Sudo’s Week of Big Feelings, Broken Outfits, and a Camping Party She Wasn’t Invited To

May 16, 2026

Dear Diary,

This week has been… A LOT. I’m talking full-on emotional warfare. Oscar-worthy performances. Tears that could fill a swimming pool. And you know what? I’m not even sorry.

The Great Meltdown Era: Sudo vs. Everything

So here’s the thing. I am THREE now. THREE. That means I can do things BY MYSELF. Pour my own water? Yes. Climb onto the chair? Obviously. Put on my own shoes? GIVE THEM TO ME.

But does anyone in this house RESPECT my independence? NO.

I try to do something on my own, and when it goes a little bit sideways—like maybe I spill something or break something TINY—Mama and Baba start with the lectures. And then what happens? I cry. Obviously. Because I’m not crying because I’m sad. I’m crying because I’m FRUSTRATED that nobody understands my VISION.

This afternoon was the worst. I tried to put on my outfit by myself. Simple task, right? WRONG. The shirt had a vendetta against me. My arm went into the head hole. My head went into the arm hole. The whole thing turned into a wrestling match and I was LOSING.

And then the rage came. The hot, bubbly, I-can’t-do-this-but-I-refuse-to-ask-for-help rage. So I cried. Big, dramatic, the-world-is-ending tears.

According to child development experts, this is actually super normal for toddlers my age. We’re developing a sense of autonomy, and when we can’t do what our brains KNOW we should be able to do, it feels like the ultimate betrayal—by our own tiny hands. It’s called frustration crying, and honestly, adults should try it sometime. Very therapeutic. (Supporting your Toddler to Explore Safely and Happily)

Operation Vaccination and The Case of the Missing Birthday Bike

Okay, tomorrow is vaccination day. Yes, the NEEDLE. The pokey thing. The enemy of all toddlers worldwide.

BUT. Baba and Mama have clearly been reading some kind of parenting playbook because they’ve put together an EPIC battle plan to distract me. Here’s the schedule:

• Morning: Breakfast in the room. Fancy. Like a hotel. I feel like a princess already.
• Mid-morning: Cafe time with Baba and Mama. Yes, I said CAFE. I don’t drink coffee obviously, but I sit there with my milk looking VERY sophisticated.
• Late morning: SWIMMING. The pool! My happy place! Where I splash everyone and pretend it’s an accident!
• After swimming: Quick stop to get the shot. Just a tiny little poke. In and out. No big deal. (I am lying. It IS a big deal. But I’m being brave on paper.)
• Post-shot reward: STICKERS. The ultimate currency. I would take a hundred shots for the right sticker. Okay maybe not a hundred. Maybe three.

Honestly, this sounds like the best day ever with one tiny terrible moment in the middle. Like a sandwich where the bread is amazing but someone put a piece of broccoli inside. I’ll survive.

The Case of the Missing Birthday Bike

So. Let’s talk about the BICYCLE SITUATION.

My birthday was over a week ago. OVER. A. WEEK. And Baba promised me a bike. A beautiful, shiny, Sudo-sized bicycle. I’ve been dreaming about it. I’ve been practicing my pedaling legs on invisible pedals. I’ve been mentally designing my riding outfit.

And where is this magical bicycle?

NOWHERE. Because Baba hasn’t bought it yet.

He says “soon.” He says “we’ll get it.” He says a lot of words that are NOT “here’s your bike, Sudo.”

Haha. Huhu. I’m laughing and crying at the same time. This is what betrayal feels like. I Googled it. (Okay, I didn’t Google it. I can’t type yet. But if I COULD, I would Google “how to make your Baba buy your birthday present faster.”)

Baba, if you’re reading this: THE CLOCK IS TICKING.

The Camping Party Betrayal

And now, the MAIN EVENT of injustice this week.

My school had a CAMPING PARTY. A real, actual, beautiful camping event with—and I need you to sit down for this—

• Fruits
• Cakes
• Candy
• Grilled meat
• Grilled shrimp
• AND EVEN GRILLED FRUIT (which I didn’t know was a thing but now I NEED it)

Sounds amazing, right? THE FEAST OF A LIFETIME.

And guess what Sudo got to do?

LOOK AT IT. Just… walk around and LOOK at the food. Like a food museum. Like the world’s cruelest field trip. “Here, small child, observe all the delicious things you cannot eat. Enjoy the SMELLS.”

Baba explained that the big kids get to eat because they can peel their own shrimp, peel their own potatoes, and handle fruit by themselves. And since I’m still in the “grab it and shove it directly into my mouth” phase, the teachers said I have to wait until next year.

NEXT YEAR. That’s like a MILLION days from now.

Baba said when I’m older and can peel things myself—like actually peel a shrimp, not just yeet the shell across the room—THEN I can join the big kids at the camping party.

So basically, my homework for the next year is: learn to peel stuff. That’s it. That’s my entire life mission now. I will peel EVERYTHING. Bananas, oranges, shrimp, potatoes, the wallpaper—EVERYTHING.

Next year, that grilled shrimp is MINE.

— Sudo

Age 3. Frustrated, hungry, still waiting for her bike, and absolutely NOT okay with food she can only look at.

———- tags: [‘toddler tantrums’, ‘independence’, ‘toddler emotions’, ‘vaccination’, ‘school camping’, ‘birthday bike’, ‘3 year old diary’, ‘toddler frustration’, ‘self-dressing’, ‘toddler milestones’] categories: [‘Toddler Life’, “Sudo’s Diary”, ‘Emotional Development’] imagePrompts: [‘A cute dramatic 3-year-old toddler girl crying while trying to put on a shirt by herself, shirt stuck on her head, colorful messy bedroom, cartoon style, expressive, funny, warm lighting’, ‘A cheerful 3-year-old toddler girl sitting in a cafe with her parents, drinking from a sippy cup, swimming pool visible in the background, sunny morning, cartoon illustration style’, ‘A sad 3-year-old toddler girl looking at an empty space in the living room where a bicycle should be, birthday decorations still hanging, cartoon style, cute and emotional’, ‘A 3-year-old toddler girl standing behind a fence looking longingly at a school camping party with grilled shrimp, fruits, and snacks on tables, other kids eating and having fun, cartoon illustration, funny and dramatic’]

Original: Mấy nay sudo bắt đầu khóc nhè và mít ước, chắc là do muốn chứng tỏ bản thân đã làm được rồi, không cần ai giúp đỡ hết. Và sudo làm sia, mẹ và baba la, thế là khóc. Chiều nay sudo mặc đồ không được, nỗi nóng lên và bất lực, cũng khóc. Ngày mai sudo sẽ đi chích ngừa, kế hoạch thật hành tráng, sáng sudo ăn sáng, cafe với baba và mama tại phòng, sau đó đi bơi và về ghé chít 1 cái, rồi xin sticker… rồi đi về. Hmm đến nay cũng đã hơn 1 tuần sinh nhật rồi mà sudo vẫn chưa được gặp chiếc xe đạp nữa, thật ra thì baba chưa mua. haha. huhu.

Trên trường sudo đang có cấm trại vui lắm, rất nhiều đồ ăn luôn, nào là trái cây, bánh, kẹo, thịt nướng, tôm nướng, và cả trái cây nướng nữa. Oh,.. nhưng sudo chỉ được đi tham quan và không có ăn gì hết. huhu. Baba nói năm sau, khi sudo lớn lên, tự ăn được như các anh chị thì các cô sẽ cho sudo tham gia. Tự ăn là tự lột tôm, tự lột vỏ khoai, trái cây này nọ đó chứ k phải lụm bỏ miệng đâu. hehe