Aurora Iffah Aqila Minnie Mouse England Australia

Yestarday, Iffah threw a screaming fit for 20 minutes just as we were getting ready to go for a birthday celebration because somebody put her favourite clips in the star container instead of her favourite love boxes. Last week, just as she was getting ready to bathe and go to school, she discovered ( horrors of horrors ) that her Minnie Mouse hooded towel was hung on a purple hanger and NOT a pink hanger. And then, in the evening a few days later, I told her to bathe and left for the kitchen to heat the food. She did not check the time and undressed when she saw a watch and realised it is not 6.16 pm, ( the time that she wanted to bathe ) . Oh oh, another round of screaming and tears.

The daily meltdowns are no surprises, but what fascinates me are the source of meltdowns. Just when I thought I have covered all angles and pre-empted any possible tantrums, she will somehow manage to find something new that she is unhappy about.

The thing about her is that she is so into this favourite colour, favourite number thing and how things must go in some particular order. If I were to look at it positively, she could be described as very detailed, meticulous or systematic. On the other hand, she could also be seen as obsessively perfectionist and super fussy.

Like how her favourite number is number 6. So she would only bathe if it is 6.16 pm or 6.26 pm and so on. And how she insists that our car must be parked at a lot with the digit 6. ( If Atuk forgot on the other hand parks in a lot with number 6, she will throw a big fuss ) However, her
obsession with number 6 is so overbearing because she will be scrutinising even serial numbers ( on her ez link card, shoe boxes and packet of smoo milk ) .. If there is number 6, she will be exremely happy and if there is none ... well I have to end up weaving some story to convince her that it is ok ... or how there must be some mistake somewhere ... Sometimes I succeed, other times ... oh well ... like a few nites ago she asked me why her birthday was on 17th Feb and not 16th Feb ... Apparently my answer was not good enough ..cos she went to her room, sobbed sadly into her pillow and fell asleep.

Then there are her favourite days, Wednesday and Sundays. So on these days, she must wear her favourite colour - which is dark pink ( not light or medium but dark - close to fuschsia ) , or her favourite T-shirts, and her uniform must be size 26 . ( there is only one pair of that and 2 pairs of 24 cos really i think 24 fits her better ) . So yes, I have to ensure that these favourite clothes must be washed immediately and dried so that they are ready to be worn on her favourite days. For a few months, I was actually wearing dark pink on every Wednesdays and Sundays too but thankfully, she has finally stopped checking out and insisting that I change. Phew.

Sometimes I tell myself that her attention to details is perhaps what makes her able to read, count or draw and colour well. But I also worry that her fussiness makes her unlikeable, unfriendly and ... easily stressed. Like how she gets upset when she colour something out of the line and found that she could not erase it. Her teacher also commented that she does get panicky at times in school when she thinks she has done something wrongly. She is definitely someone who is not the happy go lucky type ... but the perfectionist with the roller coaster emotions. I worry that her tantrums will make her other family members think that she is rude and truly impossible to get along or that she might go through school without any friends and cry at every disappointments....

As of right now, I am at peace with her tantrums. And I will deal with any other problems as they come along. After all, I am the only mum she's got .. I can't get upset everytime or throw tantrums myself ... Even if she has decided that her name is Aurora Iffah Aqila Minnie Mouse England Australia .