So you feel that OPs DH is a jerk for not helping with nap and lunch? Or is this reserved for OP? |
I was not leaving my kids with someone who would not watch them. I was also not involving law enforcement. That is crazy. I waited until they were in elementary school and then divorced. He does 50% now. The only way he was going to so anything is if I was not there to do it for him. He admitted this himself. I had to wait until the kids were old enough to do it. Before 1st grade, no way I could leave kids with him. Some is this is generational. Gen X is different and more typical gender roles at home even if the mother is working. |
I do think OP is being too rigid but no one, NO ONE, would ever say this about a father who golfs every Saturday til 3. |
Yes, fine for DH to ditch? |
| DH is selfish. Bottom line. It is where everything starts. |
I’m not rigid and, frankly, I do do more child rearing related labor (meals, cleanup, bathtimes, bedtimes etc). It’s tough because a lot of partners won’t carry their weight unless the other person is rigid and strict. It’s a lose lose where you pick up extra slack to maintain peace and present as a good wife and mom but at the expense of your own time or you set rigid expectations and get your free time but with the perception that you are controlling and uncooperative. I agree with your point that these challenges are mainly dealt with by women and that there are lower expectations for dads. I hope things continue changing for the better! |
I guess if I knew such a dinosaur like that I would say something but all the dads I know are out coaching sports on Saturday mornings or taking kids to games and tournaments. Or otherwise engaged in child rearing. I don’t know people like Op and her husband who are so resentful and uninterested in their kid. |
They're not really saying that about THIS father, who actually DID try to pawn off his child onto the other parent. Very, very few posters are even willing to say "The DH made the first wrong move here." I think OP is being rigid because the dynamic between her and her husband has resulted in her doing all the work unless she is rigid, as she has described. I don't think she's distorting all that much about the dynamic. We can all have whatever opinion about her role in the dynamic, but I don't think it's a given that she is rigid "all the time" or "in unhealthy ways" because of this situation, which seems unhealthy on its own. |
What do you have to say about a father who can't be bothered to make his own daughter lunch and put her down for a nap? The only person who has actually verbally tried to get out of spending time with this child is her father. Her mother was very clear about being excited to see her after lunch and the fun things they would do, which they then did. Her father was the one who tried to get out of lunch duty and then made a stink about it with OP. |
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#1 - if no family was mentioned and no mention of socializing with other families was mentioned, stop referring to those things. You are not wrong about the benefits of positive socialization with family and friends, but you do not actually know enough about this situation to make the assumptions you are making. A child spending time with her grandmother, father, mother, and a museum in one day does not sound like an isolated child with a cold martyr mom to me, but I guess we are making really different assumptions about this situation so I will just say that I don't know enough to say those things either. #2 - re the last bold - please write another paragraph describing the ways in which this FATHER is toxic. Why is it solely the OP's responsibility to be the bigger person or shift this dynamic? Almost none of your posts allow for his behavior being a contributing factor at the very least if not the actual problem here. |
The same thing i say about the mom. Someone please take care of the kid. The parents suck. |
+1. DH and I do the split saturdays thing and it works out really well because we respect each others time. It really doesn’t have to be a traumatic event for a child for a parent to not be able to meet their every need at every moment when another capable parent is present. In our household this looks like “dads going out to golf, I’ll make you lunch and he can do a puzzle with you once he’s back” or “moms headed out for a run, I’m going to put you down for a nap”. I promise you, it’s not a negative dynamic when executed by two parents who are both committed to supporting each other as well as their children. OPs DH is pushing back because parenting is tiring but this really shouldn’t mean he gets to evade responsibility. |
Did you though? Did you say it in any post these last 34 pages other than just now, when called out? The assumption that OP is more responsible in this situation for negative feelings is misogynist. |
STOP MOVING THE GOALPOSTS The post I responded to was about how OP is "making up extra chores". I explained that that isn't what she was doing. Now you want to harp on the fact that those stores allow kids? That wasn't the point to which I responded. Also, as far as not taking her kid on errands, OP said she chose to do enriching things like going to a museum. I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU PEOPLE ARE YELLING AT OP FOR NOT DRAGGING HER KID ON ERRANDS BUT INSTEAD USING HER TIME TO DO THOSE THINGS. |