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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To be rethinking my 3 year relationship as he never told me he had kids.

412 replies

PenelopeDelph · 20/05/2019 01:15

New account for this as v v outing but need to rant. I'm 33 and he's 45. We've been together 2 years. I knew he was married in his 20s and got divorced at 35 but he has never mentioned his kids before now. Both of his parents are dead and he doesn't have anything to do with the rest of his family either. We had our DD 6 months ago and recently moved into a new flat and have been talking about getting engaged.

On Friday I was suspicious as he told me he was at work in another city (he is a self employed handyman) but got a text from my friend who works at a hospital in our city saying she'd bumped into him in the car park and he'd told her he'd just given an elderly woman a lift to A and E after she fell over. I phoned him to ask why he was still in our city when he'd left for work hours ago and he told me he'd explain when he got home (which was 2 hours later). The sod had me worrying for hours thinking he was ill and hadn't told me.

So he gets home and tells me to sit down and I was feeling sick with worry expecting him to say he had cancer or something horrible. He ends up blurting out he has 3 sons from his previous marriage who he didn't see for years because of conflict with his ex wife but has been building bridges with them the past few months ever since he discovered his eldest's girlfriend was having a baby. They are 21, 18, and 16. He said he didn't want to tell me as they resented him for a while over having no contact and weren't happy to hear he'd had a new baby with a younger woman. But said that he'd always intended to tell me soon. Not sure I believe that. Anyway so half the time when he's been at "work" he's actually been spending time at the pub with his sons and even helping his eldest do up his baby's nursery. Which would be lovely if only I had known about it! He says they are all a lot closer now.

On Friday eldest's girlfriend had a baby girl and my partner was at the maternity ward paying them a visit. Apparently his ex wife was there as well and while I don't feel threatened by her I find it disheartening that he'd told me he was at work while he was at the hospital with her meeting their lovely new grandchild. All while I was at home with my daughter. I feel exlcuded and an absolute mug. Me and DD went to stay with my mum after he told me as I was fuming. We came back today and it has been tense to say the least. I lost my shit when I saw he'd packed all of DD's old baby clothes up to pop round to his son as I had intended to give them to my friend. Another huge row happened and I haven't seen him since. I reckon he's at his eldest's house.

I just feel like me and my DD have been so excluded and disregared. It's great that he's trying to make it up to his son's for not being part of their lives but he should have told me, surely? It's like he wants to keep them and us in two separate boxes because they resent us after he didn't see them for years and had a baby with me. Which infuriates me because it's his fucking fault, not mine and DD's. I'm very hurt and angry by it all and I'm not sure what to do next.

OP posts:
SignedUpJust4This · 20/05/2019 09:20

Was he definitely divorced when you met OP?

Gigglinghysterically · 20/05/2019 09:21

His behaviour in neglecting to be in his DC's lives since being 11, 8 and 6 is deplorable.

Pretending your DD was his 1st child must have encompassed more lies. Again deplorable behaviour.

I would want some answers:

  1. Has be really had no contact with his children for all those years or has he had contact and just not told you in case you didn't want to take on a man with 3 children?
  2. If NC with DC, why didn't he go to court to for access to them?
  3. Is he actually divorced or did he just leave his wife?
  4. If divorced, have you seen his divorce papers to see why they divorced?
  5. Has he paid maintenance to his DC's mother?
  6. Are both his parents really dead? (They may be but I'd be quite surprised as they would only be in their mid 60s).
  7. Is he secretly in contact with family, despite saying he isn't?
  8. If NC with family, other than DC, what is the reason?
  9. Who told him eldest was having a baby?
  10. How did the contact in last few months come about? Exactly how long ago did they re-establish contact?
  11. What the heck are you still doing with a such a prolific liar?

I hope you have the support of friends in real life who you can talk to about this and also hope you told your DM when you stayed with her. Receiving opinions from others who have met/know him may help you grasp whether it is just you or everyone that has been hoodwinked. You may be surprised to find others thought things didn't add up.

Sending hugs to you too as this is obviously a terribly upsetting situation for you to find yourself in. Flowers

Gigglinghysterically · 20/05/2019 09:26

Actual NauseousMum's idea and the wording for a facebook message to his 'ex' is a really good idea. Just state facts.

If he is lying or leading a double life then I'm pretty sure she'll respond.

Jellybeansincognito · 20/05/2019 09:28

What an appalling man. I wouldn’t be able to continue a relationship that was built on lies.

I bet his children don’t know that you didn’t know they existed.

Can you get a contact number for them? They deserve to know about the situation to be honest, and then you can retrieve the baby items that are special to you.

Lochroy · 20/05/2019 09:35

Shocking. Tons of questions which need answering, but one thing which sticks for me, is why do his DS resent you when you've only been together two years?

Speakeasy22 · 20/05/2019 09:37

How do you know that he’s told them about you and DD? Seems unlikely and he could have said that the bag of clothes were from a friend.

SingleMumFighting · 20/05/2019 09:37

It may be that couples counselling would help him see what being a partner actually entails and how a relationship requires openness and constant communication about how you feel.

