I struggled with discipline at first as well and SS could see that I was soft . He ' d always wait for his dad to go to work to ask for something . I just had a hard time saying no . Usually it was about screen time . He takes advantage every change he gets to watch TV youtube . This turned into him dragging his feet a lot when getting ready , not cleaning up after himself and being dismissive when his face way attached to an ipad . Passive rudeness , never outright defiance . I ' ve never had any kids in my life before SS being the youngest and having a very small immediate family . I didn ' t know how to talk to kids really . I followed DHs example on that . I let him parent and became an extension of dad . SS respects me because DH respects me and SS respects DH . DH set the tone from the get go This is how we treat girlswomen . With respect . This is how we treat people in general . Once in a while kids need to have their manners checked no matter how good they are . Without regular reminder they can become very egotistical , rude and selfcentered .