Belly button privacy

Linus doesn't have any of the usual transition objects. No blankies, binkies, stuffed animals, nothing. He doesn't suck his thumb, or twist his hair, or pull his ear.

What he does have is his belly button. It's his comfort touchstone. He will rub it if he's in need of comfort or reassurance. If he comes into a room full of people and noise and commotion, he'll stop a little ways in, rub his belly button, and watch what's going on before he decides whether to join in or not. If he finds a situation upsetting, his hand finds his belly button immediately. We were watching "Robots" the other day, and during the sad scene at the train station where Rodney says goodbye to his parents - finger on the belly button. He'll also rub his belly button when he's nursing - the complete Comfort Package.

I find it to be completely endearing.

His abdominal focus doesn't end there. He likes to press his belly against things, especially another person's belly. Often while he's nursing he'll decide that it's time for belly contact. He'll lift his shirt and arch his back, trying to press his belly against mine. If I lift my shirt and press bellies for a second, he'll smile and continue nursing happily.

It gets nuttier. He'll walk up to things and press his belly against them. I'll be fixing some food in the kitchen and he'll come in, lift his shirt, press his belly against the fridge, or one of the cabinets, turn around and walk out again. I freaked once when I saw him going bare-belly-first towards the oven. I let out a little shriek, which took him by surprise, causing him to stop, drop his shirt and rub his belly button while looking at me with concern. I needn't have worried - of course we have a modern oven with adequate insulation, so the door was cool to the touch. I just had visions in my head of 2nd degree belly-burns. How awful would that be?! I even saw him try to belly-press the cat. Didn't go over real well, but I can see the appeal of the warm, fuzzy cat belly.

I think this is an example of the kind of thing that's really cute when a baby does it, but it would be totally creepy in an adult. Imagine one of your co-workers pressing his naked belly up against the water fountain or the copier machine. Nuh uh. Not charming.

All of this means that onesies aren't too popular in our house any more - no belly button access. It's really quite sad when his pair of onesie pjs makes it up in the rotation. He'll be rubbing around for a couple of minutes searching for access. I usually take pity and unzip them down to the waist. You can just see him relax when he finally finds that navel. Aaaah.

And he's almost as interested in your belly button. If you lift your shirt, he'll poke a finger in it. This really cracks him up! However, this is where I've drawn the line.

I have declared my belly button OFF LIMITS.

I will participate in the belly press, no problem, but I will NOT have fingers in my belly button. I don't like it. I tried to be game for awhile, but I just decided, "nope."

I don't have a whole lot of physical boundaries these days. I will nurse him. I will take a bath with him. Closed doors are upsetting, so he can come into the bathroom when I'm showering or using the toilet. In fact, he really likes to hug me while I'm sitting on the toilet (I think I'm just at the right height). Fine. He sleeps with us and sometimes I'll wake up in the middle of the night and he'll be plastered right up against me. So? Sometimes when he's nursing, he'll feel every bit of my face, or he'll want to investigate my teeth. No problem. He likes to pull off my socks when I'm sitting on the couch and consider, and have a discussion with, each of my toes. You bet. The cat likes to sit on my lap while I'm watching TV, while the dog likes to sit on my feet. Ok. I will have intimate relations with Orion. Great!

But my belly button is PRIVATE.

I hope we can still be friends.