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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Who is wrong?!!

64 replies

Tryingtostayyoung · 23/11/2016 16:39

Not sure if IABU and insensitive or if DH is being a massive cock.
Background- I've been a SAHM since DD was born, 4years ago, since then I have done everything around the house apart from a few things that DH did and genuinely didn't mind this. We were both happy with this arrangement. He's a very hands on dad and she is very much both of our responsibility when we are both here AND he's amazing with diy, if everything needs repairing he will do it without any nagging and will give up his entire weekend to do things for us round the house.
DD starts school next September and is now in nursery quite abit in preparation and because she loves it, I have been working part time around her hours while she is there and we came to an arrangement with DH where he was going to do more around the house because I was also working abit, this has been fine so far, no problems.
The place where I work has asked me if I would like to do more hours which I talked over with DH and we decided that I should do it but it came with agreement that he would do a few more things to help than we originally agreed. Everyone was happy.
This weekend we had a huuuuuge leak in our house, the living room was ruined. Flooring has had to come up, furniture and wallpaper ruined and just aggravation since we've literally only just finished the work in there, DH was understandably upset and devastated after all his hard work renovating it. He took yesterday and Monday off work to start sorting it out and Tuesday was my log day at work (finished at 4). I called him on the way home and he admitted he had done hardly anything to repair the damage as he was exhausted from Sunday night (he was up until 4:00 trying to stop the water coming in etc) fair enough, he deserves a day to himself with DD. I come home and the house was a bomb site, clothes everywhere, washing up from breakfast, DD not bathed, washing dry but not put away, wrappers and food boxes all over the kitchen, he obviously had walked in the house after the rain and hadn't bothered to give the carpet a hoover. I was upset, he never ever comes home to our house like that, how often is it ever going to happen that he's home and I'm at work, I felt he could have made an effort to just do something. So I come in, clear up abit, wash up and tell him I'm hurt, he's uncharacteristically not bothered. He then didn't even offer to make me dinner, bath DD or anything. Later on I confronted him and told him I was so upset that the first week I did these longer hours he was actually at home and could have contributed at home a lot more and that he hadn't even offered to put some dinner on for me or DD (he didn't have dinner). He said he was tired, stressed and upset about everything and had just wanted to relax for the day which would have been fine for me if he had then apologised and said sorry I was a dick actually BUT he didn't, he thinks that he's 100% right to have literally not helped out at all.

OP posts:
Lewwat · 23/11/2016 17:25

Whoa wellerr hit a nerve?!

Cucumber5 · 23/11/2016 17:28

I think as a one off this is fine. If he'd been ill, he wouldn't have done anything Monday. As it was he was up till 4am dealing with a leek Sunday night. As long as he pulls his weight the rest of the week to sort out the backlog.

bakewelltarty · 23/11/2016 17:31

I honestly think I have read a different post to some of the rest of you.

It sounds very much to me as if this man does a lot of DIY, the op made reference to the living room just being decorated. It also sounds like he works full time and does his fair share around the house and with the child.

They had a major leak that he was up till 4 am stopping. That's hard, physical work. Not comparable in my book to being up in the night with a baby and believe me my children didn't sleep until they were 5.

I think yabu in the circumstances. He was absolutely knackered and demoralised after seeing all his hard work ruined. Cut him some slack. I think you have got yourself more worked up over working longer hours and still wanting the house pristine.

littlesallyracket · 23/11/2016 17:32

So basically there's been one occasion where an otherwise perfectly decent bloke was a bit thoughtless. I'm sure it was annoying, but jeez, it's really nothing to dwell on. Just agree to disagree and move on.

I'd also add that when you say you would never let him come home to a mess - is that a standard he has set, or is it actually only you who thinks a spotless house is important? Maybe he can't see the problem because he's not actually that bothered by a bit of untidiness once in a blue moon. If he did come home to a messy house one day after you'd been up until 4am dealing with a disaster, would he have a go at you? I think that's what makes the difference here.

HummusForBreakfast · 23/11/2016 17:36

I think posters should read the OP more carefully.
The leak happened at the weekend (I assume Sunday to Monday night?) so the 4.00am was 4.00 am on Monday.
Fair enough that he rested on the Monday but the Tuesday? After a full night of sleep?

I would also want to know about the 'childcare' on Tuesday. I assume that, as it is a day when the OP is working, their dd goes the school/afterschool club until the OP can pick her up.
I'm pretty sure too that the DH wouldn't have wanted a child in the way whilst you are sorting a leak. It's enough of a mess already wo having a child touching stuff, wanting to go out/have a snack etc...
So I would suspect that the childcare was him to looking after the dd before and after school.
During all that time, he had plenty of time to do some work to sort the living room out.
Instead, I assume that it will be the OP sorting it out with the DC around leaving her doing the boring things of tidying up whilst he will then go into full 'I will sort it out and redo the decorating/DIY etc' that he is happy to do. And I'm pretty sure she is also supposed to be very thankful for that seen the work that he has done!

HummusForBreakfast · 23/11/2016 17:37

Having said that, I'm not sure whether it's a case of being thoughtless once or if it is a premise of things to come.
It could be either TBH.

