Blended families are always complicated because kids are just expected to accept a whole new person in their lives and vice versa. Besides, they don’t know whether this new member will be loving and caring like a real parent or as evil as Cinderella’s stepmom.
These two kids, however, ended up with an amazing stepfather, and they love him like their own dad, so they often call him that. This always irked their mom, but she went ballistic when he called her kids his own. Read on to find out all the drama that followed.
More info: Reddit
Blended families face a lot of challenges, but if the stepparent is loving, then the kids can adjust quickly
Image credits: krakenimages.com / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The poster's wife has two boys (Dylan, Tyler) with her ex, while he has a daughter (Sam), and they work well as a blended family
Image credits: steproblems
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
However, when Tyler called him “Dad,” his wife didn't like it and asked him to tell the kid not to say that, but he forgot about it
Image credits: steproblems
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
A few years later, when he called the kids his in front of a piano teacher, she lost it and corrected him, saying that he's the "stepdad"
Image credits: steproblems
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
When the poster confronted her, she claimed that she didn't want the kids to feel as though they were being forced to call him "Dad"
Image credits: steproblems
The poster found it ridiculous, and when things got heated, he told her that he's not telling the kids to stop calling him "Dad"
Today, we dive into quite a weird tale as the original poster (OP) tells us about a strange demand that his wife made. They live in a blended family as she has two sons (Dylan and Tyler) with her ex, while he has one daughter (Sam). The problem started a few years back when Tyler called OP “Dad,” and his mom completely disapproved of this.
She told the poster to correct the children if they ever did it again, out of respect for their real father. Although he found this weird, her husband agreed, but soon forgot about it completely. However, the issue popped up again when they went to pick up Tyler, and his piano teacher called OP his dad. He said that he was, but his wife immediately cut in and clarified that he’s the stepdad.
This just made things awkward within the whole family, so the poster confronted her about it. Apparently, she felt that the kids might think they were being forced to call him “Dad,” but that is not the truth, as they say it because they mean it. OP found this excuse ridiculous, and he went on to call out her ex.
This man is an absent dad, so the poster couldn’t figure out why his wife wanted him as a father figure for her children, when he was the one present for them. He couldn’t believe that she wanted to maintain a “good relationship” with that guy, and pointed out that she was hurting her own kids by doing that.
He also refused to stop them from calling him "Dad," and if she really wanted that, then she should do it herself. In his update, OP also mentioned that he wants to adopt the two, but he will wait for things to cool down a little before he tells his wife about it.
Image credits: George Dagerotip / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
After he vented online, netizens were confused by his wife’s behavior and couldn’t fathom why she was hurting her own kids this way. To get better insights into this family issue, Bored Panda reached out to Eden Lobo, a counselor and psychology professor. She explained that the mom might want to preserve the kids’ connection with their biological father, so she’s acting this way.
“However, when kids themselves love the stepdad more than their real dad, who is also absent, then it shouldn't be a problem for her. In fact, if the man does what she says, it can really sting the children. It might make them feel rejected, confused, or even embarrassed, like they did something wrong just for caring,” she elaborated.
Our expert also claimed that the kids could start to pull away emotionally or feel unsure about their place in the family. She added that this might also cause tension at home, especially if they feel stuck between their stepparent and their biological parent. She stressed that it’s very important to handle such situations delicately, as considering the children’s emotions is very important.
Prof. Lobo also spoke about how this might impact the man as well, since he cares so much about the kids. “It might make him feel unappreciated, like all the effort he’s put into being there for the children doesn’t fully count. Over time, it can even strain the relationship with his partner, especially if he feels like he’s being pushed to the sidelines emotionally,” she concluded.
Since the story is a little old, I hope the poster’s wife realized how much hurt she was causing her husband and their kids. What are your thoughts about the story? Did you also find her demand very weird? Let us know in the comments below!
Netizens were equally baffled by the wife's weird demand since their real father was a deadbeat dad, and the kids clearly loved the poster
