Someone PLEASE tell me why?!

(I have to give a brief history and then I will get to my point). I haven't been feeling so well the last few days. Everytime Harper has a runny nose (which has been going on for over a week), I end up feeling sick as well.

Today, I requested that my husband stay out in the living room with Harper and doggies so that I could sneak away to the bedroom for a quick nap. He obliged, so I fell asleep to HGTV's Christmas Do's and Don'ts.

I was woken up an hour later so that Jimmy could go sleep to get ready for work tonight. I ask him how everything went during my nap. He responds, "It was ok." There was no mention of temper-tanrums, accidents or anything of the sort. I felt ok to walk out into the warzone.

The MINUTE, I walk out into the living room, all hell breaks loose. I turn the tv over to Dr. Phil because I have had all I can take of cartoons today and I make Harper some warm milk. I grab my laptop to check a few things while he is distracted and he instantly becomes obsessed with the CD tray. He opens and closes it about a hundred times and his hissy fits increase each time I close it back. Finally, he has a meltdown and slams his head into it, causing a huge scratch on his forehead. While I'm taking the laptop to the kitchen counter my dog slips behind the couch and drops one of her nausea-inducing poops. I yell at her, because she knows better and I run to the bathroom for toilet paper. When I come back out with toilet paper in hand, I discover that Harper has scooped one of the lamps off of my buffet and it will not turn back on.

All of this happened it literally less than two minutes.

I'm not sure why, but I must have "Please Act a Fool" written on my forehead for all the world to see. Harper doesn't behave this way for Jimmy, so WHY does he act this way for me? I realize that many children act worse for their mothers for different reasons, but I just wish I knew WHY. If I knew the reasons, I feel like I could deal with it a little better. I know that he is only 4 months away from age 2, but I guess I have to assume that we are seeing hints of what next year will be like. I truly hope that someone out there who is reading this will understand. Right now, I feel like I'm doing something wrong. No form of "discipline" seems to be working. I did scoop him up and sit him firmly on the couch with a demand not to move, but we all know how long that lasted. I don't really "believe" in spanking. I may change my tune later, but I feel that parents can loose control too quickly through spanking, so I choose not to go that route for now.

I'm just at a loss. It frustrates me to think that I always have to deal with the worst of his actions and he chooses to behave so much better for his dad. We both deal with our fair share of exhaustion for different reasons, it would just be nice if Harper would not choose to wear only me out. Does any of this make sense?

**Update** Jimmy couldn't sleep because of all the commotion and as soon as he walked out to the living room, Harper started playing quietly on his rocket ship. I immediately burst into tears. At least now he sees what I'm talking about. I got a hug and a kiss from the hubs (with a little laugh) and I feel better now.

This whole thing still baffles me though..........................