Silas's 'Tude

Silas is independent. He has his way of doing things and nothing else is satisfactory. He will NOT listen or obey unless he is given either time to think about it, or a choice. For example, I will ask him to apologize to Ezra after being rough or toy stealing, and he will shout, "NO!" and then run to the kitchen and hide. 20 seconds later he will return, head hung, and give his brother the hug I was asking for. He just needed time.
This gets frustrating and tiresome. I am certainly learning how to pick my battles with him- not everything is worth the fight. Recently we warred over meals and snack time. He refused to sit by himself to eat and threw his food at me. Not just throwing it off the table but throwing it AT me. Nice. So we started time-outs for poor table behaviour but learned that his problem was actually with the booster seat, so we decided it was okay to let him sit in a big chair. Every kid needs to learn how to eat somewhat politely at a table and at this point I'm happy we are having days where he doesn't throw anything edible, AND sits to eat, in a chair. So far he's doing quite well in the big chair and I'll take what I can get.
Another thing we are working on with Silas is his aggression. When he's older we can put him in sports and channel all that energy into something useful. But what do you do with a not quite two year old that doesn't try to be rough- just is? He hugs roughly, reads roughly, cuddles roughly, everything is slightly more intense than is appropriate. I try to teach him gentle but even his gentle is rougher than most. This isn't all the time and it's not like he's hurting others always either, it's just a bit rough. I don't want to squash his intensity but he has to learn that others don't appreciate a loving cheek squeeze or slug on the shoulder or noogie. Even if he enjoys it. He will literally give himself a noogie and sometimes he uses your hand to do it.
He is amazing and we really enjoy his personality. He certainly knows what he likes and what he is and is not willing to do. He doesn't like being confined in any way (aka the highchair) but you sure know he loves you when he squeezes you tightly. He speaks in his own language all day and there is no question of how he feels- his words and emotions are intense and dramatic. He loves animals and helping me in the kitchen (this kid can actually stir!) and he is very doting on his doll (Ezra and I named her Annabelle). He changes her diaper and wraps in her a blanket. He holds her tightly and sings to her. It's similar to how Ezra treated his Calliou doll when he was this age. Sometimes it's strange to see him be so careful and gentle with the doll and then not at all gentle with me. Oh, Annabelle also eats at the table sometimes.
The other new thing about Silas is his speech. Just this week Rob and I have both noticed a huge increase in his vocabluary. His new favourite word? Bible.