DS has always been extremely lively, confident, boisterous etc etc but recently his behaviour has become quite unbearable and downright irritating. He does not do anything, ANYTHING when we ask him to/not to. When he then gets told off he just says 'I didn't hear you'. Or "I didn't Know', or 'I forgot', He says sorry, but insincerely. He's impervious to either rewards (I started a 'pasta jar' where pasta got put in for good behaviour and if he got over a certain amount by the weekend he would have got a special treat) or punishment (taking fave toys away, not letting him watch TV, going to his room to 'think').
It's hard to say exactly what he does but everything seems to happen at 100 miles an hour. I went to the shops with him yesterday and he pulled his wooly hat over his eyes and tried to scoot through people on the pavement. I told him not to, to come and scoot right by me. He came over but started walking backwards. I tell him not to, to scoot by me, he holds onto the pram and scoots so closely, bending over ds2 that the pram and scooter keep colliding. He kept pushing through/colliding with people in shops, but he talks all the time and I'm trying to keep track of what i'm trying to do, as well as hold a conversation with him and try to keep him in check. If you kiss him or cuddle him he jumps on you and tries to wrestle you/lick you/play bite you. If DS2 is lying on the floor he runs around him and jumps up and down dangerously close to his head. Everything he does with/to DS2 seems to be done about 2 inches from DS2's nose (even though we ask him to move back and give DS2 some space). While DH was hoovering stairs this aft he kept running past (pretending to be a spy I think), bumping into him, generally getting under his feet and risking a fall for both of them. I heard DH ask him to come into the kitchen with me 3 times before he got told to go to his room.
So it's not really naughty stuff, just thoughtless and very silly. And writing it down it all sounds like attention seeking doesn't it, but he gets so much one on one attention. DS2 is almost 6 months old. DH is self employed and took off about 6 weeks when DS2 was born so that DS1 had plenty of attention up until when DS1 started school in September. When DS2 naps I play with DS1 at whatever he wants to try to gibe him some quality Mummy time. Also DS2 is still at an age where DS1 and I can go to the library or cafe etc with DS2 asleep in buggy.
I'm torn between being strict and just coming down hard whenever he doesn't do what i ask straight away, to wanting to take a more gentle but still consistent approach with the belief that it's another phase he'll come out the other side of.
And he has had a couple of big changes this year; DS2 in July, starting reception in September.
But he is so bloody irritating and I have turned into shouty/annoyed Mum which I hate because I adore him and he's gorgeous.
Aaarrgh!