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.

AIBU? DP thinks I'm a bad person for doing this

503 replies

youmustneverbreakthechain · 22/07/2018 09:50

Long time lurker, first time poster.

This is long, but please bear with me!

I’m willing to be told IABU but I don’t think I have been. I’d really would like some opinions as my partner is currently not really talking to me, apart from responding to my questions arsely, and thinks I have ‘attitude problems’ with regards to this issue. I wrote this yesterday and he’s still not speaking to me properly:

Background: DP has a lovely grown up daughter from previous relationship (ended over 15 years ago). She has a daughter (6yrs), and is in a relationship with a guy (perhaps for two years now although we’ve known him for around 18 months) who also has a young daughter. My DP and I have a DS, (5yrs). We see my DP’s grown up daughter maybe once every month/6 weeks, either just her with her own daughter, or with her partner and his daughter too (but she has often been at her mums when we meet). We all have a very nice relationship together, we all get on well etc.

My DP’s DD invited our son and us to her partner’s daughter’s fourth birthday party, which is, of course, really lovely. I already had booked and paid for a class/event thing before the invite so said I couldn’t, but no problem, my DP was going to take our DS. I had my plans, he and DS had theirs. All good.

Last night DS is sick. Vomiting etc, and this morning still pretty much high temp, sleepy, unhappy. So he sadly can’t go to the birthday party this afternoon.

However, my DP said ‘you know if he’s not better by this afternoon, I’ll have to still go’ meaning that although he was originally taking DS this afternoon, he now wants me to miss my class (that is non refundable and a one off thing - it’s not something that is planned to be repeated) to look after sick DS, so he could go to his daughter’s partner’s DD’s 4th birthday party.

I said that I already had plans that couldn’t be changed, my class/event was not refundable (materials had to be bought) and was a one off. And that I’d still be going. DP was pissed off and thinks I’m out of order. He thinks it is more important that he go to the party and see his daughter, so I said why didn’t he go up earlier to see them, and come back in time, or go and see them for breakfast tomorrow morning (to which he replied ‘don’t be so ridiculous’ although it’s something absolutely viable).

Anyway, he is pissed off, and leaves the house and says he’ll be home in time for when I have to leave for my event. Transpires he’s going to go up there to see them before the party (which I had suggested anyway).

He gets home, still pissed off with me. I go to my class, come back and he’s still pissed off with me. Not engaging properly when I try and talk to him. I ask him if he’s going to be arsey to me all evening. He thinks my attitude is out of order as I should have cancelled my event (losing my money) as him going to the 4th birthday party trumped my class/event and I should have forgone it and stayed at home to look after DS. Later when he’s had a few beers he says he’s started to hate me (because I’m so out of order).

AIBU to have gone to my class/event? I don’t think I am because my event was 1) booked and paid for before the birthday party invite 2) my son (who was the main reason to go, it being a kids party) was ill and he was meant to be caring for him this afternoon originally and 3) that there were alternatives for him to see his daughter and her family (whilst there weren’t alternatives for re-doing my event and it was not refundable).

I am willing to be told IABU (just be gentle with me!) OR is he BU for saying I’m wrong and thinking I’ve got a bad attitude/I’m out of order (and continuing to be being angry with me)? He's starting to make me question myself, am I a bad person?

The ironic thing being his daughter is lovely and would have completely understood the situation.

OP posts:
PoesyCherish · 22/07/2018 10:17

YADNBU! It was a one off course. Of course that trumps his daughters partners daughters birthday (flip that's a mouthful!)

CanaryFish · 22/07/2018 10:17

But @LilyMarie he saw his family anyway ? Also his DS is his family - shouldnt family come before a party ?

Mindchilder · 22/07/2018 10:17

Lily - come on, is it really that important for your girlfriend's dad to come to your kid's party, especially if they have already brought the child a present on their birthday?

3luckystars · 22/07/2018 10:17

2 questions,

  1. Does he usually over react when plans change?

  2. Are himself and this child’s parents very close or is there something unusual going on there?

.
(I think he sounds really angry over something that most people would be delighted to avoid.
If you say yes to question 2, then there is more to this than meets the eye, but if he is always like this when plans change, then that is a different type of problem.)

Sisgal · 22/07/2018 10:18

Just because it's not his grandchild does not mean he did not/should not want to go. It was his daughters partners child, seems perfectly reasonable that he wanted to attend this party.

Whatsnoton · 22/07/2018 10:18

@TeaAndNoSympathy perhaps you should read the OP?

honeyishrunkthekid · 22/07/2018 10:18

YANBU.

