Leading up to and since the birth of her new sister, DD1 has picked on certain family members/friends and will repeatedly tell them she doesn't like them.
It may not sound like much, but it sometimes builds up into quite aggressive shouting/shaking and I can see it's upsetting her chosen target victim, no matter how much they assure me it isn't. It's got to the point where I kind of dread seeing certain people, as she's so unpredictable.
At times, myself and DH have been on the receiving end, as have passers by on the street, people on the TV, shopkeepers etc etc. She has also started hitting out at other toddlers sometimes.
I've tried being breezy and trying to ignore it, with a simple "well, they still like you" or "that's fine". I've also tried using reason ie. "that's not very kind, it makes x feel sad when you say that".
As it's been going on for some weeks now (some days are fine, some are really bad), I'm wondering if I should be punishing this behaviour somehow - but if, so ...how? I tried threatening bed if she continued, but she just agreed and said she wanted to go to bed. Perhaps I should have followed it through?
I worry about her own emotional wellbeing too when she gets worked up - but mostly I think she is testing her power to manipulate emotions socially. Of course she doesn't actually dislike these people, but is feeling vulnerable/unsure of herself since the arrival of little sis.
I should add that she's wonderful with the new baby and has never turned against her. Deep down, I know this is textbook behaviour that will pass - but can anyone advise how to deal with it in the short-term so I can handle social situations better?