Pushing the emotion "buttons" on someone, most commonly anger/grief.

It implies that the pusher knows where the other person's buttons are, meaning, how to get at him. So button pushing is usually done after someone exposed himself as being passionate or angry about something in a situation, or the person is known well by the pusher.

When you eat dirt for the first time and leave your family to build a shack in the woods

Getting dressed up. Putting on you finest apparel.