Two Hot Takes - 66: Not So Positive Parenting..
Episode Date: May 19, 2022Two Hot Takes host, Morgan, is joined by guest co-hosts Matt and Amy (brother & SIL)! We're coming at you with parenting 2.0, and these stories are a unique mix of problems that lead to a lot of l...earning on all of our parts.. What do you think of these ones, and what takes would you give to these parents? Merch: https://fanjoy.co/collections/twohottakes Partners: Hello Fresh: HelloFresh.com/THT16 promo code: THT16 Obe Fitness: ObeFitness.com Promo code: THT Bombas: Bombas.com/THT Page 1 Books: Page1Books.com Promo Code: THT Our SubReddit to Submit Stories!!! https://reddit.app.link/twohottakes Patreon bonus stories from this ep to follow soon!! https://www.patreon.com/TwoHotTakes Full length Video episodes available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TwoHotTakes
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Hi, Jan from Toyota speaking.
Jan, I heard it's a good time to buy a Toyota.
Sure is. From now until April 4th,
you can shop all your favorites,
like Corolla, RAV4, Sequoia, and more.
Imagine yourself in a new tundra where...
You stopped by the home improvement store
and finally built that tree house you promised your daughter.
Sarah? When did you hop on the call?
Hi, Dad. Mom said you were taking too long on the phone.
Toyota, let's go places.
See your participating Toyota dealer for details.
Dealer inventory may vary.
Hi, guys. Welcome back to another episode of Two Hot Takes.
I'm your host, Morgan.
I'm Morgan's brother, Matt.
And I'm Amy, Matt's wife,
and Morgan's sister-in-law.
Yes. You're not going to get me in trouble today, right?
Oh, I'm going to rile the people.
That's my job.
No, no, I'm just kidding.
I put my foot in my own, my foot,
my own foot in my own mouth the last time anyways.
And you know, sometimes you just...
We don't always get them right.
It happens.
Just like parenting, you know?
You take it one day at a time and...
You learn from your mistakes.
You balance back.
How would you describe parenting?
Kids are the greatest joy
and like you'll never find
like such a deep love
and affection for someone else,
like beyond your spouse.
But at the same time,
it is also the most infuriating,
stressful thing you can possibly do as a human being,
where you want to just...
I am.
So I'm home in Minnesota visiting.
I came home and surprised my mom for Mother's Day,
which if you're watching on YouTube,
I'll include the video of me surprising her from a closet.
That was fantastic.
It was hilarious and like,
it's kind of a jump scare for those watching
because she screams her head off.
But I also got...
I also got to go to my niece's dance recital.
So Matt and Amy's kids are five and three as of today.
We were recording on the youngest's birthday.
But we went to Eloise's, the oldest,
her dance recital and Emmett.
You know, he's three.
He's a little guy and he was just not having it.
It was two hours long.
At his wit's end.
And I think Matt, you were at your wit's end too
because you look at him and you just go,
dude, I'm about to lose it.
Yep.
And he almost knew though, he was like,
okay, but I gotta go easy.
You're like, I gotta go easy on my dad.
Well, they always pick the most opportune times
to act up, right?
Like Eloise of those two hours of dancing,
danced two songs that were like
one minute songs.
And of course, that's exactly when he decided to
throw a fit.
That's when he was the worst.
It didn't matter how many snacks we bought,
popcorn, sour patch kids,
Twix, Reese's, popcorn,
pizza, it didn't matter.
Nothing would make him happy.
No.
And that's just sometimes the way the cookie crumbles.
So today is parenting 2.0
and we'll see how it goes.
I feel like this should come with a disclaimer though.
Like we are not professional parents.
We're just like trying to figure it out.
So, yeah, there we go.
Just some takes.
It's gonna be okay.
Okay, let's dive in.
So up first,
husband is jealous
of our new baby.
I think my husband is jealous
of our three month old baby.
Since the baby was born, he has completely
changed.
He complains all of the time now
about everything.
We went for a walk and made it halfway
down the block before we turned around
and went home.
It took us maybe three minutes.
In that time, he managed to complain about the
two dogs, how I walk the dogs
and how I should do it his way
and how I'm too hard headed because
I won't do it his way.
This happens with pretty much everything we try to do.
We got into a pretty big fight about money.
He said, I'm spending too much on groceries.
That $400 a month
is insane for two people
and that we order out too much.
I double checked this.
I ordered out once a month for the past three months
since our daughter was born.
One of those times was for his birthday dinner.
Then he told me that he misses his friend
who I asked him
to stop talking to five years ago.
I had asked him to stop
talking to her after she tried
making out with him and then sent him a three page
long text about how I'm to blame
for their crappy relationship.
I told him to go ahead and talk to her again.
I don't care at this point.
Now he's complaining how sick he is.
He said he's depressed. He can't work.
He needs to take medical leave
and he feels dizzy all of the time.
I made appointments for him,
for a doctor for the dizziness,
a psychiatrist for the depression
and a psychologist for some talk therapy.
He was prescribed a bunch of different meds
and he's saying none of them work.
On top of all this,
he's complaining that I'm breastfeeding too much.
She needs to start on solid foods
and I should switch to formula.
Three month old, right?
He says that we need to get a babysitter
even though I'm a stay at home mom.
He said she bores him
and all he does with her
is sit in front of the TV.
I think all of those things
are for my attention.
He's done things like this in the past
when I wasn't giving him 100% of my attention
but never to this extent.
These past three months have been
so much drama
that I feel like I'm losing it.
Trouble.
There's some big red flags here.
Lots of red flags.
Right.
Matt's ready to dive in.
Go at it.
I don't know.
Did this person
OP,
did they have a conversation about
actually wanting to have kids
and do you not know
what you're signing up for?
A baby is not going...
How can he be bored
with a baby?
Yes, they don't do anything
but you have to know what you're signing up for.
And it sounds like
overall,
I don't know if he thought that his life
was just going to stay the same
but when you have a kid
from that moment
your life is not yours anymore.
You need to
basically sacrifice for your
child and your spouse
and it's not the same.
You're not going to be going out
doing all the things that you wanted to do.
Going out and partying
and going out to dinners.
This guy is ridiculous
to think that his life was going to stay the same
and
because he's so
distraught about his life change
I feel like
call it what it is
may not be an affair, emotional
affair, some sort of emotional
connection with the other lady
where he is
trying to find
peace of what he had
with that other
person but just with somebody
that is not his wife and kids
because wife and kids right now
equals not fun
work, sacrifice
and this dude needs to wake up
to reality.
