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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Aibu to expect more from my 13 year old?

30 replies

NoFilterAllowed · 10/10/2020 12:45

13 year old DS does nothing around the house really. I ask the bare minimum of him, such as putting his dirty washing in the wash basket and clearing cups/plates from his room and putting school bag and shoes in a certain place when home from school.
I clean his room, do all his dishes even when he's 'cooked' stuff like toast, sandwiches, pizza etc, make the bed, put away his washing and so on.
My mum did everything for me until the day I moved out at 19, in her opinion he's a child and shouldn't have to do these things. But surely if I'm raising a lazy son he will turn into a lazy adult!?
Aibu to think he could do more around the house?

OP posts:
BackBeatTheWordisOnTheStreet · 10/10/2020 22:40

I really think at the very least he needs to tidy upafter himself. Especially his own room. Tidying his own space is infantilising. When I was a teenager my parents insisted it wasn't smelly or unsafe but left it up to me. It made me realise when I needed to tidy and gotinto the habbit of picking up after myself.

Whatisthisfuckery · 10/10/2020 22:45

Teach him to do it, and make sure there’s consequences when he doesn’t. Why would he even think about it if it’s always done for him? Who would even think about needing to clean if somebody else has always just done it?

32flavours · 10/10/2020 22:47

Everything you've said you ask your 13 year old to do my three year old does. As a child I wasn't given any chores and I agree with previous posters, it did me no favours when I moved out. Start asking more of him now, he's still young and has plenty of time to learn before he has to fend for himself. He'll probably thank you in the future.

Mypathtriedtokillme · 10/10/2020 22:52

OP, you expect less from your 13 year old than what I do from my 6 and 3 year olds.

They both are expected to put clean laundry away (which have decals so they know what goes into what drawer), put their plates on the bench, make their own beds, put Dirty laundry into the basket, tidy their own rooms, clean up after themselves, help with household chores like dusting, feeding pets, wiping benches and cupboards etc.

If you don’t teach him how to look after himself (which includes cleaning up after himself) then how do you expect him is suddenly know to do it? Up until now the cleaning fairy has taken care of it.
This isn’t him being lazy, it’s you being too lazy to have to teach him how to do thing around the house then follow up to make sure they are done.

I want my children to be fully functional adults who can take care of themselves so I teach them how to. I’m aiming to make myself redundant.

hopelesschildren · 10/10/2020 22:55

Hm, yes I stopped doing those chores for dc. But they are not doing them either, so no changing bedsheets, hoovering their rooms etc...

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