A long time ago all I wanted was an ickle baby - but now I've got a nearly 6 year old boy, and I need some new parenting techniques: Cod, GDG, Steven Biddulph - anyone with boys please come and advise me

[Anchovy]

I've just come back from a 2 week holiday with DS, and its really brought it home to me how much he has grown up. He's just finished Reception, and will be 6 in October. His recent report was great - he's doing well at school and having fun and has made some good friends friends - so there are no real educational/developmental concerns. He is also a real little poppet (his younger sister is known at home as the Queen of Mean, so it all evens itself out!)

But he's become a boy. He fiddles with everything all the time. He's getting a bit impulsive, and clumsy. He's extremely inquisitive - in a very intelligent but very tiring way. He's very sassy with his responses - sometimes very funnily so, other times borderline inappropriate.

My parenting to date has been focussed on - well, how to clean the umbilical stump and weaning and sleeping through the night and gymboree and potato printing and play doh. I need some new resources...

Anyone want to give me any advice on how to move on to this next stage...?

I hate being shouty too but DH makes it worse by giving a deep sigh whenever I inflect any sort of disapproval into my voice which then makes me MORE cross. And it all escalates.

Ds is going on one of those one week, hour a day swimming courses starting today: I think learning to swim will be really good for him and I think one of us - (DH, I think Mr Biddulph will recommend ) needs to commit to taking him to the verucca ridden, cold public pool on a regular basis at the weekends.

We bought him a bike at the weekend - a proper, big one with gears and - top point for DS - a water bottle that clips on. It was almost a symbolic moment actually as DS climbed on and started cycling away from me in a slow, wobbly but determined manner...

Message withdrawn