To wrap a present up and pretend its from XP

[OnlyWantsOne]

Dd is 6, her dad was THREE hours late picking her up last time he had her (last weekend) he's not seeing her again til mid Jan, but despite this - didn't give her any thing for Christmas.

I didn't think dd was too bothered but tonight she just burst into tears at bed time because "daddy doesn't like her" when I said "don't be daft he loves you!!" She said he doesn't, he loves * step siblings because he bought them lots of presents which were under the tree at his house but not for her.

She's very sad.

Shall I wrap some thing small and put it on our door or some thing?

He's such a douche.

[FairyHanny]

What an utter C. U. N. T. It breaks my heart that the poor little mite has to learn such a huge life lesson at such a young age about a person who ought to be such an important person in her life and one of the only two people in the world who will are supposed to love her unconditionally for life, regardless.

And you can just see it happening to the other kids too, given time. (presuming that they are his?)

Verdict: CUNT of the highest order.

(Chin up OP, thinking of you both. )

[OnlyWantsOne]

well ive been very lapse in documenting stuff, but all contact between him and I is via email or text so its all doctumented of sorts.

what do I do to protect myself and her for when he drags me back to court the next time he spits his dummy which he threatens me with all the time

[peaceandlovebunny]

just keep calm and keep your records, including of the distress he causes your daughter by his behaviour.

give her lots of love. she'll grow out of needing him in time. mine did.

and if you'd like a little present to arrive by post, pm me a name and address.

[Sunnywithshowers]

I'm so sorry - your poor DD. I remember coming home from my dad's at 10 and crying because he didn't love me. :(

If it's any consolation at all, as an adult he and I have a distant relationship while my mum and I are pretty close.

Big hugs xxx

[MrsTerrysChocolateOrange]

It won't be long until she can make her own mind up about all this stuff. It is truly heart-breaking now but it will get better for her. She has people who love her dearly and that is the thing that she needs right now not fake presents from her 'D'F.

[Emmielu]

Noo don't cover his arse. He's a grown man if he's capable of buying for his new family he can buy for his daughter. No excuse at all. Put your foot down on him.

[MrsFlibble]

My daughter sees little of her dad, and i spoke to my hairdresser about how i felt sorry for her because of this.

She told me that i shouldnt feel sorry for her, because she had a great mum, who loves her and a great family.

So OP, tell your DD that you cant speak for her father, but you love her very much and she is a cherished child, and that you will always be around.4

Giving her the reassurance should help build her confidence.

[ssaw2012]

My sister bought presents meant to be from her x on a few occasions when her daughter was little. It happened that my niece would remind her mum about the nice expensive presents making him superior because of that. Eventually my sister had to tell her daughter the truth. She wanted to buy the presents because she felt sorry for her daughter but later it turned against her.

[McNewPants2013]

I would seek advice about the penalty attached, to me it seems like he has broken his own court order by turning up late

[ssaw2012]

I think you could lie that her father is not usually good at buying presents. He always relies on others. I am almost sure those presents under the tree were bought by the kids' mum and grand parents.
Poor DD.

[mathanxiety]

OnlyWants -- I have been dragged back to court so many times I have now lost count. My tactic is to write such detailed responses to his motions of contempt that we all get completely bogged down in front of the judge. When we exchange emails (our only contact when arranging details of the DCs' lives that are different from the parenting agreement) I make sure mine are repeatable in polite company and very clear and can be printed off and used as exhibits alongside his tirades to me when I file a response with the court. I dress nicely and represent myself as I would go broke hiring a solicitor. So far the judge assigned to us has batted him away. I have an idea that if I got a solicitor and went after him more aggressively to stop bringing me back to the court and abide by the mediation provision in our agreement I would be able to put an end to it.

Don't be afraid of being dragged back to court. It is unjust and extremely frustrating that an abusive man can use the courts against a former partner essentially to continue the abuse, but you can use the courts too, argue your case, and count on a modicum of good sense and justice from the judge. Chin up and try to be brave about it. Trust that somewhere there is a judge who will see through your ex's BS and tell him off. Does your agreement have a provision for mediation instead of the prospect of wasting the judge's time every time he throws a tantrum? Not that it's foolproof, but it's something you could use to give the judge a chance to bat the ex away.

