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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Upset for my daughter

154 replies

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 06:40

My daughter is friends with a group of five girls. They are not close friends but meet up once a year through parents organising this. They also stay in touch through social media. There is a reason for the meet up but it is personal. One of the Mums sent me a text about a month ago asking if my daughter would be free to spend a week at her house and she was going to ask all the other girls also. I asked my daughter and she was quite excited and jumped at the chance. I told her my daughter would love to go and thanked her for the invite. She informed me that she would let me know further details when she heard back from everyone else. Today my daughter was on social media and could see the girls together at this Mums house having a great time and posting pictures. I told her to send a message asking why she didn't know about this as she would like to have been there. The Mums daughter acted clueless and said she didn't know. I later received this text from the Mum. I have put fake names in place of real names. One of the other girls was not there but because her Mum said she couldn't go. AIBU that she shouldn't have sent me an invite if she was then going to do this?. She should have thought about how many her car can carry before sending an invite out to all these girls parents. I assumed she had a people carrier based on the invite to all. It looks like she needed to drop one of the girls in order to fit four in and my daughter was the one dropped. It may be that she asked her daughter to pick who she wanted. I think this should have been done in the first place and send invites out to the four girls her daughter wanted. This would have spared my daughters hurt feelings. She would still have seen photos but she would have understood that sometimes it doesn't have to include her. I want to reply to this text but want it to be civil. My daughter is not at all confrontational and does not want to upset anyone. It is important for her to remain in contact with these girls. I had doubts even to say yes to her going as this woman has in the past been quite passive aggressive with me and my husband. Below is the text. Sorry for the long rant.

Anna is more than welcome, Lucy hope to come later in the summer, so we'll plan for that. I have room for four in my car so could not have all at the same time as there is just me! Justine is a bit iffy about Covid but I'm sure we'll have them down.I am more than happy to have Anna come!

OP posts:
Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 14:50

NCwhatsmynameagain
Thanks for that. I sent the Mum a text saying what you said.

OP posts:
Bonnieonthelam · 21/06/2021 14:51

@Theblacksheepandme

My daughter is friends with a group of five girls. They are not close friends but meet up once a year through parents organising this. They also stay in touch through social media. There is a reason for the meet up but it is personal. One of the Mums sent me a text about a month ago asking if my daughter would be free to spend a week at her house and she was going to ask all the other girls also. I asked my daughter and she was quite excited and jumped at the chance. I told her my daughter would love to go and thanked her for the invite. She informed me that she would let me know further details when she heard back from everyone else. Today my daughter was on social media and could see the girls together at this Mums house having a great time and posting pictures. I told her to send a message asking why she didn't know about this as she would like to have been there. The Mums daughter acted clueless and said she didn't know. I later received this text from the Mum. I have put fake names in place of real names. One of the other girls was not there but because her Mum said she couldn't go. AIBU that she shouldn't have sent me an invite if she was then going to do this?. She should have thought about how many her car can carry before sending an invite out to all these girls parents. I assumed she had a people carrier based on the invite to all. It looks like she needed to drop one of the girls in order to fit four in and my daughter was the one dropped. It may be that she asked her daughter to pick who she wanted. I think this should have been done in the first place and send invites out to the four girls her daughter wanted. This would have spared my daughters hurt feelings. She would still have seen photos but she would have understood that sometimes it doesn't have to include her. I want to reply to this text but want it to be civil. My daughter is not at all confrontational and does not want to upset anyone. It is important for her to remain in contact with these girls. I had doubts even to say yes to her going as this woman has in the past been quite passive aggressive with me and my husband. Below is the text. Sorry for the long rant.

Anna is more than welcome, Lucy hope to come later in the summer, so we'll plan for that. I have room for four in my car so could not have all at the same time as there is just me! Justine is a bit iffy about Covid but I'm sure we'll have them down.I am more than happy to have Anna come!

Look you’re right she should have thought carefully but acted horribly.

BUT...

To be honest I’m very confused by the people who hunt down invitations and pursue casual/non-committal invitations. If someone has invited you and then failed to act upon the invite then shouldn’t you assume they don’t want you/your DC to come? In this instance I think that you/your DC is disappointed because the host child didn’t want them there.

