Negative 3 year old

[MrsSnorty]

Actually DS is mostly lovely - very bright, chatty and generally cheery. Recently though he's been having spells of saying "I don't like..." and usually inserting something that I think he knows will upset me. For example I recently moved him into a different bedroom and spent ages decorating it and making it nice for him. It's one of the thing's he'll mention, and go on and on about it even if I explain that it's a bit unkind. He also says it about our car (also quite new and bought for us by my parents as I'm so skint ).
Is he that he genuinly can't cope with changes/new things? Or is he attention seeking/winding me up? Or is he a bit 'spoilt'? Honest answers appreciated as not sure how to deal with it.

[avenanap]

At 3 I doubt he knows that he's upsetting you. It sounds like he's making an effort to be independant and he's starting to develop opinions. Do you ask him why he doesn't like it or what bits he doesn't like? They hear alot of people say they don't like things and maybe he doesn't understand what it means. He might be confusing it with 'I like that'.

[MrsSnorty]

Thanks avenanap. He is very opinionated! He can't (or won't) explain what or why he doesn't like these things. But he is generally tired or in a bad mood when he says it. I'm wondering if it's the latest form of tantrum

[avenanap]

Maybe. It can be hard to get little darlings like this to think of others feelings though, teenage years for some of them.

[Easycar]

My DS2 went through a phase of this. I think with him it was a bit of attention seeking or trying to get a reaction out of me. He used to say he didn't like something I knew he did eg ice cream. At first I would say to him,'Oh yes you do' or 'Why no' ie start a conversation with him usually when I was engaged with something/someone (DS1) else. I got wise to it and would just ignore, say fine don't have ice cream then or the classic 'whatever' at which point he'd change his mind. Also happened alot when he's tired or as you say in a bad mood. It's probably just a new emotion he's trying out. DS2 has just runed 4 and I get a lot less of this. (His big thing now is contradicting anything I say eg I say it's hot he says it's cold!!!- don't you just love 'em!!!!)