So I feel like Jerry right now
because I'm like, I wonder what his
relationship is like with his mother
because it sounds like he was flipping
rays to be the center of the universe
everything has to revolve
around him and when it stops
revolving around him he throws a little
tantrum like a little three year old
so
your world is going to
flip upside down when you have
kids and honestly
what I noticed and what I picked up
was that the wife
made the appointments for him
she got him the appointment
to go here, she got him the
appointment to go there and where in the world do they live
that $400 a month
on food is like
that's actually insane, $100
a week on groceries for two people
that's like, that's some boss ass budgeting
I know, that's really good
she might be using coupons
100%
and she's breastfeeding
which
people breastfeed
like I think the normal
minimum these days is about a year
is what I see people
talking about on TikTok is like
I breastfed for at least a year
I know everyone's parenting journey is so
different and some people go
to five
two years
some people longer, some people shorter
and it's whatever works for you
but that's a lot of work
so I hear that she is putting in
a lot of work and I'm guessing she's
exhausted and
your husband at that point should become
more of your teammate and maybe look
for ways to support his wife
as they are raising their three month
old and not complain that she's not exciting
enough, like come on
she's three months old, it's so weird
it's so weird
well and the fact that
there's actually
like for moms out there that
are using formula right now there's a crazy
formula shortage and formula is
expensive and he's already bitching
about the fact that they're spending $400 on
groceries add in formula
now bitch because I saw one
woman on, was going on
Facebook marketplace to find a special formula for her baby
$100 a canister
$100
it's insane
I just can't imagine so
I don't know I think just based on a google search though
because I'm trying to find the actual story and not
just my screenshots
and read it after read it
husbands being
jealous of baby did your husband
get jealous after the baby was born
I 30 male am jealous
of my wife's relationship with our new baby
I think my husband
is jealous of our baby
wait a minute though it's a really common
problem I think
I think
I'm just gonna throw this out there
like you can't you can get jealousy
confused with like
the inability to bond with that child
right away like
typically right a mother
and their child bond right away
and they form a bond
not always
and you feel
potentially left out
I could see that happening where
oh they have such a great relationship
and I just have this baby and like
I just can't do it
I can't get to the same level
that you're getting to
so
yeah I guess you could call it jealousy
I don't know
it's a bad word for it I guess
but also
it almost does
I don't know with him because
I think it's more about the fact that
he's not getting the attention or being pampered
and the fact that she says
he's done things like this in the past
when I wasn't giving him 100% of my attention
and so it's not so much to me about
the baby it seems like
he's just an insecure
dude that needs
100% of his partner's focus
yeah I mean especially with this
story I'm gonna throw it back but this guy's a
fucking clown
simple as that this story is ridiculous
and especially you have a three month old baby
and he's like there's this whole other
layer of him and this other
chick like they basically
had
I don't know some sort of
a fair sort of
situation and now they're one
let's hope not
yeah that just becomes even more messy
this story does not exist anymore
I'm like
I'm sleuthing
so I cannot find it
the username was DiligentTumbleweed96
and even that
account is gone from what I'm
seeing but it's a really
really common issue
with people and I think
I could see the bonding being
a really relevant problem for a lot of people
maybe not so much him but like other people
go through this because it is hard
because you also want to bond
with a baby and so maybe that's why he said formula
so he could have that feeding time
but at the same time
like it's unfortunate
but fortunate moms are so tied to the baby
early on right especially
if you choose to breastfeed and you are
like you can pump
for your partner if you're the one
doing the breastfeeding but that's
a lot of work too the story still said that
he specifically said
you're breastfeeding too much
not hey I'd like a chance
to be able to feed the baby
it sounds like he
felt like he had a little bit of ownership
maybe over her body
and now
she
you know now maybe
he's feeling like that
and honestly she probably
feels too that her body is no longer hers
even then that it does belong to that baby
I don't know I felt like I had
kind of some of those feelings after
after giving birth especially with
breastfeeding like this body is completely
different it's completely foreign
and it's you know
there's fluids coming out of all of these
orifices oh my gosh
I didn't even know that
anyway we're going too far
you didn't know what
I'm already scared of pregnancy
so yeah I don't know if I want to know
so
but definitely like
at that time of your life
you're not like ooh I feel so
sexy like come here
yeah so
that's rough
I mean maybe some women are but I definitely wasn't
that three months postpartum
no she's still healing
and going through hormone changes still
and trying to just get back on track
and he's making life very difficult
and she doesn't have one new baby
she's got two
and that's not what any
I don't want a baby for a partner
bye
I miss her
she had two babies
basically the guy is being another
fucking baby
I was like what are you talking about
yeah no just another one popped up there
imagine yourself in a new tundra where
you stopped by the home improvement store
and finally built that tree house you promised
your daughter
when did you hop on the call
hi dad mom said you were taking too long
on the phone
Toyota let's go places
see your participating Toyota dealer for details
dealer inventory may vary
okay moving along this one
is also probably going to pull out heart strings
like
I think like parenting kind of comes with some heavy
caretorty sometimes
it's a good job
so this one's a little crazy
we've talked a little bit about mother-in-law
and boundaries today
here we go haul in one
alright
take a deep breath Matt it'll be okay
am I the asshole
I had my mother-in-law trespassed
after she entered my home and fired
my babysitter
I'm a widower I lost my wife
Ann 34 just minutes after she
gave birth to her first baby Sammy
she had a difficult pregnancy so I took
an indefinite leave three months before
she was due Sammy's four months old now
and before I went back to work
I told my mother-in-law Sandra 56
about my plans
and if she can recommend a nanny to take care of
my daughter when I work
she offered to do it nanny
that is for free I told her she's free
to come by anytime during the day if she
feels uncomfortable with a nanny looking after Sammy
but she insisted on doing it herself
so I said yes
and gave her a copy of the house keys
she comes 30 minutes before I leave
to go to work and when I come home
she stays for dinner and leaves after putting Sammy
to sleep
everything was fine for the first couple of weeks
until I noticed that Sammy's not feeding as much
her formula's barely touched
I asked Sandra about it and why Sammy's
not feeding well
she said she's trying to breastfeed my daughter
wait what
yeah I forgot about this one
mother-in-law yeah
at first I thought she was joking
then I realized she wasn't
she said Sammy needs to latch
for a few minutes every day to activate
her milk production
I almost lost it
I told her she cannot do that
and she needs to stop
she said she will but I caught her again
when I walked in my daughter's room
and she was forcing Sammy to latch
I confronted her and told her she's no longer
my baby's nanny I didn't ask for the key back
to come visit anytime
I asked for a one-week leave from work
to care for my daughter and find a nanny
I found one
but two days after she never returned
I called her and she said my
mother fired her
the day before I asked her to describe
the woman and I was livid when I realized
it was Sandra she came into my house
using her key and fired
my nanny
I was about to call her when she showed up and said
a convoluted story like how I hired
an incompetent nanny etc etc
I told her to leave but she refused
and told me she's calling CPS
because I'm endangering my child
we argued back and forth before I called the police
and she was charged with trespassing
I know my mother-in-law is grieving
the loss of her daughter I am too
but she crossed the line when she disregarded
my wishes she's very upset with me
my sister-in-law and brother-in-law
are calling me ruthless
and I am now second guessing myself
have I taken it too far by calling the police
am I the asshole
wow
nah
no
so I will say
I actually have had another story
in the past and I
did not even know breastfeeding was a component
of this
I remember that one and I'm like really
taking it back that this is happening to me again
because this story was the same thing the grandma
was trying to breastfeed the baby
or not trying to breastfeed it per se
trying to get the baby to latch on her breast
to comfort the baby
and try to get it to calm down
so a little bit different like this is a little
even more unhinged
well because the baby is not even
drinking as much formula
she's not getting the nutrition that she needs
I'm sure she is dehydrated
malnourished
that's so bad
wow
it's kind of like the audacity
boundaries for sure
I'm jumping all over those boundaries that he's trying to set
I just I wouldn't feel comfortable
like I get the whole fact that your daughter
died and you're like trying to do the best things
you can
poor grandma trying to do the right thing
maybe but
you have to recognize
when you're out of line
and I would flip
if I found out my mother in law was trying to
breastfeed my kid
there's just a line and that's a line
I just I can't get behind
that's a line at that point
she's already demonstrated
that she's not following your wishes because you told her
absolutely no
and then she came over and didn't say that
she tried to do it again
and so she's like completely disregarding
your wishes for your child
like she had her
time as a parent
and yes
it is so sad because they're both
grieving the loss of that baby's mother
and
maybe she is just not in
the right headspace
I mean clearly but
until she is in the right headspace
if it were me
I would be taking that key back and I would say
kind of like supervised visits only
like you are welcome to come over but
how did he not take the key?