Also, you and your DC need to distance yourselves from these people.

FortunesFave · 21/06/2021 14:56

I think that in all honesty I would encourage my daughter away from this group. It's a bit odd for girls of this age to meet up once a year to be frank. It's all very micromanaged. At 13, they organise their own outings...when parents get involved, it tends to get sticky.

BetterCare · 21/06/2021 14:57

I am actually going to go against the grain and I think you should say something.

Whilst there is an aspect of staying out of friendship groups. I think they have treated your daughter poorly and it is important to show children how to set boundaries with relationships.

They need to learn to be honest about what they will and will not accept in how people treat them and they also need to learn to have courageous conversations when people cross those boundaries.

I think @RainingZen reply is perfect and I think you should send it.

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:03

Better care

I am a firm believer in what you said based on my own personal experience. Also my daughter has way more tact than me which is good.

They need to learn to be honest about what they will and will not accept in how people treat them and they also need to learn to have courageous conversations when people cross those boundaries.

OP posts:
mumsiedarlingrevolta · 21/06/2021 15:03

Are they all adopted and arrived together?

I have two friends with daughters who were adopted and stay in touch with others from the same group/flight.

They keep in touch to have a bit of their home country and because they have a shared experience.

Sometimesfraught82 · 21/06/2021 15:05

Not read full thread

Did you offer to help with lifts etc

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:08

Bonnieonthelam
I am the last person in the World to hunt down invitations. I didn't realise my post came across as this mad lunatic invitation hunter.

OP posts:
thebeesknees123 · 21/06/2021 15:10

My DD was in a situation at a similar age where she wasn't invited to a party she would be invited to.

I did have a chat with her about how friends should treat her and that she shouldn't be fobbed off with excuses such as it being a numbers thing, not enough room in the car etc because, if they want her there, they'll find a way around it.

I get that they can't invite everyone but I always think that, if the friends mean as much to you as them, then you should be included

thecatfromjapan · 21/06/2021 15:11

I also don't understand why you're pursuing this.

The person organising the event is in charge. You've responded once, and been given a face-saving answer, which has left the door open for renewed contact at a later date.

All you've done by pursuing this is asked for a more blunt response, which closes the door.

You say you've had issues with this mother. Have you considered she may have issues with you?

You describe yourself as 'direct' and the other mother as 'passive aggressive'. Well, you know, people come in all shapes and sizes. The other mother may find your 'direct' to be over-controlling and bossy. Her 'passive aggressive' may be her attempting to evade being controlled, without rocking the boat for the relationship between your daughters.

What's more, you say that you are all, as a group, committed to sustaining the relationship between your children.

But is that true? For all of you? If you are committed to this, then it's your job to put the effort in to organise meeting, rather than trying to manage others to do that for you.

People resent and resist being reduced to instrumental extensions line that.

And by 13, the children will have a say. If there was only room for 4, and your daughter dropped off the list, well, that's what happens. Sometimes, you have to bite your tongue, accept the 'polite' excuse (which keeps the door open) and wait. Over time, things work out.

People don't neatly divide into 'mean girl, mean mum' versus 'innocent victim'. There are shades. Yes, this was handled badly - and it might well be that your daughter has slipped down the list - but the fact the mother offered the face-saving solution of another meet-up suggests it's not a zero-sum situation. Turning it into something big probably doesn't help.

And, again, if it's important to you that this group stays in touch, then the easiest way to make that happen is for you to organise them staying in touch.

For the others, it may no longer be such a high priority. Especially as the children hit their teenage years and begin to get a say in things.

It's not necessarily the case that no longer being interested in keeping company with a group of other children your parents have chosen is the hallmark of a 'mean girl'. We all have different tastes in people and those interests change over time.

If you want this relationship to last the distance of years, I would suggest you give it a bit of flexibility and allow for occasional incidents such as this. Including polite, face-saving white lies.

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:11

Sometimesfraught82
Can't as geographically too far. That is why they are staying at her house.

OP posts:
thecatfromjapan · 21/06/2021 15:15

They need to learn to be honest about what they will and will not accept in how people treat them and they also need to learn to have courageous conversations when people cross those boundaries.

