Irritating mom for a laugh?

[LunaMom]

My daughter, age 5 1/2, has developed a new and truly infuriating "game." She will deliberately do something to irritate me, all the while peering at me sideways to see if I'm watching, and then when I reprimand her (calmly, at least the first time), she will suck her cheeks in as an attempt to stop herself from smiling or laughing. Or else she will continue to do something after I've asked her to stop (singing when I'm helping her floss, for example, nothing terrible, but it interferes with what I'm trying to do), and then, same thing - sucked-in cheeks because she really thinks it's funny.

I know she's probably just getting a kick out of how much of an impact she can have on Mommy (and who knows, maybe I look amusing when I'm annoyed : ), but I find this behavior the one thing that I can't figure out how to deal with effectively. I have spoken to her about this calmly and told her that it is like teasing, and teasing is unkind. She understands that, but it doesn't seem to stop her from doing it. And of course, I've lost my cool on occasion and yelled at her.

Any ideas?

[mamaduck]

Make a joke back? My younger son (now 4) does this to me too, though he will giggle outright. I find that he stops if I say something overly dramatic like, "Are you trying to make me crazy?? Do you have a secret plan to make me nutty? I think I'm gonna have to tickle you! Here I come! You better run!" I try to give him the reaction he wants, only dramatized to the nth degree so that he knows its not *really* the reaction he wants.

He's a really playful sort of child, and I'm a fairly serious person. Sometimes I think he really wants me to just lighten up.

[merpk]

No advice, just commiseration.

My DS#1 does that (he's 6), but what really gets me is now he drags DD#1(she's 4yo) into the mix, too. He'll do things that are just plain nasty, even, and then do that hold-in-the-laugh thing. Like just today, he's playing with DD, who is a really gentle soul with real empathy, and he starts singing some made-up mean song ("so-and-so is stupid, lalala") and I come over to put a stop to it, "We don't call names," etc., etc., and he just giggles like crazy, all the while looking at DD ... who is so in love with her big brother that she'll laugh at anything he laughs at ...

Anyway, looking forward to some advice with this one ... it really does push my buttons.

[joyfulliving]

Me too!!!

You all don't know me from Adam here although Ive been on and off the boards re-registered etc since 1999!!!

I just about fainted when i saw that you are actually having the same thing with your children as I am having with my nearly 5 son. I've just posted another thread about another issue I'm working with at the moment too. DS is also a child that enjoys a good laugh, goofiness, and all things that are downright silly. I on the other hand am very serious. I think he is trying to get me to lighten up as well. (And I think I most certainly look silly when I blow my top.) But even knowing this, this particular behavior drives me up the wall. He'll do things that certainly get my attention albeit my "we do not jump on the cat" tone and then does it again and LAUGHS!!! If I act silly back - he just ups the anty. I think I've actually become more serious - never thought that possible- since he was about 2 years old.

A good advisor said to me that it is the mom's unfortunate plight to be the one whose buttons are there to get pushed. Ha!

So, I have absolute NO advice here, sorry, but I wanted to add my name to the list of mommies whose button panel is clearly labeled and out there for amusement and a good ol' jolly laugh.

All my deepest regards,
Joyfulliving

[beloved1]

[beloved1]

Talk about instant karma

DS (9) just held his ears and went LALALALALA when i was trying to talk to him about something important

[joyfulliving]

BELoved!!! :ROFLOL

I am holding my stomach laughing so hard ad the image!!!!!

Thanks for the write-back to share!

Joyfulliving