Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Already fallen out over new school run!

85 replies

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 20:32

This may be complicated so I apologise if it doesn't make sense.

So Ds 2 has just started secondary. The school is local but still a car journey away, I work 3 days a week and also have Ds 3 to get to primary school and dd to nursery. It's hectic and involves a lot of back and forth journeys, getting stuck in traffic and me nearly always arriving a few minutes late to work.

There is one other boy going to this school who lives in our area and Ds 2 is good friends with him. I approached this boys mum about a school run. I asked if she could do 3 days and I do 2. As I thought this felt slightly unfair to her I offered to also take her younger son to his school so she had no school run to do for 2 days.

Last week went fine. This week, the older boys have wanted to start after school clubs. There was football today and it was my turn to do the run so I spoke to the mum this morning and said obviously I would be picking the older boys up at 4.30 but when the timings are different it would be difficult to pick her younger son up at 3.15 from his school. This would mean 2 separate trips in the afternoon. She said she was working. She had not considered the fact that her younger Ds finished a lot earlier. So I said if it was difficult today I would help but she said no she would do it.

I can be a bit rubbish at saying no to things like this normally and was trying hard to be fair but assertive. I would not dream of asking her to go out of her way to collect my little ones so I felt quite strongly that going out of my way to collect her younger son at a much earlier time was unreasonable.

I worried all morning that I had let her down so texted her lunchtime to remind her that if she was struggling I would help out today.
Heard nothing until 4.20pm as I am loading the little ones up to go and collect the older boys. She sent me a text saying she had had to leave work early to get her younger son and ' it's great to have friends, isn't it?'.

I saw and replied to this text outside the secondary school, waiting for the older boys. I told her I thought she was being a bit unfair and she had assumed that I would always go out twice to collect all the boys when after school clubs occur. She clearly thinks I am being unfair. Pointless texting back and forth starts up. And I admit to feeling I had to fight my corner as her text messages were unbelievably patronising and passive aggressive.

After 20 mins of waiting for the boys, I went to check if they were still in school ( my Ds is known for chatting away with his mates in the changing rooms!) But they had left already. I drove around looking for another 15 mins then called this mum. She didn't answer my calls or text messages. Then I tried her home phone and her older Ds answered Shock. She had gone and picked them up herself and hadn't bothered to tell me. By this time I was on the verge of tears and furious. I drove home and only then did she text me saying she had picked them up, my Ds was now home and she would speak to me when I had calmed down. Angry

I have told her to leave the school run. It will be tricky but I will manage on my own anyway. Just seems a shame when we were both benefiting. But I don't like confrontation and it has left me feeling awful and doubting myself. Was I unreasonable? I hate to take the piss out of people and consciously tried not to do this with this mum. But apparently I can now go and 'find some other mug'

If you are still with me, you deserve a medal. And please don't flame me. It's a sign of my upset state of mind that I am even brave enough to post this - she knows I like MN and if she reads this, it will be pretty bloody obvious!

OP posts:
LemonBreeland · 11/09/2014 21:15

Is there not a bus your elder DS can get?

It does sound like she really doesn't get the helping each other out.

WorraLiberty · 11/09/2014 21:18

You want to drive your DS to his local school for an entire term because he's a bit nervous?

Everyone's nervous starting secondary school (my DS started last week).

Just tell the two boys to walk to school together. They'll soon get used to it.

You can do too much for kids sometimes and it does nothing to help their independence.

DoNotLookDown · 11/09/2014 21:19

Veteran school run mum here. Honestly, I think yabu not picking her soon up just because yours had a club. She was out of order picking your din up without letting you know though.

School run sharing only works if you do the pick UPS ups the

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 21:23

scholes I knew I needed this run more than she did, this is why I offered to also collect her younger son to balance things up. We discussed how this could work as they usually finish at the same time. But she would have been taking hers everyday otherwise so she was also gaining something.

I guess I fucked up by not mentioning the after school clubs during original discussions. We were trying to take things as they come. But I am clearly a bit naive. Even so, it has ended up horribly. I did not expect that.

I am unreasonable ( a bitGrin) but she is a mega bitch to put the fear of god into me.

I am tempted to text and apologise but also think it's not worth it. She is a bit dramatic and gets huffy a lot. I will walk away.

Thank you for you honest opinions. I feel a bit of twat for thinking this could work. And I am far too knackered and stressed with my own little angels to be going out of my way for someone else's child. I've now had some Wine so just need to let it go.Flowers

OP posts:
YakInAMac · 11/09/2014 21:24

Maybe she thought that as she had to leave work to collect her younger one and was on the road she might as well go and get all of them!

But as you say, v passive aggressive.

3littlefrogs · 11/09/2014 21:25

She is mad.
Don't get involved with her.
You will have to come up with another solution - maybe an after school club for your younger child, or a paid childminder to do pick ups.

These things only work between really close friends, relatives or paid helpers.

Faez · 11/09/2014 21:25

Couldn't you have just picked up her younger one and she collected the older ones once she'd finished work? Am I being dim?

Faez · 11/09/2014 21:29

sorry I took too long to respond, agree she's a a bit bonkers

MintyChops · 11/09/2014 21:30

She is a nasty woman for frightening you by collecting your DS without telling you, knowing you were on your way to do it. Yes, you were a bit shonky to try to change arrangements but she is such a cow for doing that.

3littlefrogs · 11/09/2014 21:33

Most kids get the bus once they start secondary school.
Is there some reason your Ds can't get home by public transport?