This is true. But you also must know that such direct approaches can also close doors.

So I guess you are choosing:

Whether to prioritise this direct approach

Or whether to leave the door open for continuing this meeting-up arrangement.

Is this actually about your daughter's long-term participation in this group or your anger at how you perceive this woman's treatment of you?

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:16

thecatfromjapan
Wow that was a long post full of assumptions.

OP posts:
thecatfromjapan · 21/06/2021 15:19

Sorry if it came across that way.

It's MN, not RL. They are only supposed to be suggestions, or an alternative point of view.

No-one here knows what's really going on. The best we can do is offer many different perspectives, then you can sift through and see what fits.

Feel free to ignore if none of it works - it's only offered as one possible perspective.

Sometimesfraught82 · 21/06/2021 15:19

@Theblacksheepandme

Sometimesfraught82 Can't as geographically too far. That is why they are staying at her house.
Yes but perhaps offered? Taking them all plus luggage - quite a feat

How far we talking?

workshy44 · 21/06/2021 15:21

I really don't see why you are getting a hard time op. Whether they should stay in touch or not is irrelevant, it comes down to basic manners which people don't seem to have anymore.
She was invited, your daughter accepted and then nothing and she finds out the others are all there together. I doubt there was any malicious intent behind it but still its an appalling way to behave. I wouldn't be happy either and I am seriously laid back about these things

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:24

thecatfromjapan
You really don't get it. I don't perceive this womans treatment of me in any way at all. We are quite indifferent to one another. I would never judge my daughters friends based on their parents. That has absolutely nothing to do with me.

OP posts:
Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:26

Sometimesfraught82
I don't know what you mean as I would have been dropping my daughter to her house and then going home as they live 2 hrs away.

OP posts:
Vikingintraining · 21/06/2021 15:27

OP, I commented earlier but reading your updates I think you are taking it too personally, when from what you've described, it doesn't sound to me like it was intended this way.
You already mentioned at the beginning that they are not close friends and in the past have met up because the parents arranged it for a reason so presumably there is a biological or similar connection.
But either way, by age 13 things are naturally going to change. As a group of six growing into teenagers and young adults there will be times when some are together and not others, either because they grow apart or because of lifestyle and geography. Support your daughter's connection to them, encourage her to take ownership of the relationships herself instead of you, but don't force an all or nothing scenario because that will likely end with the nothing.

sugarapplelane · 21/06/2021 15:28

I agree with workshy.

She was initially invited to something, you said great - thank you - and then find out that this something has happened without your DD.
I think it's shitty behaviour from the mother. She shouldn't have said anything in the first place if she couldn't accommodate all.
And it's shitty behaviour from the kids for putting on an if they know your DD will see

Theblacksheepandme · 21/06/2021 15:31

workshy44
I don't think thecatfromjapan would agree with you but maybe I am making a big massive assumption.

OP posts:
thebeesknees123 · 21/06/2021 15:32

I remember breathing a sigh of relief when my daughter started arranging her own meet ups. Definitely easier when parents aren't involved

Roussette · 21/06/2021 15:32

@Theblacksheepandme

All those saying you are micro managing your DD etc, that is rubbish! A 13yo is still growing and learning how to navigate the world and we, as parents, don't suddenly step back and expect them to know exactly how to handle tricky situations!

My DDs are in their early 30s and even today one of them was asking my advice on something, we just don't stop parenting.

Bottom line for me would be... I would want to say to the Mum, 'as you can imagine, my DD was upset when she saw them all, but her, online together especially as you had asked if she would like to be part of this reunion. She felt very left out. I have to just mention that, but now let's move on from that and get them together another time. '

SnorkMaidensTummy · 21/06/2021 15:34

Hello OP. Does your daughter want to maintain the relationship with the girls? Follow her lead. It could be these meetups/staying in touch have outlived their purpose.

Depending on the nature of their connection, is their a local group that could offer your daughter support/or that she could connect with?

Aprilx · 21/06/2021 15:34

@Theblacksheepandme

It is very personal and although I came online asking for help which I am really appreciating. I am not divulging something that is very personal to my daughter.
Nobody knows who you or your daughter are. 🙄