess: Moi.

I’m not sure how I feel about this new thing. I mean, sure, I’m flattered (and not-so-secretly delighted) that the baby is obsessed with her daddy. On the flip side, however, it’s not exactly healthy (for her or for me) that she cries every time I leave a room, not to mention that it undoubtedly hurts her momma’s feelings just a bit.

Most of the literature I’ve read on the subject (see this and this) says her fascination likely is just a phase; that over the course of the next few years, the baby will latch on to a number of other people, places and things.

To what extent can I trust these reviews? If you’ve got experience with these kinds of developments, please speak up.