I’m inpatient.
I stress out easily.
I can be very fierce.
Zara is rather emotional.
And Zara is very good with her words.
So, here is a recipe for disaster…

Scene 1
We were in a crowded Chinese restaurant ordering our Father’s Day dinner (Father’s Day or no Father’s Day, Daddy always leave the stress ordering in a Chinese restaurant to me so if there’s not enough food or the food does not cater to everybody, I get the blame). FIL was with us. It’s already 9pm.
Imagine my stress.
Have to order something suitable for the kids; have to order something not too hard for my FIL (since his dentures doesn’t fit him that well); have to make sure Daddy has his fish.
Zara was pretending she cooked some ‘tooth-pick’ noodle, and was serving me in the midst of a very stress me giving our orders to the waiter.
I just glared at her and said, “Later.”
While I was still choosing dishes, Zara continued, “Mummy, why are you showing me sour face?”
Because I was still busy, I didn’t answer.
“Mummy, why are you showing me sour face? You tell me? Why are you so rude?”
“Excuse me!! exCUSSSSSEE MEEEEEE! Why are you not answering me. Huh?”
I was rather annoyed and replied, “Zara, mummy is ordering dinner ok? Hush!”
After that she went quiet.
When I finished ordering, and stretched out my hand to hold hers (our ‘piece giving’ sign), she withdrew her hand, glared at me and started muttering, “Hmmph! So rude. Don’t hold my hand.”
When I explained to her I was busy, she said, “Hphmm! Why you show me sour face then? Huh? Why?”
Again I stretched out my hand and told her because I was busy ordering and she was disturbing me. She still didn’t want to accept my peace offering.
So I turned my attention to Zaria, and Zara started sobbing.
When I tried to pat/sayang her, she withdrew, and said, “Don’t touch me.”
“Aiya, don’t touch don’t touch la.” I got rather annoyed.
So the whole dinner was like that.. she’s upset I didn’t continue to try to pacify her, and when I did, she turned away.. tired.

Scene 2
It’s a rule that when we walked home from the park, the girls have to stop at the pavement and wait for me to hold their hands to cross the road.
Two days ago, Zara was dashing towards our house, and when she was close to the pavement I didn’t see her intention of stopping and there was a car coming.
I shouted very loudly to issue my warning, “Zara!! Stop!!!”
She stopped, turned back and glared at me. I stretched out my hand to hold hers and asked, “What were you trying to do? Dashing off like that?”
She folded her arm and answered “Hmmph! I was going to stop O-K!!? Why did you shout at me?”
“I saw you dashing off like that, and a car was coming, so I have to shout at you to tell you to stop right?”
“Why did you shout so loud? It’s so irritating you know or not??!!”
And then it was another round of peace offering, not accepted, upset because no more peace offering etc…. tired.

Scene 3
We were doing her Bahasa homework, and after many times of teaching her how to read the word “MALAM” (night), she was able to read M-A = MA, L-A-M= LAM, but didn’t know how to join the MA & LAM together to make the word MALAM. So I said, “M-A, MA. Now put MA in your head (and I use my index finger to point to her head). Then tell me what is L-A-M?”
She glared at me, “Don’t push my head like that ok? You are making my head spin.”
I pointed to her head again a little harder this time and said, “I just pointed at your head only. And asked you to put MA in your head.”
She folded her arms and turned away from me, “You are pushing, not pointing, ok? I don’t want you to help me with my home work. I want Daddy to help.”
Grrrrrrrr!!!!

She’s only Four and The Half, and already ‘ting-sum-ting-fai’ (Chinese : talking back, rebelling). Aigh. I wonder what it’s going to be like when she’s in her teens.