Quartz2208 · 22/07/2018 10:19

Bibesia/Nosquirrels if you read the rest of my post he is in the wrong but the fact is the starting point is that both wanted to do the thing they wanted to do and the compromise she came up with was perfect

Mindchilder · 22/07/2018 10:19

Family should definitely come before going to a kid's party, so he should care for his sick child.

HollyGibney · 22/07/2018 10:19

I don't think you are unreasonable about this but the strength of his reaction makes me wonder if there's more to it and he perceives a pattern of resentment and/or inflexibility towards his dd and her child.

Mindchilder · 22/07/2018 10:20

Sisgal - fine that he wanted to go to the party, but he couldn't because his child was sick. He visited before the party instead. No drama.

Kolo · 22/07/2018 10:21

If it was some random child, then definitely I’d side with you. If the 4 yr old is part of daughters family now (so your partners step grandaughter?) then I’d say birthday party of a family member (blood or not) is more important.

My husband’s family is a complex blended one. Some of my ‘relatives’ from that side are not related to me or my husband by blood. I am so grateful that those people have always treated my husband like family and, since I’ve joined the family, treat me and my children like we’re an important part of the family. I’d be really hurt otherwise.

I don’t think either of you were unreasonable in wanting to do your respective events, and it was unfortunate your son got ill. I do think you’re partners reaction is unreasonable, though.

Casmama · 22/07/2018 10:21

I agree with others that if the situation was reversed and your partner had been going to a class no one would even be questioning whether he should have cancelled.
YANBU and the comment about starting to hate you is a big problem imo and one that needs to be addressed when he comes out of his huff.

HollyGibney · 22/07/2018 10:22

I'm aware that it's not his grand child's party btw but she would have been there and it seems that he obviously places a lot of importance on the idea of his dd and her dp and their children as a family unit.

Bibesia · 22/07/2018 10:22

Sisgal, it's reasonable-is to want to attend the party, though why on earth anyone would want to attend a small child's party if they don't have to defeats me. But simply wanting to do something doesn't trump what your spouse wants to do, particularly when your spouse has paid for it - especially when you have a number of perfectly sensible alternatives available to you.

Bibesia · 22/07/2018 10:24

HollyGibney, how does he demonstrate the importance of the family unit if he normally only visits his daughter once a month at most? And why is it better to attend a party-full of over-excited four year olds to demonstrate that, rather than visiting at another time the same day or the next day?

CanaryFish · 22/07/2018 10:25

Totally agree @Mindchilder
In fact as far as strengthening and supporting blending families and such goes him seeing his daughter and the birthday child before the event probably had more of impact and impression on the child than if he was one of many in a group (assuming there were more than a few people invited of course)

ZenNudist · 22/07/2018 10:26

YADNBU don't waste your time arguing with haters. Your DP sounds nasty

YouBetterWORK · 22/07/2018 10:26

Does he look after him on his own frequently? He probably thought "woohoo! Free babysitting" (as DS will be nice and preoccupied) when the party came up. When DS got ill, he had a big sulk because not only did he have to have DS on his own, he was ill to boot. And as we all know, only vagina-owners are qualified to look after sick children Wink Your 'bad attitude' is because DS was ill and you didn't step up to mummy duties allowing him to piss off for the afternoon.

YANBU.

PoesyCherish · 22/07/2018 10:27

For those saying family is more important. Doesn't that mean his ill son should come first?

Bibesia · 22/07/2018 10:27

Why do people think it's so important for grandparents, or step-grandparents, to attend small children's birthday parties? In my experience most grandparents would pay good money to avoid them.

itsBritneyBeach · 22/07/2018 10:29

YADNBU! Even if he was annoyed at the whole situation, his reaction and how he's treating you now speaks volumes

Houttuynia · 22/07/2018 10:29

Just because it's not his grandchild does not mean he did not/should not want to go. It was his daughters partners child, seems perfectly reasonable that he wanted to attend this party

More important to go to the party of an unrelated child whom he sees infrequently than look after his own small child, who was ill?

Really?

AnneLovesGilbert · 22/07/2018 10:30

Absolutely poesy, and OPs DS was already set to be with his dad.

Jinglebells99 · 22/07/2018 10:31

I think your dp is the one being unreasable, not you. How much was the class and would their have been an opportunity to do it again?! My Dh would have stayed home and looked after his own child as agreed and would have wanted me to to do the course as booked and paid for,