He has been emotionally abusive since the beginning of the OP's relationships. Do not go into mediation or counselling with such people. Its irrelevent whether his behaviour is deliberate or not. She is not dealing with a normal/healthy person who has empathy. Or at least demonstrates it appropriately. Personality disorders do exist. No amount of talking can cure that. His behaviour sounds quite text book to me.

vivariumvivariumsvivaria · 20/05/2019 09:40

Your DD has half siblings and a niece that's the same age as her.

She is entitled to know her own family, so, for that reason I'd want to make contact with the relatives and avoid the dad.

Willing to bet his testicles that they don't know anything about you or DD.

OhDearGodLookAtThisMess · 20/05/2019 09:41

Well, for me, there is no way I could continue the relationship. Every single aspect of his behaviour that you've related would be a deal-breaker.
Up to you whether you think you can excuse or overlook it all.

BigRedLondonBus · 20/05/2019 09:42

Oh my god I thought this was my ex! It really isn’t that bizarre as people think as this was
Like reading my own life, I would have thought it was him if it wasn’t for the ages and the fact we weren’t married. My ex does exactly this, he is absent from my 4 children’s lives but he tells every woman he meets he doesn’t have kids (he’s told me this) he’s friends also don’t tell them and. His parents are also both dead and he has very little contact with any other family. He has told me he doesn’t tell anyone he has kids as he doesn’t see them so “why should he” it’s all through choice though. I always wonder how the women will feel if they ever find out that he actually has 4. It’s an awful thing to lie about.

Fiveredbricks · 20/05/2019 09:43

Also is there a chance the other baby isnt his sons OP? Could there be another 'other' woman?

Fiveredbricks · 20/05/2019 09:44

Also do his sons deffo exist?? Could that be a cover for the other kids?? I

paddlingwhenIshouldbeworking · 20/05/2019 09:48

Nope, couldn't get my head around this. It says so much about his character, approach to relationships, cavalier attitude to bringing children into the world (having a child without disclosing a whole other family exists?)

I think this is time to be strong OP and find someone worthy of actually sharing your life.

MissEliza · 20/05/2019 09:50

Sadly I don't think this situation is perfectly rare. A friend of mine discovered, after marrying and having three children with her dh, that he'd married at 19 and had a son. She already knew he'd had a brief marriage in his mid twenties. She forgave him but a couple of years later, he just abruptly walked out on her and didn't look back. I think she bitterly regretted not seeing the red flags from the past.

ThumbWitchesAbroad · 20/05/2019 09:54

THat seems highly unlikely, Fivered, if the ex wife was also at the hospital (although after all that might not have been the case!)

ptumbi · 20/05/2019 09:56

A man who walks away from being a 'couple', walks away from his wife/gf, is one thing.
A man who walks away from his kids, is quite another.

A man who walks away from his kids and completely whitewashes their existence to his new wife - is a totally inhuman thing.

I also wonder if it;s his own baby.

AlaskanOilBaron · 20/05/2019 09:57

Gross. You are well shot of him.

What a despicable man.

cakecakecheese · 20/05/2019 09:58

The level of deceit here is staggering. If he didn't bump into your friend you still wouldn't know any of this!

Then to top it off not long after he delivers this bombshell he just starts packing up your own child's things without consulting you, even if you'd known about his kids from the start he should have consulted you but to just merrily do what he likes while you're still reeling really isn't on.

Munchkingoat · 20/05/2019 10:02

Banned from seeing his children 🤔 I had a friend who didn't see his son - when we first got friendly I suggested so many ways to 'get access' and offered help in any way I knew how. Whatever I suggested he always came up with reasons why that wouldn't work - I gradually realised he just wasn't bothered enough! I let the friendship die as I had no respect for him.

Otterseatpuffinsdontthey · 20/05/2019 10:04

Q

flamingoflamangos · 20/05/2019 10:19

Oh OP, this is just awful. Flowers

It’s all been said above but does he seem panicked by you finding out??

ambereeree · 20/05/2019 10:21

I'm thinking his parents are probably alive OP. Move back to your parents for support as this must be an awful shock

VaggieMight · 20/05/2019 10:27

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at poster's request.

StripeyChina · 20/05/2019 10:28

I wouldn't assume he is telling the truth now, unfortunately.

I think until you have 3rd party confirmation you cannot know if there are 3 adult sons and a grandchild in that 'ex-wife' photo

OR that is his current wife and that is their current baby

Either could be true, or another version entirely.

I'd need to know the facts and not from him.

It's an awful shock. I found out my partner had a partner he'd 'not mentioned' a year into our relationship and that was bad enough.

HazelBite · 20/05/2019 10:30

The enormity of the lie is staggering, and makes you think what else has he lied or not come clean about?
I worked in the Court service for many years and was staggered at the amount of people who were able to re-write facts and believe their own version of events.....they really convince themselves!
He has been so efficient at compartmentalising his life(ves) it would worry me that at his age what other people/life events has he managed to not tell you the truth about???
Whatever the Op says/does she is never going to get the absolute truth about anything from him neither will she be able to ever trust him again.
What a terrible shock for the Op to be completely deceived in this, best to give her DD the chance of an honest, open life and ditch him.

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