What to do?

I recently reconnect with my ex on friendly terms. It’s been a long time since we dated, which he ended and we’re at different points in our lives. When we started talking it was nice because it was like talking to an old friend. He’s a stay at home Dad and said he went through a rough time with friends when he had his kids. He lost them because he just didn’t have time anymore. He told me he was glad we could be friends again. This didn’t seem strange to me at all because I’m on friendly terms with almost all of my exes. My husband knows that he and I talk so there’s no secret there.

It’s been a couple months and we talk about once a week I’d say. Just normal friendly chit chat. But the past couple of conversations I’ve noticed he’ll say stuff and I’m not sure how to take it. He’s shared with me that he enjoys our conversations because he doesn’t get them with his wife. That she doesn’t give him encouragement and our talks do. I thought that odd. He’ll bring up stuff from when we dated which isn’t as strange. Sometimes funny memories and sometimes times we were “together”. Like he’ll make a joke about it and then say sorry. Just today I was telling him that I love to cook from scratch and he said “every husband’s dream”. I just laughed it off and changed the subject. The biggest one is he’s told me is that I’m the biggest blessing to him since his children were born. 😳 There’s been other stuff but those are just a couple examples I can think of right now.

I think we can be friends but I don’t know how to take the things he says. I haven’t said anything like that to him.

I wondered if it was because he’s so desperate for a friend? When we broke up he did it so it’s confusing to me.