Well, I am just speechless this morning.
My darling little boy9 eight years old) had barely opened his eyes this morning, when he announced to me that he was angry over the death of a betta fish we had had for a few months about 4 years ago. I don't think he has any true memory of this fish, besides what he has heard us talking about. Not saying that because of his age, but because of the kinds of questions he has asked about it. What kind was it, what color was it, etc.
Anyway, the fish died of a bacterial infection known as "ick." My husband and I spent probably close to a hundred dollars (which we could not afford at the time) trying to cure this fish.
Apparently, the beginning of this was, when we went to buy new filter media for my son's crayfish, I bought a little betta fish on a whim. Kiddo has been possessive of the fish ever since I got it, trying to claim ownership of it, saying the fish might be mine but the tank was his, wanted to move the fish into his room, etc. I have told him he needs to finish building the community in his aquarium before he gets any other animals, including a betta which needs to live in a smaller tank. Then I told him to keep his mitts off my fish.
So now I guess he is mad at my husband because the other fish died.
This is not the first time something like this has happened. As you can imagine, my husband and I do all we can to give our son a good and happy childhood. Because of the way I was raised, I absolutely insist of fair and consistent discipline. In spite of this, Kiddo screams and threatens us when he does not get his way (fortunately this is growing rarer). He wants to do horrible things to people for minor infractions (for example, if another kid says something mean to him, he wants to tie up that kid and throw him off a cliff.) He thinks the whole entire world is a big conspiracy against kids. And he thinks I abuse him. He has all these anger issues that make no sense whatsoever to me.
Lest you think I spoil him, I am pretty sure I don't. Ted and I stay up at night trying to choose the best course of action sometimes. When I say no, I mean no, and nothing changes my mind. Whining, hate speech, tantrums, and so on get him sent to the quiet step to cool off. We explain carefully why what he is doing is wrong or unacceptable or whatever. We are certainly not perfect parents, but we try our very best and I really believe we are doing most of the right things.
That being said, I sometimes think this kid is going to grow up to be a criminal or a serial killer, or at the very least, one of those horrible bitter cynical people who finds no joy in life and makes everyone else miserable.
Has anybody else had this problem with their kids? Did they grow out of it? Am I worrying for nothing? HELP!
