Are you a good Momma, or, are you a bad Momma?

Will has become more of a handful than he use to be, and that's saying something.

He is a loving child with a good heart, but he's always been too loud, too energetic, and very demanding. And it just jumped up about four notches on the old spank-my-ass meter. I find myself completely baffeled with how to handle him.

Oh, I put him in the corner/time out. If he's really bad, I swat his leg. I take away toys and privledges. He's always sorry. He always wants to hug you. Then he goes right back out and does the same thing again.

It's not even totally WHAT he is doing, as his new attitude. He puffs out air and rolls his eyes. He crosses his hands over his chest and sets down hard on the chair, refusing to look at you. He talks over you when you are trying to discuss things with him in a calm manner.

And when you won't give in to him? He demands:

Are you a good Momma, or, are you a bad Momma?

Did I mention he's a four-year old boy and not a twelve-year old girl?

I can see several things at work. First, he's started hanging out with a boy a little older than him that lives up the block. The boy is from a recently split family and in my presence has treated him mom like CRAP . . . just like Will has been treating me.

The second issue is that any time Steve's hours at home are reduced, Will responds negatively. During the time his dad was up north, Will got worse every single day. Steve has been spending a lot of time with Will since he got home. I'm just not sure how long it will take to make up for the absense.

I also believe he needs more social interaction than he's getting. He needs to be around other children in controlled environments and other authority figures that he's not related to. Pre-k registration is the first week of August.

So as long as I don't REALLY turn into a "bad Momma" between now and then, we should be okay.