To each his own

Babies are meant to be spoken to, held, and rocked among other things. I believe my son to be a smart child, but I am his mother and am supposed to think that right? Well, I have a lot of strangers comment on how chatty he is for his age. I feel that is mainly because I was always engaging him and talking to him. I didn't allow him to cry for very long unless it was/is bed time. And even then it broke my heart listening to it and feeling like "Well, the experts say this is the best way." Well, I've learn otherwise since my son was a baby and if ever there should be another little one in our home, I will do things differently. Anyhow, I was holding a fussy baby this evening. I was patting her back, talking to her, just walking around letting her see what was going on. I was finally able to sit down with her and continued patting her back and rocking back and forth on the couch. She was calm most of the time I held her and finally fell asleep. The mother commented "She likes you. You're good with her." This woman has more than one child and I never see her talk much to the infant or engage her. Maybe it's just the times that I see them, but I find that very odd. The baby "likes" me and responded to me, because I talked to her and reassured her. Not that she can truly understand what the heck I'm saying, but a calm voice does tend to have a calming effect on a person.
I find that with my son, patience for us has been wearing thin since he hit about 2 and 1/2. I try to remind myself that he is only 3 and that he doesn't know any better or he's not doing it out of spite. However, he is a lot smarter than your average 3 your old (again in my humble opinion) and I do find myself telling my son "You know better than that!" Yes, repetition is key at this age and I know that, but in the heat of the moment every thing goes out the window. He is such a stubborn child and the stand offs that occur at our house can be taxing on everyone. I find myself looking for books and forums that can tell me how to deal with my son's behavior without flying the handle most days. Today was a good day for us all. He had a fever all day yesterday on his birthday and woke up this morning all better. He was the sweetest little thing all day today and I am hoping that means his tantrum days are over. However, I know that the answer to that is "Yeah right!" Being stubborn is a good thing. He won't give up easy and he will try until he succeeds. He has the all the drive he will ever need to be a success in today's society.
I know my past has a lot to do with how I react today. I keep telling myself I am going to "talk" to "someone" and get my issues with the past sorted out so I can move on and learn how to deal with life in a better and more positive way. Until I can though, I will be reminding myself that "He is only three." Repetition, repetition, repetition.
Back to the fussy infant. Just holding her and rocking her made me think about my son. Of course he is perfect in every way. He is such a gentle soul and I need to nourish it more. He was sent to me for a reason and I know he would not thrive in the environment this little infant is in. To each his own. I'm not judging. Just ranting. This woman as an older child that is sweet, helpful, and very friendly. So I know her children are perfect in their own way. We have different parenting views, I guess is all I'm trying to say in this long rant. To each his own.