Battle of wills: Time to show them who's the boss.

['Taking care of the caregiver' has been held back in view of yesterday's battle.]

Trouble started when Jien (Mommy's no.2) refused to pick up his toys citing 'I don't know how'.

'Yes, you know how,' Mommy tried to give him some confidence. 'You've done it before.'

He wailed, 'I don't know how. It takes too long. I want my nen nen (his milk in a bottle)!'

'You'll get your nen nen after you pick up the mess you made.' There! She'd said it and she knew she had to stick to her guns if she wanted to remain the Boss. When he refused again, Mommy set it out step by step, 'You take this toy bin downstairs. Put the toys back in. Pick up the ABCs (large styrofoam tiles). Then, you'll get your nen nen.'

'No, I don't want to pick up. Why kor kor can have his nen nen?'

'That's because kor kor picked up the mess he made.'

Mommy braced herself for his assault which can be noisy. True enough, he cried and wailed, 'I want nen nen' until her ears were ringing. She ignored him until his wails died down (imagine a CD player ran out of batteries) after what seemed like eternity. He had fallen asleep! Right there sitting on the sofa! At last peace and quiet! But she was determined not to give in and left the mess as it was.

Alas, after an hour the heavens opened and eternity started again! He picked up from where he left off immediately after he came to! Someone must've replaced the batteries! Mommy repeated her rule again and the cries got louder. The onslaught was renewed. Her mind was racing, trying to come up with a solution where she didn't appear to have given in.

Then, Mommy got the bin from upstairs (1 point for Jien) and put it in front of him. She held his hand to grasp a toy but his finger wouldn't close. So, she wrapped his fingers around the plastic and dropped it in the bin. She repeated this for a number a times before his fingers grasped the toys themselves (1 point for Mommy). So, she moved his hand, he grasped, she moved hand to bin and he let go. That was how they filled up the bin.

The ABCs were a bit tricky. They were scattered and some of letters fell out of their tiles. Sigh... Mommy gathered them together (1 point for Jien) and did the same like before. She moved his hand, he grasped, she put it in a stack and he let go. She even held his hand to fit the letters back into the tiles. She felt like Remy in Ratatoille. Only, Linguini was meekly quiet and not protesting. Mommy's little CD player didn't subside one bit! (New batteries, remember?) 'I don't know how! I want nen nen now! This is taking too long! I don't want to pick up!...'

Finally, no mess and the CD player stopped. Just in time, too. Mommy didn't know how much longer her eardrums could stand the assault. She kept her word and gave him his nen nen.

Battle ended with both parties suffered heavy losses. Thank goodness conditions were favourable for Mommy or else she would have lost her will and gave in. What conditions? Kor kor and mei mei didn't attack Mommy with demands of their own! But victory was not certain until we arrive at the next potential battle scene... which presented itself before bedtime.

The battle scene was recreated by the same culprit as Mommy went about her evening routine. To her relief and pride, the mess was promptly picked up and stored away before 'I want nen nen.' Yay!!! Victory for Mommy!