this is going to be when we are
but he needs to change the locks
absolutely she's made a copy
she's this cuckoo she's made a copy
like I don't know he did call the cops
which is
an extreme step I feel like
maybe he couldn't get her to leave
it doesn't sound like she was leaving
I don't know I'm all about
de-escalating a situation
just how I would work
is I would
fucking wait until she left
and then I would go like
alright now we're changing the locks
now I'm doing this
now I'm not going to have my kid here
to a daycare facility
or I will bring it to a different
nanny's house
and when my mother-in-law shows up next time
or tries to get in the house
too fucking bad
you blew your shot lady
a daycare center because then you can
really like have like hey
if this person shows up she's not allowed
I know I feel like
age wise I know
I just
age wise maybe
I don't know well the nanny's house too
no no no the baby's age
for a daycare I'm like oh she's still a little
4 months little baby nugget
immune systems just kind of getting rolling
but they usually have
like babies
like quarantine in their own room
especially like where we go age separated
yeah yeah
I don't know I
literally just googled it as we were kind of talking here
and I was like can a 56 year old woman even produce breast milk
that's also my question
I'm nothing about this so like
so according to women's health today
a woman who is post menopausal
can still produce milk
as long as you have a functioning pituitary gland
sell out the prolactin
and so if you stimulate the nipples
enough it'll get the prolactin going
yep and yeah
and actually a lot of moms
who adopt if they pump
enough prior to adopting their child
then they can actually
nurse their child
I think it's really cool
I mean there's so many benefits of
breastfeeding
antibodies and stuff that get passed to your baby
to help their immune system
but it is definitely not happening
if you're just like coming over
and nannying and latching here and there
like come on and also
way out of line
yeah it's crazy to me
it's possible for a woman who has never been pregnant
or hasn't been
pregnant for many years to relactate
to produce breast milk
that was my next question
you don't even have to have ever had
you don't have to have ever been pregnant
to produce breast milk
women's bodies are
this is so educational
they're amazing is what they are
blow my mind
this is really cool
I do think
if you aren't
you truly do want to do just formula
it's your own choice
but I know a lot of moms who produce
a lot of excess milk will donate to milk banks
and I think there's so many
just get some antibodies
we had some really great friends
that donated
garbage bags full of breast milk
to us
I was not a super producer
I tried so hard
so hard
we did nurse for a really long time
the amount matters
until they're one year of age
and then
as they're one they're eating more foods
and what not so after one
the amount matters a little bit less
so towards the end
because I'm also a working mom
I wasn't pumping enough while I was
at work and so we had
some really awesome friends who donated
their breast milk
I would trust them clearly
with my life
and my baby's life
and so that was just
the best gift that
they were able to give
both of my kids Eloise and Emmett
because they had kids at the perfect time
just a little bit before Eloise
and just a little bit before Emmett
so it was great
that's awesome
yeah if you can donate milk
and you want to help out some other moms
look into milk banks in your area
I know Facebook is a big
so many Facebook groups for that
it's great you just
you do have to be careful like going through
like if you don't know the person
well so my friend Allie
she kind of had the same issue
and so she did get it through some people she knew
but there was
one of the groups she was thinking about going through
they actually tested the milk
for like stuff
now Liz is probably way healthier
even than I am so I had no qualms
yeah
okay
thank you for everyone
for your advice and showing concern for Sammy
I called CPS to tell them about the situation
my mom is coming over
to help look after my daughter and look at our options
she's a retired family law attorney
I do have a doorbell camera
but reading some of the suggestions here
I decided to up my home security system
brother-in-law and sister-in-law know the whole story
and they also think that forcing
to breastfeed Sammy was wrong
but
they were angry at me for calling the cops on mother-in-law
and having her trespassed
they said it was unnecessary
and cruel to do to a grieving mother
which is kind of in line with
what you said Matt
if there was any way not to involve the police
when you say
having her trespassed
what does that mean exactly
like are you charging her like
doing the whole deal
or was it just like get the cops over
and then like take her away
right now I'm not pressing
I'm not going to press charges but I just need her to leave
there's like a huge difference
that's pretty ballsy
to charge your mother-in-law
that's ballsy if you're going to actually charge her
because at some point
it's a bad situation to begin with
and you want your
child to have a relationship
with their grandparents
absolutely
and it's tough because I look at
yes
she's crossing a lot of boundaries
she's going against
him what he wants
and then when he found out
she's continuing to cross that boundary
but in my head
this is kind of like a consent violation
for this
little baby I don't know this
this whole thing is just so backwards
but I think one thing too
he noticed his daughter wasn't eating well
and
babies need
food
they're at such a vital part of development
growing their brains
growing like crazy
all this shit like you can't starve a fucking baby
just because you hope that your breasts will start
producing milk
it's almost like
is she a little psychotic
with this grief
oh wow she's psychotic
in the medical sense
could be a form of psychosis here because
I think about it too with this baby and trying to get this baby to latch
this baby's never
been breastfed and I know
a lot of today's nipples are shaped
very similar to breast nipples
and all that but
this baby's also never breastfed so
I'm sure this is just a shit show
trying to get it
this little one to latch
it's a lot delusional
how soon did it start
nobody knows I'm sure
how long has she been watching the kid by herself
I don't know
maybe it happened right away
Sammy's four months old now
and before I went back
to work
so not really a super
clear timeline but she's four months old
now
and no mention of like
they took an indefinite leave three months before
their wife was due but then
just said before I went back to work
so not really
sure
if she had this kind of access
to the baby before
that's a sad story though
oh my gosh
feel really bad for him
like to be under all this stress
you're grieving the loss of your wife
and then your mother-in-law just kind of
fucks it all up
and you have a baby to raise
I'm getting educated tonight so like
I just have one last question
does this happen a lot do women still
die giving birth often
ooh
like a thing
the US has some of the
for a developed country
the US is the worst
with mortality
highest
maternal mortality rate
and I plug this constantly
on like every show I can
because I'm trying to bring awareness to it
in every way I can
if you're a woman of color
you're over 240% more likely
to die during childbirth than a white woman
yep
it is so bad
it's so wrong
it's terrible
it's scary
it's just insane to me
I just feel like we're living in an age where
the medical care is
top notch
and I don't know that shouldn't be happening
I feel bad for the guy
there's still a sexism in medicine though
unfortunately
a lot of medical bias
your brother literally just gave birth
well not he
his wife did
but like they just had that little one yesterday
and she had a lot of hemorrhaging
and it's like I've seen so many women on tiktok
where they were like I was hemorrhaging
and like I literally the doctor told my partner
to say goodbye to me
and there's another woman who her tiktok keeps going by her all
where she flatlined and was dead for 20 minutes
I saw that
and I had to have
and wasn't that the one where they had to do like that emergency c-section
like it was like the basically
a post-mortem c-section to save the baby
and they ended up bringing her back
amazing
this is depressing we gotta move on
I don't know
all of these ones are gonna be
okay let's just get this one out of the way
because it's more boob related
I can talk boobs all day long
they're amazing
yes they are
I don't mean it like that
I wish Justin was here to pipe in
you'd love this
who doesn't love boobs
some people are butt people
they don't care about what's up top
boobs are like coke or pepsi
you prefer big small coke pepsi
you prefer one but she'll take you there are
they're fantastic
I need to do a poll on this one
okay so up next
am I the asshole for suggesting that
my friend wears a bra
or thicker shirt before coming over
I have a six month old
and just started allowing visitors
my best friend came to visit
and I texted her suggesting she wears a bra
or a thick shirt if she plans to hold
my son because he grabs nipples
very hard
and my friend has hers pierced
and has told me they're super sensitive
I explained this to her
and she ignored my messages but she came over anyways
nipples poking through shirt
and my six month old was staring
hands ready
I offered to give her a sweater
she looked at me sideways and suggested I was
sexualizing her breasts
and she is not covering up
I explained that wasn't the case
but she didn't want to hear me
I respected her decision and asked if she still wants
to hold the baby
she grabbed my son from me and within five minutes
he had a death grip on her nipples
and she jumped up screamed in pain
and pulled him off her
I said
quote that's why I suggested a bra
this made her even more mad
I said no you suggested that
because you're a misogynist
I was so confused
and she left abruptly
she keeps telling our mutual friends
that I was sexualizing her breasts
and was trying to make her wear a bra
or that I wouldn't welcome her
but that isn't at all what happened
am I missing something
I feel like her reaction is really
uncalled for
this was just a miscommunication
where is Justin
hilarious miscommunication
this is a hilarious miscommunication
oh
yeah
I'm not gonna lie
just at least in our society
I'm a guy so I'm just gonna say this
your boobs
they're a sexual thing
no
disagree
that's the problem
see you're gonna learn today
like no
guys are attracted to
breasts
it's a sexual thing
it can be
but it isn't always
why if she's just walking around
in a shirt why do you need to sexualize
her boobs
when you say you're sexualizing them
I'm not sure
like attraction is attraction
you see things
you like things
some people like booties
right so like you see a girl
in tight jeans and you like her
butt like what
sexualizing her ass
okay let me ask you something
now do you find
your mother's breasts sexy
no
I'm not looking
I shield my eyes
grandmothers
your sisters
there's a way
to not sexualize breasts
you don't have to be sexual
especially I mean think about
a boob feeding a baby
if you're walking through the airport
and you see a mom breastfeeding her baby
are you also checking out her tits
that titty in that baby's mouth
is hot
there are situations
where they're not sexual
here's the thing
I bet her friend has gotten
this perspective before
elsewhere
because
I think there are a lot of men out there
that will give unsolicited comments
to women about their boobs
obviously you have eyes people have eyes
we all look at people and
they're attractive or oh I like their hair
we're constantly making these
observations
but I think for women that have their nipples pierced
it's kind of like a more
oh
I think there's a lot of guys that give
unsolicited comments like my friend
that have their nipples pierced
and when they would go out to bars
people would come up to them and talk to them about their nipples
I just
that's just rude
it's gross
so how people like Jews to express themselves
should be up to them
and so to me it sounds like
she's kind of been on that end of the spectrum
where maybe she has
had
uninvited
comments or whatever
where her defense mechanisms jumps to
it sounds like the
OP could have been a little bit more like
hey you might want a bra
or a sweater because my six month old
will for sure grab
your nipple piercings
I mean you do you do you
but it might hurt because
I mean those little hands
they hurt
they're strong
they love like
hair they love hair
they love like
with the other nipple
I mean that's why they have those little blankets
with the little tags on it
because they like to fiddle with something
as they're like nursing or whatever
I just saw like a little draping thing
where you drape it over you as your breastfeeding
it's got a fake nipple on it
so they won't pinch your real one
oh that's so smart
cause that shit hurts
well and it sounds like
she did try to explain to her
she said like he
you should wear bra or thick shirt
if you plan to hold my son because he grabs nipples
very hard
and she ignored my messages but came over anyways
well then it's just on her
and here's the thing with people
I don't think the friend was wrong in any way
I think the friend like
honestly she was being very
considerate she knew her friend had very sensitive nipples
I don't think she was being misogynistic
or sexualizing her I think she was
honestly just trying to be like
here is the situation
and here's how you can avoid some pain
and
so her friend is taking it this way
which I think kind of plays off what you said
she's been in the situation a lot
and she's tired of it
and I'm kind of in the boat where
sometimes
people need to learn the hard way
and this is one of those situations
she should not be bad mouthing though
her friend and saying
telling everybody I don't know
I need to talk it out
that's weird it's not
that serious like
are you embarrassed now and that's why you're running
your mouth to all your mutual friends
maybe because that's
like this
communicate people communicate
so there is an edit on this one
in the midst of our arguing
she suggested that I should teach my son
to not grab nipples
but he is just a baby
top comment
that's why you're suggesting that
so it should be clear it has nothing to do with sex
and she's the only one sexualizing the situation
she sounds like a drama queen
is she always like that
must be tiring for everyone involved
and so OP goes
yeah she is
I love her but even at my baby shower
she kept bringing up about how she had a miscarriage
I feel for her in that situation
because it's devastating
but it felt like she was trying to shift the focus
on her
so
yeah that's tough
no comment
OP goes on to say in another comment
she's a toxic friend who I can't help
unless she helps herself unfortunately
it looks like cutting contact might be the best thing
for the both of us right now and I hope she seeks
therapy because this behavior is not acceptable
and I refuse to tolerate it anymore
basically just responding to someone being like
has anyone told her it's not always about her
because it seems like OP
is kind of sharing other details throughout the comments
that her friend is
not the best of friends
and tries to turn every situation into
like her being a victim
so she's lashing out because she's still dealing
with her own
situation and she hasn't
addressed it appropriately
it sounds like there's some unresolved
trauma here for sure
we did it
so can you
moving along
getting away from the nipples
what's next
free the nipple
so
am I the asshole for making
my son shower at school
saves water
my son is in the sixth grade
and showering is not a big deal to him anymore
to make matters worse he has sports
after school which is at his school
so when I pick him up he stinks
he will promise to shower
but doesn't or doesn't do
a good enough job
yesterday I went to pick him up and handed him a bag
with shampoo, body wash, clean clothes
and deodorant
he asked me what that was for
and I said he's going to take a shower in the boys locker room
there were a few older kids in there
who shower he refused
and I said he's not coming home until he does
he said he'd take one at home
and I said nope
I also told him to not bother calling
his mom he did shower
and was fresh and clean but had tears in his eyes
I told him
when I dropped him off that he either
showers at home or at school
I always have a change bag for this
with me
his mom says the whole thing is a waste of time
edit he can
but won't shower at home
and very well when he does
he's not being prevented from showering at home
that guy's a fucking
dick
too far
way too far
how old are you in sixth grade at
12
you're like 10
10, 11
especially when you're sharing a locker room
probably
for both
young boys and girls
like it's intimidating
to strip down
get naked in front of
an entire
class
or whether it be
older
students at the gym I don't know this
specific situation like
how many different teams are there
there's bullying
at 10
or 11, 12, 13
14, 15, 16, 17
a lot of people just aren't
comfortable with their bodies
at that point in time
I'm still not now
gyms with the showers like this
oh my god no
it's an intimidating thing
to get buck naked
and go into the shower with a group of people
and like I can vividly remember
like in
school seventh, eighth grade you go to the pool
and then you're supposed to go shower after before
class and like you're sitting there
like hands as you walk to the
locker room and
you just have your own little shower
not easy and if this kid is so
worried
or nervous about it you're an asshole
dude
it's not something that you
oh grow up
get over it
it's fine if he wants to shower at home
let him shower at home
oh he stings
go fuck off
all young puberty
age little boys stink
I feel like it's a part of the territory
it comes with growing up
I mean he came home with tears in his eyes
that boy had trauma in that locker room
like come on
and like
teenagers aren't nice
they're not nice
kids are mean
it's not easy
being a kid
the stuff I got bullied for in school
was like
a cakewalk compared to
the potential you're opening yourself up to by like
showering at school and
did you ever shower
at school
I never did once
it wasn't the norm
I think I just sat in my chlorine
hair
or maybe rinsed off in your swimsuit
and changed like in a stall
but I even remember
trying to change because we had
you obviously have gym from like
when you're young you don't change at all
you just do floor activities in your clothes
I think you start changing in middle school
and even then
it was kind of one of those things where
it's like
you do it so sneakily
it was scary
you felt gross
everyone's kind of like looking around
like as fast as you can
yeah well and like some girls weren't wearing bras yet
some girls were wearing bras and it was just like
it was just so uncomfortable
I think from a generational
standpoint as well like
our generation
versus like our parents generation
to our grandparents generation
like our grandparents
like seventh, eighth grade pool time
guess what you were swimming naked
what?