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 21:34

The distance to school thing is not me being precious, honestly worra.
Ds is a bit nervous but that's because it's only him and this other boy going to this school from our area. It is quite far, he's only just 11. But I know that within weeks he will be wanting more independence. Me and the other mum just wanted them all settled and then the plan was that the boys would cycle together eventually.

But I accept that I should of spoken to her about this problem before. God I wish I'd stayed away from this one!

OP posts:
Applelicious · 11/09/2014 21:36

I wonder if as you were clearly falling out by text, she felt she should go and pick her own DS up. She got there and realised it would be 'a bit off' to leave your DS there on his own so took him home too. I wonder if she didn't intentionally try to scare you. Should have rang you though.

DancingDinosaur · 11/09/2014 21:36

I'd just leave it. It sounds messy, but she shouldn't have picked up your son without saying.

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 21:39

faez I thought the same thing but too fucking late Grin. That actually would have worked. I am not myself at the moment. In addition to getting Ds 2 and 3 to their new schools, ds1 has started college and all the uniform buying, inductions, enrolments etc has completely fried my brain.

OP posts:
DeWee · 11/09/2014 21:41

I'd have been peeved with you too.

I don't particularly mind sharing runs, but wouldn't want to do it every day. If you'd approached me I'd have started off feeling a bit put out that you seemed to think that you doing 2 days me doing 3 was a fair arrangement, particularly if I didn't need you doing the two days.
If I'd spoken to you first about worrying about them going on their own or something first, but if I hadn't I wouldn't really have been keen, but I might well have agreed to help you out, but with a slight sinking heart.

You then say to even it out you'll do the 2 days picking up the younger one. I'd probably have agreed happily to that, and not having to do any run on the 2 days would make me feel better about doing the three for you.

But then on the day when I've made arrangements to do something that makes use of the extra 20 minutes or so you pull out.

Well, I'd be thinking: This person's obviously going to be taking the micky about the arrangements. here am I having agreed to do over half the trips because they need it and she pulls out at this stage because her side of the agreement isn't convenient. I'd be wondering how often I was going to be left at the last minute picking up the pieces.

But from my point of view, I would think it very rude to approach someone to ask to share lifts when I needed it and they didn't, and I couldn't do half or more of the lifts really.

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 21:41

And just to clarify, there are no buses to his school, the public transport from my village is disgraceful.

OP posts:
AliceLidl · 11/09/2014 21:46

I'm still not clear on what you would have been expected to do with your younger boy if she was at work if you had collected him.

AliceLidl · 11/09/2014 21:47

Sorry, not with your younger boy, with her younger boy.

Forgossake · 11/09/2014 21:51

I don't think she had considered it at all. Or she just assumed I would look after him until she got back.
I wanted this run to be equal and fair. I should have discussed this in more detail with her. I hate taking liberties. And this morning was not the ideal time to discuss this. I am in the wrong there. But I am picking her son up to save her going anywhere for 2 days a week. She is just picking up my ds2. Not my other children. So I think the run was reasonable.

OP posts:
WooWooOwl · 11/09/2014 21:56

I thought that picking her youngest Ds up would help her out, she has 2 days without a school run.

How was it ever going to help her and give her two days without a school run when you decide to drop out of sticking to the arrangement that you initiated at the very last minute?

I knew I needed this run more than she did, this is why I offered to also collect her younger son to balance things up.

Obviously, that's why you should have stuck to what you said!

I am tempted to text and apologise but also think it's not worth it. She is a bit dramatic and gets huffy a lot. I will walk away.

If you're tempted to apologise then you must be able to see that you were in the wrong. Most decent people apologise for their wrongdoings because it's the right thing to do and because their integrity isn't dependant on the behaviour of other people.

Honestly, the more you post, the worse you sound, and I am understanding better why this woman was annoyed with you and why she felt the need to collect her own son from school this afternoon.

petalunicorn · 11/09/2014 22:00

I'm with DeWee, she puts it perfectly. You said you'd get both boys and you didn't. You changed your mind at the last minute. She would say you are flighty!

Ilovenicesoap · 11/09/2014 22:01

Im not surprised she is peed off .She does 3 days,you do 2 and then you decide you arent doing it on the second week because of the afterschool club.
Really? You think you are in the right here Confused

petalunicorn · 11/09/2014 22:02

People asking about childcare - she picks younger one up at 3.20, picks big ones up 4.30, after the travelling he's going to be in her house about 40 mins - is that really a big deal? It should have been the price you are paying to get your school run done for you 3 days out of 5.

basgetti · 11/09/2014 22:04

Had she already done her 3 runs this week when you decided not to fulfil your end of the agreement? I assume she must have done since it's already Thursday. I can understand why she is annoyed.

maddening · 11/09/2014 22:11

Actually you did agree to pick her little one up, she has committed to work that extra time this allowed her and now she has to let her employer down.

Both to blame as you should have discussed both what happens in after school activities, what happens when you take hols or aren't available - you have to give each other notice when poss as work and lives are arranged around it. As you know it isn't nice to have to arrive late and ask your employer for flexibility for childcare - I constantly do extra hours so I have goodwill on my side when I need flexibility, it isn't nice to have to apologise for lateness regularly or ask to go early as your childcare has let you down or even a long lunch and work time back so you can go to sports day etc so you have put her in this position by regaling in her eyes against what you agreed. But neither of you thought it through.

Swipe left for the next trending thread