Step-parenting is a difficult job. Once you’ve gotten to know your step kids and begun to acclimatize to your new family unit, you still have to deal with the co-parenting connection between parents. It works better in certain instances than others. Read the story to know what happened between this step mom and her step daughter.
Source: Reddit
My step daughter Ellie is 10, an only child and very entitled. Independent of entitlement issues we generally enjoy our relationship and do many things together at her request.
The incident in question happened Sunday. I had a lot of work to do and needed to go in to work. Ellie BEGGED to come with me (she’s legit welcome there). I agreed with the stipulation we eat dinner before heading in because I’d need to power through. We grab McDonald’s. She picks at the meal she requested saying she prefers to snack. I say fine, whatever, pack it up if you prefer but we’re not eating until I’m done. She throws it away.
I’m annoyed but offer to grab a snack food option to go. She shrugs and says no she’s fine, we head in to my work, she’s having fun doing her thing. Three hours in she whines at me how she’s starving. I say well you should have eaten, sorry, I need 1 more hour. Her dad texts me 10 minutes later and says why didn’t you feed Ellie? I rolled my eyes and ignored him because there’s a history here with her texting dad a version and I know I can provide him context in 15 minutes or so when I’m done with what I was working on.
Not 3 minutes later her mom is blowing up my phone with texts and then calling literally 30 seconds after sending. I always answer her because it’s her kid and I’m not her mom but she demands I take Ellie to get food RIGHT NOW or ELSE. I’m about to accommodate because, again, not my kid but Ellie strolls in with this smug look of satisfaction. I’m pissed, I tell her mom “hey, being hungry seems like a natural consequence of not eating the dinner I already tried to feed her, I need to let you go because of work.” And hung up the phone.
Ellie asked where we were going for dinner. I told her we had dinner, took the entire last hour I needed while ignoring her tantrum and drove home in silence.
My husband says I’m the AH for getting his ex up his a**, his ex says I’m the AH because how dare I not feed a hungry child… but I kind of feel like they’re the AHs for raising such an entitled spoiled brat. So I’ll let y’all tell me Am I A Jerk?
Here are a few comments on the story where it was originally posted:
