to reclaim DD's Sylvanian Families?

[igetmorelovefromthecat]

I live with my 2 DD's and my friend, her DD and her boyfriend (who isn't supposed to live here but stays here all the time). Had a few issues with them lately with things like whenever I go away (every other weekend usually), my bedroom is used as a spare room for their friends and they never bother changing the sheets, I have come home 3 times now to find that they have been smoking in the house, which is strictly against the rules of the tenancy and my personal rules as I don't want me or my kids to have to live in a house that stinks of smoke. The list goes on and on.

But this thread is about something that happened yesterday. My housemate's DD was off to her dad's house, when my DD asked me what had happened to a few bits of Sylvanian family stuff which was by the back door and I had moved to stop DD2 (21 months) from trashing it. I asked why she wanted it and she said my housemate's DD was taking it to her dad's. After some questioning it turns out that over the last few weeks ALL of DD1's Sylvanian Families stuff has been given to my housemate's DD and slowly but surely it has been making its way down the road to her dad's house (she stays at her dad's a lot more than she stays here). I pointed out that whilst it was very kind of my DD to give her stuff to her friend, she should have checked with me first, and it was not OK for housemate's DD to have it as I wanted to keep it for DD2, so can it all come back please. At which point housemate's DD threw herself on the floor in a hysterical heap, and chucked the Sylvanian stuff in her hand on the carpet. I got an evil look from my housemate, and then they left. I came back into the hallway a minute later to realise that my housemate's DD had picked up the bits she had chucked and taken them with her!! To add to her collection at her dad's.

All in all there's at least £300 worth of stuff that DD has given away, including big houses, beauty salon etc, which my housemate would have been fully aware that was being taken down the road, and no-one thought to check with me that it was OK. As a parent if my DD was given something by a friend the first thing I would want to know is 'is it ok with their mum and/or dad?'. But now my housemate is fully in a strop with me about all this and I am being made to feel like a right bitch for wanting it back. Am I?

Nope but it may be easier to go down the road and speak to the dad about it and explain that it wasn't your dd1s to give away as you have a dd2 so you can go and collect it there and then.

Yeah you're right - may be easier than waiting for my housemate to return it. Though the dad has just been on the phone, didn't hear a lot of the conversation but as far as I can tell it was about Sylvanian Families and no doubt how devastated their DD is about having to give it all back, so I would imagine he thinks I am BU too.

YANBU.... I'd be fuming! It does sound like a bit of a nightmare in terms of living arrangements. Hope it sorts itself out.

It doesn't matter that the dd is devastdated, anyhow she can actually play with it at your house anyway!!

Phew glad I'm not, was beginning to wonder! Yes RandomMess that's the first thing I said too, she is welcome to have it set up here to play with. But no that wasn't good enough.

Well tough, they can buy her some to keep at her dad's for birthday/Christmas

Tell them they either give it back or pay you the £300 for it, I imagine it will come back pretty fast then. Sounds like it might be time for you to find a new housemate as well.

Well RandomMess, the first thing my housemate did when she came home after dropping her DD off was go online and spend £40 on Sylvanian stuff from the Entertainer (which she cannot afford to do as she is on JSA and owes me over £500 as it is). As well as saying that she would take her DD into town after school today and buy her some more bit to go with it too. This happens every time my DD has something that her DD doesn't, e.g. last week my DD got a new Moshi t-shirt that my mum bought for her, housmate's DD immediately had a right benny about it and told my dd that she was only allowed to wear the t-shirt in bed as otherwise it wasn't fair. I told her to bugger off, in a child-friendly way, and my DD could wear her t-shirt whenever she chose. Housemate's reaction was to say that she would get her DD one the same so it's fair. Same yesterday when I bought DD some new Moshi felt tips in town (she did need some new pens badly), as soon as housemate's DD clocked them her face was like thunder and before she said anything my housemate quickly said 'I'll get you some the same'. Is it me or is my housemate completely bonkers?

Yes Strawberry Penguin I am moving out in less than 3 months (counting the hours!).

Your housemate does sound a bit bonkers conkers.
I would be addressing the smoking friends, non changed sheets and general piss taking too.

Yes your house mate is completely bonkers and is storing up a great deal of trouble for herself if she lets her dd think she can have anything she screams for.

can you do anything about your living arrangements? This doesn't sound like a very good set up

Bonkers conkers, what a great phrase!

Believe me, these issues have been addressed, yet the piss taking just seems to carry on.

They are moving out at the end of June and I am moving out in July rubs hands with glee

Hope you get your £500 back!!!!

Sounds like you'd better shake a leg if you want your £300 worth of Sylvanian Families stuff back. You need to start pushing now, as otherwise they'll stall until you've moved and at that point you might as well kiss it all goodbye.

Go and see the Dad, hopefully he will appreciate that this child shouldn't have taken the stuff in the first place. When you get it back lock it in a big crate until you move out. Ask for your £500 NOW.

Can you lock your room? Or maybe add a simple lock so they can't use your room?

I would strip the bed before you go away and hide your spare bedding, that will put them off using your bed!

Any way you can find a new housemate? Your current one sounds a bit of a cock.

Well the good news is that the Sylvanian Families have returned. My housemate went to get them from her ex's house earlier and I was a bit gobsmacked when I saw it all in one place - one huge cardboard box, one bin liner and 2 carrier bags!! How on earth she thought it was OK to carry all this down the road bit by bit without checking with me first I am not sure.

Nope can't lock my room as it would involve putting a bolt on the door which would no doubt mean that loads of money would be taken off my deposit (yes the £1450 deposit is all my money, not hers). But yes have thought about taking all the sheets off my bed before I go away, as well as taking my mattress off the bed and standing it against the wall, which might make them get the hint. I'm really icky about people sleeping in my bed, especially if I don't know them, but I have made it super clear now that I am not OK with it so hopefully it won't happen again.

No point in getting a new housemate as the tenancy is up soon and we are all moving on anyway.