I found that I had to go outside my comfort zone with my first child and try a lot of things to get them to want to be with me. Each child is only slightly different in minor ways (they liked to be held differently, for example) but almost all of them appreciated and grew closer to me with the below activities.

I first have to make sure their basic needs are met - are they hungry, do they have a full diaper, or are they bored/overstimulated? Once these questions are resolved I found that I simply had to hold them and do one of many things with them:

• Dance (hold them facing you with one hand, use the other hand to hold their hand and dance around the room and house)
• Sing (if they are sleepy)
• Keep moving - I can't keep them happy in a chair, so I'm always standing and weaving or bobbing in place, or walking around.
• Hold them and engage myself in other (safe) endeavors. They really enjoy being held while I'm working on something, such as loading/unloading the dishwasher, doing yard work one handed, picking up, and even reading.
• Mirror play
• If they are old enough, tossing them up in the air, wrestling, and other physical activities really work well for bonding
• Talking and redirecting attention as they grow older helps keep them happy - sometimes I'll sit them down and give them a relatively rapid slideshow of pictures of faces in our family, or make faces with them all while talking.
• If I get tired of standing I'll sit, place them on my lap, let them hold my fingers, and gently move and wiggle my fingers so their hands and arms move, maybe touching their hand to their head or my head, or their knees, or crossing their arms, etc. This is also useful in situations where sitting quietly is expected (church, funerals, etc).

Touching goes a long way to bonding, even if it's just a little wrinkled baby hand wrapped around my finger.

When crankiness or exhaustion set in it takes more work. Again, I check to see if the three main needs are fulfilled, and then I'll set about singing and dancing them to sleep.

I found that I couldn't just be a passive party - I really had to come out of my comfort zone and be interactive. Being physically active with them goes a long way, and lead naturally into wrestling with them and being comfortable hugging and kissing them as they get older - something my father rarely did, and I know I wouldn't be able to do now if I hadn't laid this foundation.