and that was like the norm though
you grew up
from like being little
and like everybody just did it
everybody just has the same thing
just getting the pool like it's not it wasn't like this thing
and it
sense has and how we've been raised has put this
whatever it is
feelings behind it or stigma right
so like yeah
I just think we're more conscious of like
I don't know
like some of this shit where
our older generations went through
it's super traumatic
and I think we're one
we've become more politically correct
and all that but I think we've also
looked at like
okay that was not right and
we shouldn't have been putting kids through that trauma
right
I don't know I'm mad at this
this dad
there's much better ways you could have gone about this dude
you could have like no kid wants to stink
too you could have just sat him down and be like
dude
you kinda smell
this is like some really wonderful axe body spray
old spice
I wanna know if there's an update
do we find out why this kid had tears in his eyes
like
he wasn't ready for it
he was forced to do something he wasn't ready to
yeah
having your dad be like don't bother calling your mom
you're not getting in my car until you go back in there
and shower
he's 11, 11 you're still a little baby
you're a little baby
that's like your kid's 5
times 2 like you're still a
baby
and so I don't know OP's comments are
6th grade or 12th
I counted it out
so I was born in 1994
in 2006 I was in 6th grade
so 6th to get to
2000
like 11 turning 12
yeah 11 turning 12
so
just shitty but
what is that 8th grade then
8th graders
so yeah so OP comments
like older kids were in the bathroom 8th graders
or 13 year old so he's
that's probably what 6th or 7th grade
yeah 7th 13
8th 14
yeah
it's a lot less serious for boys to shower
he's
seen and been seen naked with the same kids
who shower at school
why is it a lot less and this is my question
it's a lot less serious for boys to shower
like there's a big stigma
about you know
that's some toxic masculinity
the downstairs when like
comparison right
yeah I think like guys get it really hard
like I think I just look at
I had a high school boyfriend
who was uncircumcised
and I found that out before I even hooked up with him
from his friends bullying him for it
and it was a running
like a running joke
at their school it was bad
but that's like kind of you get
you hear it from size you hear it from that
or boys that mature
early or late you know
well at
11 12 like it's just
starting right it's not even
it just makes me so sad
for that little boy yeah
so OP comments a shit ton
like someone must have commented
like you should have talked to your kid
have a you know a nice conversation
saying where you're coming from
and OP goes been there done that
peer pressure works fine
go on
that is not a good parenting mentality to have
that is a very authoritative
mm-hmm
Terian it almost feels like he's like
oof
control issues
I don't even I don't even like that response
like just sounds
cocky this guy's
he's a tool bag
yeah he has that whole I'm big you're
small mentality exactly
do what I say no matter what instead of hey
you are your own person who is growing
and my job is to facilitate that growth
and bring you up in this world yeah
and hopefully it should just be
it should just be a conversation like hey
if you're not ready to shower with the rest of the guys
like you can shower at home no big deal
like you're an adult
I think to the
not showing at home it's like okay well are you
even paying attention to your kid like
why aren't they showering at home
has something happened because like
I mean there's so many things
that can point to like
trauma abuse and like
I don't know if it's dad or what
but like maybe he's gone through something
maybe he's having mental health issues like
like what's the underlying cause
here if he was showering and just stop
showering because yeah young boys
pubescent boys sometimes
don't shower or have more BL but like
where's all this coming from and
I don't know I think there's a stage
as you're growing up where like
baths and showers are fun
and you go and you hang out in the
bath you play with toys or you're like
taking showers now and like that's cool
and then at some point it becomes
just a thing you have to do
yeah it's work and as
a young
kid
who wants to go and do work
like I'd rather just like I
you a lot of times probably don't smell yourself
at that age like you just get like
accustomed to it right nose blind
right and so you're like I don't need
to shower why don't you shower for I'm just sitting
here playing video games or I'm just hanging
out my room like I don't need
to it's not important to me
but
as you get older and you start caring about
what you know
the opposite sex thinks
or whatever
or the same sex like
you know you start thinking about what
other people are thinking of you and then
oh hey I need to shower
here's my thing what's the worst
thing that could happen
from this kid
being a little stinky
nothing maybe he gets fewer
dates
I mean he's 11
he'll figure it out by then
and he's 11 he's a baby
he's got six months a year to figure it out
what people start dating in seventh grade
no way
my first little peck on the
cheek was
eighth grade
so top comment on this one which has
over 20,000 votes you're the asshole
forcing him to get naked in a place
where he's clearly uncomfortable doing so
makes you not only an asshole
but an absolutely terrible parent
next comment down goes
this traumatized me
shouldn't even be a thing anymore, period
too many coaches caught peeping
etc
I mean there's been some bad shit that's happened
in locker rooms
why
subject your kids to that
when he can just shower at home
yep I think we've covered those two
yep let's go
hit the nail on the head
is there anyone else that agrees
with OP, is there like one person on it
that's like
obviously you should be showering at the school
or like
so this one goes you're not the asshole
for wanting your son to shower
however you are the asshole for how you went
about it
if he's refusing to shower at home after he said he will
that's a parenting issue
have consequences at home for not keeping his word
don't force him to go and shower at school
in a public locker room
he's 11 and slash 12
your body issues, body conscious is brought to the forefront
get to the root of why he's not wanting to shower
for real that's like
the age where you develop life long
issues
so you gotta be careful
you're so vulnerable
so vulnerable
that one only got 170 upvotes so like it's
it's
I just searched
the keyword not the asshole and it's
it's literally the very last comment on the page
moving along
am I the asshole for refusing
to stop calling my 9 year old son
honey
the situation is a bit silly but I'll let you guys decide
I, female 36
have been dating my boyfriend Joe, male
38 for a few months
he has met my 9 year old son and they both get along
pretty well
Joe started staying longer during the weekends
and days ago while he was visiting
he heard me call my son honey
he stayed quiet during the entire breakfast
then brought it up with me
I asked what was wrong
and he said that I shouldn't call my son honey
especially because I call him that
and he thinks just this term
is used for romantic partners
I laughed it off because I thought
it was a small and silly thing to comment on
but he got offended
by my lack of care for his concerns
and asked me to stop using this word with my son
since he feels it's misplaced
I told him no
this was not a valid argument by him
and in my opinion
he does not deserve consideration
we argued for a few minutes
then he decided to go out
saying we'll talk about this again later
but I firmly told him there's nothing to talk about
and I will not stop calling my son honey
end of story
he got upset and went out
he then sent a long text about how I keep
disregarding his thoughts, opinions, and input
and brushed them off
not caring about how it makes him feel
he said it would only be reasonable to use
my son's nicknames when referring to him
and we can be done with the issue
but I refused to stop
he's gone silent now save for a text here and there
am I the asshole for not compromising
and flat out refusing
to stop calling my son this word
this is a boyfriend right
yeah
even if it was a husband or whatever
I just wanted to clarify for my own thought
but no lady keep doing you
like I call
my daughter
I'm like
she's five
I call her babe
hey babe what you doing
like
I don't think what you're doing
calling your son honey
is that's not wrong at all
the kid is nine years old
you don't mean it
in a romantic way like
honey has nothing to do with
being romantic
it's a standard term of
endearment oh my gosh
and that is one of my favorite
terms of endearment of all time
with my kids I call them honey
so much I don't even realize
it so to the point where
when Eloise and I play Barbies
she's like okay mom
you can be the mom and I'm gonna be the honey
aka the honey
is the child because
I call my children honey both of them
so much
that's adorable
so there's
I think that the boyfriend needs to get over himself
come on find your own pet name
if this is like that traumatic for you
and then also if you think about it
what message is it going to send
to that son
if your mother all of a sudden stops
referring to him with this
term of endearment and only refers
to her boyfriend with this
same term of endearment that she used to call
her son her beloved son
so not the asshole
I just
I think it's weird that
it almost feels like he's jealous
in a sense to me
yeah insecure
yeah I would say that
he just hasn't found his place in that relationship yet
and he's insecure over that
and I just think that
this is not the type of person you want
in your life especially as
we'll say a single mother
right you want somebody
who is confident
