Does having a favorite child mean you love them more?

I think it might mean you like them more.

While there’s nothing inherently wrong with having a “favourite” child, it’s unwise & a little crass to actually tell them this, best kept as the parents guilty pleasure.

@ucme I wouldn’t want to be on that list. Seems dirty.

Makes me think of a song, Dirty Diana…I wonder why?

So yes or no? lol

It certainly seems to imply that and I wouldn’t tell any child of mine that he was my favorite.

I tell all my children that they are my favorite, LOL. When they compare notes, I’m outed. I tell all my dogs I love them best, too. And the truth is, depending on the day or even the moment, they are all my favorites. :-)

You guys are telling me answers but avoiding the Yes or No question lol

No.

It’s different for every individual parent, so no one would know the answer in your particular case.
My son could be considered my “favourite” by virtue of him being my first born, does that mean I love my daughter less? Not a cat in hell’s chance, absolutely not, for me it simply means the first born status awards him merit points by default alone.

My son is EVERYONE’S favorite, including my daughter’s favorite! So, no I don’t love him more, but, as @woodcutter, I really REALLY REALLY like him! I really REALLY like my daughters too. :)

What else would the word “favorite” signify? It’s like asking “If chicken is your favorite meat, does that mean you like it more than beef?”

What do you mean @Blackberry?

Every person is different, so it’s not as simple as yes or no.

I don’t think that most parents love their favorite child more, it just means that the one is the child whose personality best ‘clicks’ with that parent’s – I believe this is more true than the favorite is the child gets better grades or goes further with their education or makes more as an adult.

Fortunately, my favorite child is my only child. Therefore, he’s also my problem child. But I was the youngest of three, and the middle child was the one that both my parents liked best. The eldest and I were more challenging with stronger personalities.

One day my sister casually mentioned to me that she had been dad’s favorite. I was shocked. Just shocked. “Well, but you were mom’s favorite, so it evened out.”

I thought I was both their favorite!

Thanks!

I don’t have kids, obviously. But I assume it’s similar with siblings.
I sure as hell have a favorite sibling. I wouldn’t say that I love him most, just that I like him most. I love them all the same.

No. I never had a favorite among my children but they each swear I favor the other sibling and not themselves, but when I did daycare, I favored some children loved them because they were cute or very pleasant but I usually had a sweet spot in my heart for the overly energetic or talkative, or stubborn little ones. Usually what some would consider the misfit ones. The perfect children are a blessing on stressful days but the misfit ones were the ones who could usually make me nuts and amused, all at the same time. But I wouldn’t say that it made one group more loved than the other. To me they were all blessings. (Well accept this one kid who I was sure would grow up to be a serial killer.)

When I had a daycare I had one baby who just broke my heart. He was about 6 months old. He was a crack baby and as a result his body was really stiff…..but smile, boy! You just look at him and he’d just laugh! THE most good natured child. I wonder what happened to him, if he ever even had a chance. (He and another little girl, about the same age, were in foster care, and the foster mom would bring them to me. She was an asshat.)
I had a potential serial killer on my hands too!
Other people’s children…so sad, so sad. No chance.

I think I’m the favorite for both of my parents, but it’s not much of a competition. My brother is in prison and my sister still lives at home at 32. I’m in college with a 4.0 GPA, married, and my husband and I own our own home. I don’t think they love me more – I’m just the only one that has my head on straight and never gives them any trouble.

I also think my husband is the favorite for his mother, for similar reasons. He’s the only child of 5 making anything of himself.

It’s pretty normal to have a favorite, but I don’t think it’s okay to say it.

I always enjoyed telling my granddaughter that she was my favorite grand daughter….because she was the only one! Then her sister was born 9 years later and I told her that I can’t tell her she’s my favorite grand daughter any more. She just grinned and shook her head. But, as she was leaving a little later I yelled from another room, “You’re my favorite grand daughter Brande!” She giggled. :)

@Dutchess_III You’ve mentioned Brande a few times and I’ve been wondering – is that pronounced like “Brandy” or like “Brand?”

My husband’s grandpa always says things like, “You’re my favorite second oldest grandson.” :)

Brandy.

I think @woodcutter got it right. The parents don’t love them more but may enjoy their company, their antics, their personalities more. I can tell you without a doubt who the favorite was and she would deny it wholeheartedly. Luckily, being the favorite never gave her a big head.

No. I don’t have a favorite child and I love them all the same.

A boss I worked for long ago told me he loves his son but he doesn’t like him very much. His son made bad decisions which finally landed him in prison. He made a lot of sense after I thought about it for about 2 seconds.