Following my post on guilt, Hafidz and I wanted to make sure we had one day that is errand-free and one we could spend with family, just the three of us. Alhamdulillah, Allah made it possible for our Sunday to be family day! No obligations anywhere but to each other.
So of course having two boys in the family, we had to go visit a toy shop! Heehee we went to Hua Ho Yayasan and saw some neat Lego pieces that had farm animals in it. We decided to get it for him because (a) we wanted to start a Lego collection for him, (b) it was age appropriate (1.5 years) and (c) he was ooh and aaah-ing over them in a high-pitched voice! So for a while, he was carrying that around the toy shop.
Until he saw the Mickey Mouse. The huge Mickey Mouse doll that belts out tunes when you press its tummy and costs $67. The Mickey Mouse that he saw in Hua Ho Manggis Mall last month which we had to pry off his expecting fingers then too. After seeing the Mickey Mouse, suddenly the Lego farm animals didn’t look too appealing any more.
Dragging Mickey everywhere
Dancing with Mickey
We weren’t ready to get him the Mickey Mouse that Sunday but I did intend to get it for him next month for his 18-month birthday. So, again, we had to put him through a bout of disappointment which was met by some crying that could only be calmed by major distraction tactics.
He didn’t throw a tantrum or a fit which was nice, but he was definitely disappointed as we could tell from his bad mood. He started pushing every toy away, even those he appreciated before (like the Lego!). And he was strutting around heavily looking for the Mickey which thankfully was on a higher shelf!
Sulkily having to make do with his own boring small Mickey Mouse doll that doesn’t sing! Heehee
Since he is the only child, we can’t help feeling sad for him. I wish we could spoil him with every toy that he wants but what kind of parents would we be if we did not teach him the value of money and of appreciating things? What kind of parents would we be if we did not allow him to feel any disappointment and consequently denying him the skills to overcome those disappointments? I know he’s barely only 17 months, but I believe you can never start too early when introducing these values.
After that, we didn’t even get him the Lego because he started to reject them (sulkily!) and I didn’t want to get him something he won’t appreciate. Hours later, we did get him another soft toy though when we went to Times Square! Haha. He picked it out himself and this time it wasn’t extortionately expensive! It was a choice between this and a cute monkey and cow. He chose the Snap Snap! 
I guess what I’m trying to say here is that I have to remember to stop spoiling him with toys (and anything else really) and start instilling values now that he understands so so much more! This is just one very toned-down trip to the toy store and I’m sure there’ll be many more aggressive ones in the future.
Ultimately I have to remember that it’s okay to let him feel disappointed once in a while. And the sooner he is exposed to life’s disappointments (big and small), the sooner he’ll develop skills to overcome them and hopefully Insya Allah, this will help him with his future journey in life, ameen.
And please lah, why am I being so overly dramatic over a Mickey Mouse toy anyways? It’s not like I’m denying him food! Heehee. I think we now know who is the bigger baby between toddler and mommy – definitely MOMMY!
