oh - he's also smart enough to see through most of what we've tried so far. It's funny, really. I'll say things like "boys who don't clean up their paint spill don't get to paint", or "if you leave that toy on the floor, I may just throw it away with the rest of the trash" (which I then have to do when he doesn't pick it up). Then I'll hear "if you put ham on my plate, I will throw it in the trash" (which he does) and "if you take me to the doctor, I will just walk home" (which he didn't actually do). I just love this boy! I am tired, though.

Raising Your Spirited Child by Kurcinka and The Out of Sync Child are good reads. the first targets parental discipline; i'm not sure what you mean by 'sensitive' but if it's sensory integration difficulties, the second will address that.

Lots of sensitivities. The cicada in the road kept him from riding his tricycle for just over 3 months, he still runs from the room when I turn on my hairdryer, won't go into his room by himself, won't eat food with "skin" or that is unevenly cut, sometimes falls to pieces when the neighbors cat leaves our yard, and on like that.....

thanks for the clarification. i'd highly recommend you read both books then. maybe something will resonate with you. have you talked about your concerns with your pediatrician? not in a parenting advice sense, but in order to eliminate medical concerns?

Another good one is The Highly Sensitive Child, for helping parents understand sensitivity in children and knowing how to respond.

There are also some helpful books on positive discipline...some of my favorites are Kids Are Worth It by Barbara Coloroso, and the Positive Discipline books by Jane Nelsen

I'm sorry I'm not helpful, but this post made me laugh!

My eldest is also creative with word play..we call him the lawyer (his grandfather was one too) because of how intensely he thinks about lauguage and its meaning and practice!

I think I need to do a visual chart about what happens during the day and the time etc (a 'legal' document of sorts!) so he is clear about our expectations of him (he is 5) and less likely to debate the subtlies of a statement I made (I object!) His brother (2yrs) won't be leading the witness because I can refer to the chart that sugests we get dressed then eat breakfast before we do anything else.......regardless of the fact that his brother found an abandoned waffle under a chair and is eating it before he got dressed.

Anyway...I need to go finish making the chart. I am most nervous because then I will have to follow the chart too! I am not very consistant about times! (which I am sure is a little unsettling for my boy!)