NavyandWhite · 23/11/2016 17:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

bakewelltarty · 23/11/2016 17:38

Hummus - I did read the posit carefully. At no time did the op say he did nothing on Monday. She only mentions Tuesday. I took that to mean that he was still clearing the mess up on Monday but took Tuesday to 'chill' after all his hard work.

bakewelltarty · 23/11/2016 17:43

Also - I don't see that she does 'more' because she works part time and does more housework. He works full time and does all the DIY (which seems like a lot more than changing the occasional plug) does some housework and is good with the DD. Op admits it has never been a problem before this incident.

ZoFloMoFo · 23/11/2016 17:44

he deserves a day to himself with DD

So he's been up till 4am, then spent the day with his DD?

I think as a one off I'd let this go this time but tbh I'd have at least expected dishes cleared away and something of an attempt at a quick tidy round. Food wrappers left out is pure fucking lazy, if you're making a sandwich it takes seconds to put the cheese wrapper (or whatever it was) in the bin and I must admit I'd be fuming at that.

HummusForBreakfast · 23/11/2016 17:44

Fair enough.
That's not how I read it.
I'm wondering if the OP was at home on Monday and if she helped with the cleaning.

bakewelltarty · 23/11/2016 17:46

Yes she probably probably did. Good for her.

Tryingtostayyoung · 23/11/2016 17:53

Sorry maybe I should be abit clearer about the timeframe...
The leak started Sunday evening all the way through till Monday morning and he didn't get to bed till 4:00. He was trying to stop it/save as much furniture and florring as possible. DD went to nursery Monday morning until 11:45 i then picked her up and came home, he was up and beginning to try and fix the leak when I left to take her to school that day (8:10) and spent the day on and off trying to fix it and salvage out flooring.
Tuesday I took her to nursery then went to work he was still in bed when I left, he picked her up at 11:40 and had her for the day whilst I worked (normally my mum would do this but he had obviously by this point decided to take it easy so arranges with my mum that he would pick her up)
TBH I don't really agree with the bashing that he just thinks it's women's work etc etc I just thought it was really lazy as normally he does his fair share of things for example on the weekend when we are both home we share cooking, granted it isn't normally the washing up or washing etc but then I never iron anything, he irons all our clothes. We both have our things we hate doing.

The poster who asked if he was the one that was bothered about a messy house or was it me and would he be annoyed if he came home to that. 100% it is all me, he wouldn't mind in the slightest BUT he would be put out if I didn't offer to put some dinner on whilst he had a bath even if it was just a pizza in the oven.
I'm most annoyed that he didn't even think yeah your right I could have done something to help abit sorry.

OP posts:
Tryingtostayyoung · 23/11/2016 17:56

Oh and yes I did help clear up the leak Monday when I got home

OP posts:
carefreeeee · 23/11/2016 17:56

Be nice to each other at this stressful time

carefreeeee · 23/11/2016 18:00

I don't think you can decide he's lazy based on one event (and it doesn't sound like he was lazy - just had different priorities?).

He sounds pretty nice overall - I think you should let it go

Bluntness100 · 23/11/2016 18:02

I agree, it's stressful and you're attacking each other. He was up till 4am Monday morning, worked on it Monday and did the child care Tuesday, so he didn't also do the work on the home as he was knackered. I think that's fair enough, sorry,

NavyandWhite · 23/11/2016 18:09

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

WLF46 · 23/11/2016 18:12

Yes you're being unreasonable. It's been an unusually difficult situation and it's not his fault that this was your first week with the longer hours.

He's not "being a dick" as you (wish he had) put it. Bearing in mind the house has been destroyed in the way it has, he seems to be more concerned with getting the place liveable again than he is with "doing the dishes" and so on.

Given the fact he usually does his share of the work, and has agreed to do more now that you're working longer, he seems to be a much more reasonable individual than you do. Cut him some slack.

OlennasWimple · 23/11/2016 18:17

Not putting away food is lazy. Not putting away the clean washing isn't great. Not using the hoover is hardly the crime of the century when there has just been a massive leak

I get why you're frustrated with this being your first week doing longer hours, but this was so far out of normal that it would be really unfair to take it as an indication of how things are going to be in the long run.

As another pp said, be kind to each other right now

Tryingtostayyoung · 23/11/2016 18:26

I think we're finding it hard, we've been arguing like crazy since the weekend as we had an argument about Christmas presents on Saturday (whole other thread) and then this happened on Sunday evening and we've just taken it all out on each other. I was probably irrationally hurt by it yesterday but it's still on my mind now. I think if I'd have gotten home and he'd have even given DD a bath I would have been happy but there was just no effort and even when I got home he just continued to not help out with anything

OP posts:
Tryingtostayyoung · 23/11/2016 18:27

I accept though from others people posts that maybe I'm being a bit harsh though

OP posts:
VivienneWestwoodsKnickers · 23/11/2016 18:31

Surely for a leak you would claim on the household insurance and get the repairs done that way?

RandomMess · 23/11/2016 18:43

Being a parent is tough. I think most people do have the occasional "off" day when they just can't be bothered with anything but the bare minimum...

Perhaps he really is just thoroughly p*ssed off about the row followed by the leak. Yes he should have helped/done something. Perhaps the best thing is to empathise about how he is feeling and then discuss why you felt let down that he didn't do anything to help and him being dismissive of that was hurtful/disrespectful?

bakewelltarty · 23/11/2016 18:50

He shares the cooking, does all the ironing, shares the housework, looks after DD, does all the DIY, stays up till 4 am stopping and clearing up a leak, works full time etc etc.

I think he's a saint. Sod the fact he didn't Hoover. I think you're bloody lucky.