Seven year old rules the roost - help!

[slapheadsrock]

I have a seven year old son (eight yr d and 3 yr d). He is best when Dad is home but I have no control over him. Dad brings in rules such as no playstation, no computer, no tv and then trundles off to work leaving me to enforce it, which is hopeless. Son has control. Hits me and sisters. How do I regain control? (Wish sometimes I could give him a good hiding .)
We go for long walks to get rid of energy, but it takes a lot of my time and it is the girls summer hols too.

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sympathies slapsheadrock (!)
Has he always been like this?

I would suggest one the main things the you need to stop is the hitting.

Make sure that he gets the clear message that it is unacceptable, and dh needs to reinforce that too.

Perhaps you need to talk to dh, and draw up a suitable list of crimes and punishments together.. that way it may be more practicable to enforce?

I do feel for you, as defiant children are extremely hard work as I well know.

I know this would be much harder to implement with a seven year old, but with my three and a half year old I have started a no-tolerance policy on certain behaviour - namely hitting others and snatching from others.

When he was younger he would snatch things from his older cousins and his cousins' parents would be very obliging and say "let him have it, he's little", and this is where we went wrong. He now thinks he can take anything from anyone, so we have to be very firm no matter how much he cries and tantrums.

I would say definitely, as unicorn said, put a stop to the hitting - either a naughty step, confiscating toys/treats - and just be firm and consistent and hopefully he will realise that you mean business.

Thanks. He has always been difficult, and as the only boy, dh says mostly 'it's a boy thing'. helpful. Trouble is that unless we can get round his behaviour, I can see junior school being a real problem. Don't get me wrong, he is a lovely boy, just I am unable to get the upper hand at the moment. (We have tried no tea, just bread and water, as he is a typical male and the stomach route seems to work.) Oh dear, that makes me sound like a dreadful parent.