and
supportive of you and your relationship
support your relationship with your children
and compliment
that relationship not be the one to be
you know
you don't want somebody to get in the middle
of it I guess
it does feel like he's almost competing
or looking at her son as competition
he's that insecure about it
by basically saying like you need to stop calling him that
which I think with what you said Amy would
it would almost make her
son or could potentially
make him feel like his relationship with his mom
is not as secure right
my mom is picking this guy over me
my mom stopped calling me honey because he didn't like it
my mom still calls him honey
because at nine you don't know that like
honey has romantic implications potentially
but like it's not being used that way
so don't make it something it isn't
it's just like I like you said
a term of endearment
also I'm just gonna throw this out there
like there's nothing
romantic about honey
no I think it's a neutral
I feel like honey is a neutral for me
I think you call it it's a term of endearment
like you care about that person
they're like hi honey like how's it going
not hey sexy
right that's different
like there are way more
romantic type
terms and we've
already established that this guy's a loser anyways
because he's what
ghosted her basically for the most part
mine's a few texts here and there
for something ridiculous
if this guy was in it for the long haul
he would work it out and he'd be like
hey this is how I feel this is why
and she like they
can have a conversation about it
and then
ultimately like you said
he can have his own pet name
feeling Justin vibes again communicate
yeah and he's not doing it
and you know what I think
any man or woman who dates
a single parent
they need to realize that
that child should be number one
and they need to support
and be there for that relationship
and
I'm sorry but until
you get married
like you I don't know
and even then
like as far as status
goes you're not number one dude
no her son comes first
her son should come first
like you have not earned that honey
title no
a lot of the comments are kind of picking up
what we said like someone was like not the asshole
I would stop calling him that
him being the boyfriend like
he sounds extremely insecure
someone else goes not the asshole
here's the list of people
who have a say on what you call your son
you your son
end of list
end of list
someone else not the asshole
in my experience honey is not reserved for romantic partners
he's being very silly
yeah
an OP response no it's definitely not reserved
for romantic partners like what
I really don't know why this is bothering him so much
like he has never heard a mother
calling her kids honey
people just get goofy
take him to the curb
onto the next one babe
I would agree with that
walk the dogs, school drop off
meetings from 10 to 3
kids to soccer then
no time left for a jog
when everyone else is relying on you
it's easy to put your needs last
better help connects you with a licensed therapist
online so you can show up for yourself
the way you do for others
find more balance with better help
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to get 10% off your first month
that's better h-e-l-p.com
two more quick ones and we're done
so am I the asshole for not punishing my daughter
for ruining her stepfather's briefcase
I 34 male
have a 10 year old daughter Ava
with my ex wife
we were together until she was 7
we each got half custody at that time
but it currently is every other weekend
at her mom's house
she remarried to someone I'll call Rob
who has two sons
who he clearly favors over our daughter
who he seems to hate
I've expressed concern at the way he seems
to feel about her
but have been shut down
last weekend Rob and my ex went on a weekend trip
where they had to drive for 3 plus hours
each way
on the way back Ava was sitting in the
third row of their minivan and got sick
she ended up throwing up
over Rob's
new fancy
briefcase that probably cost about $200
he was mad because they had
given her something to throw up in
and she purposefully
threw up on his briefcase
he said that he didn't think she should be able to
see her horse or take lessons
until it would pay for a new briefcase for him
and after I picked her up
texted me that
her mother boards a horse at the same barn
Ava goes to and so she saw her
and was very upset that I wasn't
quote honoring the agreement
I don't think it was reasonable
and I didn't agree to co-parent with some idiot
who hates my child
so I have no reason to enforce his punishments
her mother says I'm undermining her
authority and being an ass
am I the asshole for not punishing her
hey most 10 year olds
you know when they get sick and they
gotta throw up they think about it
and they purposefully try to like
throw up to fucking ruin your shit
like didn't she know that
the fuck
is wrong with people
these fucking stories
are pissing me off
Morgan my god
I know I picked a really good one for you
why?
these are kind of some like just
we're kind of picking on the dad though
no this is the mom
this is the mom
and her new husband the step dad
the step has an asshole
but this is her the mom to advocate for
your fucking child
are you that insecure in your ability to attract
a good man if this one decides to leave you
because you're gonna pick your kid over him
see I heard this differently
mom I thought this was a dad
the dad's writing
the dad is writing yeah he's trying to
co-parent with the mom and this asshole Rob
the step dad
so the step father
mm-hmm
the mom's new husband
he needs to go fly a kite
he needs to go fly a kite
I was uh thank you for saying that
because I was gonna take it
no he can fuck right off
yes go
grab your toe on a bed 20 times
eat a fucking can of rocks
I don't care you suck
he's a terrible human being like seriously
a 200 dollar briefcase like come
on pretentious asshole
it's probably leather too wipe it off and give it
some saddle soap no I'm pretty sure that
at 200 dollars
it's not real leather
this this guy is
cheap as fuck
200 dollars 200 dollars doesn't buy you
a nice briefcase
I have an Oakley briefcase it's like
$280
for an Oakley
this is why we have separate finances
that was 10 years ago
and I worked at the sunglass
I had a 50% discount
Google Shopping has them
starting decent ones around 300
I see 900
oh yeah it was
those are expensive
475 for genuine leather
coach has one for
yeah no
I'm sorry
kids get sick and the
places I've seen kids throw up
I feel like when kids get sick
for us sometimes we get a
warning a little bit
but for kids I feel like it goes from
0 to 100 and they're just throwing up
yep it just happens
I feel like your kids don't throw up that much do they
I haven't heard or seen anything
I mean they have
they've thrown up on the floor
on the couch or on the bed like whatever it happens
like it just happens
they're not vindictive
poor little girl
yeah poor Ava
I feel bad for her
she has to feel that
parents
it's ridiculous
ride that horse every day of the week
she needs to like
get extra riding time or something
to make up for her jerk of a stepdad
I've been in that situation
too where a stepparent hates you
and you know
it's really uncomfortable too
and I was probably the same age
10 at one point
and it sucks
like
especially at that age
you just want to please like the adults
around you
yeah this is crazy
I've
just
disciplining a kid for throwing up
it's crazy but
I do want to say like
even like tonight
just like from my interactions with you guys
you guys stick to like a very positive
parenting model
and you're very good about disciplining
oh thank you Morgan
that like makes my heart so happy because
I try so hard
sometimes I feel like it's
all yours doesn't work
your patience definitely gets tested
but like you guys do a great job keeping it together
alright nobody's perfect
we screw up
we have moments where we
yell we try not to
we try not to raise our voices
we try not to
instill like the fear
like that's not our take
nobody's perfect
it happens we rebound
what's nice about like
I don't know when you have a good partner
at least for us
we know each other so well
when I
am about to lose my shit
Matt knows it
and so I can tell like okay
go take a walk Amy
he just takes it over
and he like turns on the like the self control
and like he's got it
and when same like we like take turns almost
and like okay
yep I'm gonna take over here
it almost like
gives the other one more patience in a way
it's really weird it's like this little
thing dance that happens
and so that's why like parenting
together for us is
so much easier
and lovelier and nicer
and why I hate hunting season so much
yeah cause you lose your partner
hunting widow
someone does comment though
that I do like
and they say please start documenting
these incidents of disproportionate
punishment slash treatment
if this is a glimpse of the way they treat her constantly
you need to evaluate a custody agreement
living with them
she will grow up to have many emotional issues
speak to your lawyer discuss the situation
check what is needed
to be done for you to gain custody
this situation will only escalate
please please fight for your daughter
I like that
cause we I mean we've talked about it
I think a little bit throughout all of these stories but like
I think the locker room one
and showering especially because like
things like this shape you
and this is
it matters it's like your most
important job in the world is to parent
your kids do some research find out
like you know don't just
do it the way that your parents did it
it's just because your parents did it doesn't make
you right
sorry no I
I completely agree I saw
I shot my computer and I'm smiling I have a shicker
on my face right now because I saw Matt reading the next title
Matt!
