In the old days, wise folks said that just one tiny fly in the ointment could actually ruin everything. Years and centuries have passed, and many things have changed in our lives since then, but the meaning of the statement remains. Just one small, bad thing can completely ruin nearly any big, good one.
The story we’re about to tell you today, from user u/Last_Gene9706, happened a few weeks ago, and the author asked for both advice and sympathy. Because, you must admit, it’s damn annoying—to spend a lot of money and energy on organizing an event and then receive harsh backlash from only one person, but no less hurtful, anyway.
More info: Reddit
The author of the post is a mom of three, and her eldest daughter plays softball on a local kids team
Image credits: syda_productions / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The parents of the team members sometimes arrange sleepovers for the kids—and the author is no exception
Image credits: Last_Gene9706
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Recently, the author hosted a sleepover for all 15 kids—and fed them with pizza, various snacks, and treats
Image credits: Last_Gene9706
Image credits: Kampus Production / Pexels (not the actual photo)
However, later, another girl's mom publicly called the author out for feeding her daughter 'junk'
Image credits: Last_Gene9706
The author explained that the group had no established rules for such sleepovers, but that lady dubbed her 'a lousy mother' in return
So, the Original Poster (OP) tells us that she is a mom of three, and all of her children are involved in extracurriculars in one way or another. For example, the eldest daughter, who’s 13, has been playing softball for many years and plays on a local children's team. Our heroine knows many of the kids' parents well and has even become friends with some of them.
The team members (about 15 kids) regularly take turns having sleepovers at their parents' houses, and it's always been an exciting moment for the author. She really couldn't wait for her turn this year.
This time, she bought the kids pizza, chips, and a whole bunch of snacks—and everything went just fine. However, it wasn't long before the mothers of several of the new girls on the team suddenly attacked the author in the parents' group chat with criticism.
It was for feeding their daughters "junk food," which they never eat at home, thereby allegedly ‘undermining’ their parenting. In her defense, our heroine noted that there were no special rules among the parents about what to eat at these sleepovers—except that they had to warn them about any food allergies.
Moreover, as far as our heroine knows, other parents also, for example, made burgers or cooked BBQ for the kids while hosting sleepovers at their home. One of the moms eventually ended up calling the OP “a lousy mother,” claiming that her daughter would no longer attend any sleepovers at her house, and angrily left the chat. And the author, upset by the current situation, decided to ask for advice and support from netizens.
Image credits: beststudio / Freepik (not the actual photo)
"Of course, pizza and chips are far from the healthiest food, but in any case, we are talking about a children's slumber party—a fairly rare event. You won’t blame the hosts of a kid's birthday party for treating guests with a cake, would you?" says Irina Matveeva, a psychologist and certified NLP specialist, whom Bored Panda asked for a comment on this particular case.
"Of course, everyone has their own rules, including those concerning food. But if you are entering a new social group, it is worth at least inquiring about the rules established in this group. Thus, if you have any food preferences that concern your child, you should have definitely voiced them in advance.
"For some reason, it seems to me that, after returning from a sleepover, this woman's daughter began to protest against what were probably the existing food rules in the family. And the mother found nothing better to do than to blame the other parent for this. This decision isn’t the most reasonable—it was worth at least calmly discussing this between the two of them, without involving others," Irina sums up.
People in the comments also completely sided with the original poster, arguing that the sleepovers imply snacks and treats, which are not very compatible with the concept of healthy eating. The responders also praised the author from the bottom of their hearts for being a good mom and organizing all these sleepovers at her own expense. So do you, our dear readers, agree with this as well?
Most commenters backed the author, praising her for doing it all at her own expense
