Funny Family Tale #4 - Three Year Olds Know Everything, End of Conversation!

It's needless to say that my three year old boy can be a bit of a handful.  He knows what he wants but I know that if I need to raise my voice because he is pushing me too far, his pet lip will come out and quiver... and then I'll feel bad for at least the rest of the day!  One thing I can't control are the things he says.  There are two particular boys at nursery and he will not be civil to them and if I comment 'There are your friends XX and ZZ from school' he becomes very agitated, growling 'They are not my friends.'  I know it's not the other boys, it's him.  The other boys try to come and talk to him but he blanks them and walks away.  I have spoken to him about this and told him it's rude, yet he does it again and again.

We went out the weekend before last, and one of these little boys was walking behind us.  They ended up catching up to us at the crossing, and I spoke to his mother and the boy spoke to my son.  He didn't answer so I said 'say hello,' so he said 'hello' in a low growly-voice.  I suppose this was my punishment for making him talk to someone he didn't want to as it was such a forced hello and he rolled his eyes at the same time.  I was embarrassed but what could I do?  I tried to act casual in front of the boy's mother.

A week later, we took a trip on the bus and the other boy was on the bus.  We sat a couple of seats in front of him and the boy kept shouting him but my son just kept looking, and then looking away.  He told me he didn't like that boy because his nose runs.  I explained that it doesn't make him a bad person.  He then told me 'yes it does.'  Again he refused to speak so I found myself speaking in his place and talking to the boy's mother so that his ignorance wouldn't be recognised as much.

The remarkable thing here is if I take him shopping in our shopping centre, he randomly chats to elderly men telling them things like 'I'm going to buy a sword,' or 'my brother is at school' or 'I'm just going to buy some sweets'.  When he was a baby he was clingy to me and his dad, yet when an elderly man paid him any attention, he would hold his arms up to them as if he wanted to be picked up.  Yet he would cry if his Uncle (his father's brother) or his Auntie (my sister) picked him up.

I want my children to be civil and polite to everyone.  But it's so hard teaching these skills to a three year old who already claims to know everything.  He knows who he wants to play with and who he doesn't as much as he knows what food he likes, what toys he likes, and what drinks he likes.  I think the most dangerous thing of all is that he says what he thinks and tells me 'I'm not playing with *** because they are yucky.' or 'That person stinks!' or 'I don't like that'.  It doesn't matter where we are or what we are doing, he tells the truth, loudly.  He argues with everything I say, he pushes me and he tantrums, often, but I love him.

I always say, I wish I knew everything when I was 3, haha!

Do/did your children know their own mind at an own age?  Have they ever embarrassed you or did anything funny?

I don't pretend to know the mind of a three year old, but it would be interesting if I did.  Sometimes their behaviour doesn't make sense but I think my life (and blog) would be boring if my children behaved well all of the time!  What do you think?

Thanks for reading,

Laters, Janet :)