can I just I'm just gonna throw this out there like
I have a hard time
like following this
like I like as Morgan's reading it
I like to also read it
I'll print out stories next to it
so like I can see it at the same time
it gives me better comprehension
not totally an auditory learner
the last episode
you miss details
I miss some details
I do too I have noticed like
this is gonna sound like the biggest self-flex
but do you remember when we had to take those like standardized tests
like the ACT or SAT or whatever the heck it was
I think it was ACT in Minnesota here
my reading score was like the best
one like my reading comprehension is
really really good so when I read
these stories I can remember all the details
and like even recall them in like
future episodes then
but when I'm like getting a story read to me
it is very hard to like sit there and you're like
okay I'm trying to stay at the wall and I'm like
focus!
it's really it's difficult sometimes
people roasted me last time
for details I miss
it's okay
I'll open it back up but I do
great we have talked about that too where it's like
I got a wooden spoon on my ass
and that's not something you guys parent with
so
it's just it's great
to see how parenting evolves
but it's also hard like reminding our parents
like I got this one
yeah
gentle parenting yeah what did I call it
positive parenting
positive parenting yeah I'm gonna show you an awesome
take talk later
okay okay
walk the dogs school drop off
meetings from 10 to 3
take kids to soccer then
no time left for a jog
when everyone else is relying on you
it's easy to put your needs last
better help connects you with a licensed
therapist online so you can show up for
yourself the way you do for others
find more balance with better help
visit betterhelp.com today
to get 10% off your first month
that's better H-E-L-P
dot com
so last but not least
alright here we go
am I the asshole for describing
my wife as fat to our young
children yes yes
100% yes you don't have to read
anything else
woo you wouldn't have to
read we could we could just go
like my wife
41 and myself 44 male
both work in education and believe
in properly explaining things to our children
four female five male
we have agreed to never use
quote because I said so reasoning
with them my wife
is unfortunately around three stones
overweight her weight has crept up
gradually since having the kids and I
don't think she has even
been aware of this gain until
I gently raised the subject with her last
year oh she was aware you didn't
have to gently raise this
30 pounds a stone is 10
okay thank you for that okay but she was aware
okay I think a lot of people are very
sensitive to their own bodies yeah
she agreed she needs to remedy
this since then we have worked
together to shift the excess weight
and I'm proud to say she's lost around
10 pounds but she still has a lot
of work to do to reach her target weight
she is best at sticking to her diet if there
is no temptation around so
for Easter I got her flowers instead
of an egg she seemed happy with
this then yesterday my children
were arguing over a missing Easter
egg each accusing the other
of eating it I knew
instantly what had happened
I asked my wife to tell
the children where the egg
which was quite big had recently
gone and she admitted
she had eaten it my son
whose egg it was was very
upset and confused and asked his
mom why she had eaten it
my wife replied that
she would replace it which would be
impossible as it's now after Easter
I pointed out on clearance
it's on clearance it'll be
even cheaper I pointed out
that she has not answered the question
our son had asked he was very upset
and kept asking why she had
stolen his egg I felt
it was unfair she hadn't properly answered
this as he was getting more
distressed my wife completely
threw me under the bus here and said
quote because I wanted a chocolate
but daddy didn't get me an egg
they already know the importance of healthy eating
so I explained that mommy was not
wanting to eat too much sugar
several but why
questions down the line
and I finally said quote because
mommy is fat and she needs to work
on this by not eating sweeties
oh my god
I used the word fat
because my sister is fat and always
says it is not a shameful thing and she
prefers to be described this way
she says to not use the word implies
there's something wrong with being fat
I probably was an asshole to presume
my wife would feel the same way about this
term and I wonder if I should have said
overweight instead
my wife hasn't spoken to me since this
and has seemed very upset I feel
terrible for upsetting her
but I think she was wrong to have taken
our little boys Easter egg without asking
and wrong to have blamed me for her actions
I regret upsetting her
possibly using the wrong terminology
but I had run out of ways to explain to the
children why I hadn't bought my wife an egg
I wouldn't have had to explain
why I hadn't bought an egg if she hadn't
told them this fact or indeed
if she hadn't eaten the egg to begin with
but I do feel I might be an asshole
for upsetting my wife
you are an asshole
how about you know what
I forgot I completely
forgot it's my fault
I thought your mom would really love flowers
more
she really likes flowers
so I thought that she would really like flowers
more than a chocolate egg
or I forgot
what
because he didn't want to be
he didn't want to take any responsibility
he wanted to be on her she was responsible
for eating the egg your mom's fat
she shouldn't have eaten your fucking egg
that's what he wanted to get across
no blame or accountability in this
agreed
what an asshole
she birthed your children
also I feel like 30 pounds
if a stone is 10 pounds
30 pounds like
I feel like I can fluctuate between 20 pounds
like really quickly like 30 pounds
doesn't seem like that much after having two kids
nope
I don't know why you would want to set that
tone or example for your children
saying
that oh mom's fat
overall
regardless of what your sister thinks
that's just ridiculous
you could just say
you know what
I forgot mom ate the egg because she didn't get one
but you know what
we'll get you another egg
who cares if it was
after Easter that you went and got
your son another egg
you can still find the candy
kids don't care
if it's Easter
they love candy
Monday through Sunday people
just ask our son
he's a candy man
I will just say I think there is like
the sister isn't wrong
there are a lot of people that are pushing
for the word fat to kind of like reclaim it
it's no different than like gay
like gay used to be a slur
like in a sense where it's like oh you're so gay
and
it was like even look at Taylor Swift
like I'm a big Swiftie but like
gay has shifted
now and so
I think fat and like
people who are fat are trying to like take back their power
where it's like you're not gonna call me fat
I'm okay with being fat
but that's not something his wife has been okay with
so to use it in this negative context
it's like it's the context that it was used
how look at Lizzo she is amazing
like
she is the queen
and she is somebody who I think
is such a positive example of someone who just
like brings her light
in my opinion
but it's all the context that this
man is bringing
to having gained 30 pounds
after birthing children
and you know if that is her goal
because she wants to be healthy
maybe she doesn't feel as good as she used to
maybe she feels like
you know the extra weight is getting in the way
for her being active and feeling good
then great I love
a really good supportive husband
who is like yeah girl get it
like if this is your goal I want to be supportive of you
but then to turn around
and he was the one that brought it up
she didn't even say babe I want to try eating healthier
he's the one that said
hey you've gained some weight asshole
he body shamed her
and then did it again in front of his
kids
which I think that is huge because then they're going to take that
and they're gonna apply that to themselves
and they're going to say that when I
gain weight that is wrong
and I am less than
when that is the furthest thing from the truth
you are more than and you are enough
just the way that you are
absolutely
absolutely
I agree
I may have some feelings about this
well it's tough
no it's just not something that we even say about ourselves
like on purpose
like I don't know
I could lose some pounds
like I'm not sitting around
saying I fell off the wagon I feel it
or like I try not to say that
in front of my kids right like
instilling healthy body images
you want to instill healthy body images
yes you want to instill
healthy eating habits and be healthy
but guess what
there's candy out in the world
people like candy and
if she wanted to eat an Easter egg
she should be able to eat that
whatever she wants
how many times have you guys stolen your kids
Halloween candy?
we throw it away all the time
what?