[mathanxiety]

Keep detailed records of times, records of all communication, accounts of missing activities and reports from your DD of second class treatment compared to step family.

[OnlyWantsOne]

He probably will end up getting her a present & giving it to her when he sees her next weekend and DD will be chuffed and instantly forget how crap he made her feel this week. That's normal operation for him. And he twists things onto me which is double shit.


Like phoning me 10 mins before he is meant to return her (I ignore call as I was driving to the mutual place we meet to do hand over - plus he should have left long before me) and he leaves me a message telling me how dd doesn't want to come home.

So when he does finally turn up at meeting point dd is beside herself - because mummy wouldn't let her stay at dads house horrid mummy but ExP KNOWS what the contact times are, and should prepare her for time to come back etc - dd is old enough to know that when an adult says "we are leaving in 10 minutes" etc but he manipulated it so I was the bad guy.

We won't mention him telling her that her gran had died on Christmas Eve. He did such a crap job of explaining to her about her being dead (she died in the movemer but he chose to tell her December 24th) that dd still thought she was Alive until I sat and explained death to her.



Oh and let's not mention him leaving her alone with a 13 year old while he took his GF and her kids to the ZOO!!

[peaceandlovebunny]

i hope you've logged all the above, with dates and times, and names eg of the 13 year old.

don't worry. she'll see through him eventually.

[CaptChaos]

Log everything, late pick ups, failing to attend classes and events, failing to get Christmas presents, emails, calls, everything. Record all calls with him on your mobile or answerphone.

Keep a diary of what dd has said regarding her visits. Make it clinical, no room for emotion here.

You can only start from today's episode, as what has happened up til now will be seen as being coloured with hindsight.

When he threatens to take you to court over some rubbish, smile sweetly and say 'fine' and leave it at that.

You are doing what is best for your DD. Don't buy presents for her, don't cover his shitty behaviour, but also don't embellish it to your DD.

Good luck with it all, he sounds like an utter git.

[OnlyWantsOne]

But the judge / Cafcass etc don't see through it do they?

They haven't in my experience.

I have got things logged - but he does twisting stuff, like acuse me of things via text (like lying dd is poorly) or cancelling contact because he "want to save your little ones from catching the sick bug" then I find he's gone away for the weekend instead but he still looks like a great guy.

[RedHelenB]

I would say love doesn't equal presents. And presents don't equal love. Just tell dd how much YOU love her, how special she is to you & she will forget.

[Alligatorpie]

That is is sad, your poor dd.

I agree you should send him this link. What a shit. What kind of person doesn't take his dd to the zoo, but takes other children?

Please don't wrap up a present from him. Your dd needs to learn the truth about him, however painful that may be for her.

[DonderandBlitzen]

I would probably make her feel better by saying that the presents under the tree were bought by the girlfriend, just like you bought her lots of presents. Or did they actually say they were from her dad? I would tell him exactly what your daughter said though. Surely he will buy her a present then. For future xmases and b'days I would remind him in advance of how upset she was in the hope he would remember in future.

[QueenBOObread]

Could you buy her a present, and tell her that it is from Father Christmas who heard that she was sad but because she is such an amazing little girl, he made another toy especially for her?

Might cheer her up a bit?

[OnlyWantsOne]

Queenboo that's a lovely idea :) think I will do that today ...

As some one said up thread ^ all my communication is businesslike & functional. Also very emotionally detached and I would be very happy to have it put in front of a judge. Unlike his ranting emails I get at 2am all in caps lock.

[Anniegetyourgun]

It would be inappropriate to explain to a 6-year-old that Daddy only buys presents for his gf's offspring to impress gf (and that's the polite version), so don't; but if he has actually bought any, that'll be why. Not because he loves them better than his own DD, who he seems to regard in the light of a toy he can pick up and play with and then stuff back in a cupboard. When he gets bored, or the gf sees through him, he'll be breezing in and playing Superdad to yet another brood before you can say "happy ready-made families", betcha.

[OnlyWantsOne]

Oh he already has kids with the OW his girlfriend.