we throw it away
it's too much candy
when you have a 5 gallon
bucket full of candy
it would last
it's too much
they would either eat candy all day for a week
it's just too much you just throw it away
they don't miss it
how you see yourself
like that teaches your children
so I make a conscious effort
even if I'm feeling on the inside
I don't like the way I look in this
this stress if my daughter's around
if my son is around
mommy is beautiful
I will never
talk myself down in front of my kids
because I don't want them
to feel again
less than because I felt that as a kid
my mom was always on a diet
she was never
good enough in her own skin
and I don't want my kids to have that
I want them to like
just feel beautiful no matter what the weight
that they're carrying
things happen in life
you slim down, you get heavier
you go through puberty
it's normal for women in their 20s
to gain a little bit of extra weight
that's normal
something I'm hearing about recently
is women having a second puberty
and we
go through another weight gain
in our 20s and all of this
it's the math
and it all makes sense
and also weight is a really complex issue
there's family history
there's your genes you're born with
there's environment that you're raised in
there's your emotional health
there's your cortisol levels
there's your thyroid
there's so many things that contribute
to the weight that you carry
not just a person's willpower
and I feel like that's the stigma
that society has placed
on
on carrying
extra weight than you carried in
your teens or your 20s
it's fault they're overweight
that's not the case
and so I really take this
to heart because I think I struggled
with body image growing up
and that is the worst fear as a parent
for my kids to
struggle with that as well
if I can in any way
shield them and protect them
from the filters, from the
societal beauty standards
we just had magazines when I was growing up
now they have
Instagram
all the social media
I don't know how you combat that
but I guess my strategy will be
that I'm going to be body positive
about myself from day one
and you don't
need to say
whether a body is thick
or thin or small or big
it does not define a person's
worth and so why do you
have to even bring it up
and in fact my kids have brought up
in public even
oh that person is really big
and you know what I say, yes
people are different
we come in all different shapes and sizes
and that's what makes us beautiful
you guys are doing such a good job
you really are
parenting is fucking hard
look at all these stories and what people are going through
this one just
this one was it for me
yeah so there are some edits
okay let's hear them
my wife said she didn't want anything for Easter
I felt uncomfortable with this and so I got her the flowers
I don't care about her appearance
she has a family history of heart disease
including her older brother who died
of a cardiac arrest in his 40s
I worry every day about her health
she watched our 5 year old
accuse his little sister who was crying
of stealing the egg
without admitting she had taken it
only when I asked her
outright did
did she own up
I feel that's really unfair to both kids
which is why I asked
I'm just gonna throw this out there
but maybe be a little selfless
and recognize that
maybe because you've had these conversations
about your wife's weight that she was
ashamed to
appoint to admit it in front of you
or in front of your kids
maybe you should be selfless and just
take the blame again
well
I would have just said I forgot
I don't understand why he feels the need
to bring it up and make her admit it
like why does she have to own up
why are you making her
yeah I'm not buying his
like excuses now he's back peddling
oh it's about her health isn't that what they all say
it's about her health
30 pounds like
granted we don't even know her size in general
but it's like 30 pounds from her
baseline is not like again it's like
people fluctuate that's not
people are human right like even if
she is 30 pounds overweight and she said
yeah she wants to like
work on her weight
it's not something you bring up with your kids
you don't bring it up with the kids and what's one
I don't know like what kind of Easter egg
we're talking about here
they're probably British it's probably an amazing little
Cadbury egg
and they're good
I get why she wanted one
but also I don't know
500 calories
the Cadbury's aren't that big
but they do also like I'm thinking about the big
chocolate bunnies we have here maybe it's a big egg
but I think here's the thing like
kids are also easily
like changed
like Emmett today was having a meltdown
I go Emmett do you want the present
did you brought you instantly stops crying
yeah they're upset yeah they're crying
but can't you kind of like
divert them and be like mommy just wanted a taste
I'm so sorry
I'll get you a new egg
you know how you handle the situation
they follow your lead
he didn't have to do it
he's back peddling he's in the wrong
well it's like but why but why
we promised our kids we would always
tell them the truth when they asked us
you can do I mean
that I have that value also
but
like the truth
also can be I thought your mom
would want flowers more that is also
the truth yeah
he didn't have to
throw her under the bus and like
almost embarrass her I think that's what
he was trying to be right and yeah
we're kind of rub it in her face
easy asshole yeah
and everyone everyone agreed
you're the asshole a massive
massive asshole
do
does OP ever respond do OP's ever
respond once they're called out I've
yeah I've read a couple like the swim
swimming dad was like there's probably 40
or 50 comments from him or do they change
their tune and change their mind they're like oh
geez thanks internet sometimes
or do they double down but not usually
there is
another comment though that people just need to learn
but there is a comment here that's interesting
they go why is everyone excusing
the wife's behavior she literally
stole from her own child
let her other child take the blame for it
until OP came in there
until OP came in there
and then tried to throw him under the bus
she's a grown adult and pathetic
yeah and that got
that got 11,000 upvotes
there are some terrible people in this world
rainbow underscore maker
maker m a
k 3 r
not making rainbows
bra
11,000 people
seriously
someone else goes out under their
comment I'm with you letting her kids
blame each other and fight over something she
did was an absolute asshole
move which I get I get like
yeah okay your kids going at it
but still the bigger issue
here is the way the dad
acted in all of this and calling your wife fat
and just you don't
have to be right and
are you giving your kids license to call
other people fat like yes like
way to go for his sister
for embracing that terminology
but in this point in our culture
it's not widely accepted
in society I would be very offended
if an 11 year old
called me fat I would be very offended
if I would cry I would
yeah I would go home and cry
it's not the social standard like way
for way to go for his sister for trying
to push those social norms
but it's not socially accepted
yeah I'm not there yet
for myself I don't think rainbow maker
or the other person here that's agreeing
like has really any
parenting experience
period have you
ever been in a household maybe it's
850 square feet you got two adults
two kids two dogs things are
crazy kids are fighting you're not listening
you don't know what's going on you have one adult taking care
of a situation shit's going to
cry and then it all comes down and you're like hey
just both the kids are screaming
what happened to the egg hey wife
like admit it
like who knows
what the situation was leading up to that
regardless as an adult
you learn to handle situations
and de-escalate
especially with 5 and
7 year olds or 5 and 6 year olds in this case
like 5 and 4
like de-escalate the situation
figure it out you don't need to bring the other
person down she's clearly feeling
ashamed or she doesn't want to admit it if she's
involved in the conversation of what's happening
so
all you people that are agreeing
with the asshole man
you can go pound sand and
oh god you're too kind
I thought this was like your redemption to her like
you're supposed to not cause fights
I'm just saying like it's ridiculous
people need to have compassion
and empathy for other people and like
especially when it's your spouse like
you're grown up and
I don't know you just don't treat people like that
no you shouldn't fat shame your partner
positive intent
this feels like he's
and this is what's annoying I think to
1000%
don't like shame your partner
don't belittle your partner you're supposed to be on the same team
and this almost feels like he's fat shaming her in the moment
like this feels like a
like a subtle dig to fat shame her
and to almost like
embarrass her
and to keep on her diet and her healthy eating
like this feels like
or to induce a eating disorder
it just feels wrong
feels wrong
no no no that's it we're two hours deep
two hours deep so
that's all I got for you guys in parenting
well thank you for having us Maureen
I'm so proud of you
like you have like done so much
and come so far
and I'm just like really really proud of you
all thanks to my little family
but thank you guys for coming on
yeah thanks for having us
when are we gonna release the Married in the Midwest
podcast
to be deterred
I don't think that the viewers want to hear more from us
I don't know
let the viewers decide
you're not everyone's cup of tea potentially
but you're some people
I just think you know I just got off on the wrong foot
with that last episode
I have positive intent people
like I mean everything
I just I took a take I went with it
maybe you know
I took a hard edge
the stripper stories get the best of us sometimes
it's hard I can be soft
I can reverse
the next theme I have you on
I'm gonna call it vulnerable
and we're gonna see how vulnerable you can get
let's do it
people are gonna be calling you shaman
ultra you're just so soft
never
he's like I don't know
until next time guys bye
when everyone else is relying on you
it's easy to put your needs last
better help connects you with a licensed therapist online
so you can show up for yourself
the way you do for others
find more balance with better help
visit BetterHelp.com today
to get 10% off your first month
that's BetterHELP.com
the thought of my sons growing up without me
inspired me to quit smoking
I talked to my doctors and then I threw away
all my cigarettes, ashtrays, and lighters
I started exercising
instead of smoking
staying away from alcohol when I was first quitting
was key
I kept on trying, learned something each time
do whatever it takes
no matter how many times it takes
we did it, so can you
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