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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

I am not a personal chef!

373 replies

prettymushrooms · 23/06/2021 15:22

Back story
I WFH i am the main cook and I do the shopping.
DH self employed works very very long hours - sometimes depending on how big the job won't get home until 10pm.

There is no set arrangement when DSS will come to us, as he's old enough now to make his own arrangements he will just ring up last minute "Im on my way home" and that's the only notice we get. Sometimes if I'm lucky I'll get 24 hours notice. We can't refuse him because his mum sometimes doesn't come home at night, (don't ask - whole other thread needed for that!) so DH isn't happy with him being in the house on his own overnight as he gets scared very easily.

Because of this casual arrangement I have no idea how many people i'm cooking for, DSS has a large appetite so not like I can just give him a bit of mine and a bit of DH's - he would need a big portion. It isn't always things that can be frozen either and I'm reluctant to keep making extra portions on the off chance DSS will want to eat.

He also has allergies (not life threatening, just makes him itchy) so when he does come here if i haven't cooked something he isn't allergic to I then have to cook a whole different meal for him

Sometimes hes already had food when he comes here and isn't hungry, other times hes had food and still wants more when he gets to us, other times he hasn't had anything and I won't know until the last minute - we have our evening meal around 8pm on the nights that DH gets home at a reasonable hour so if DSS eats at 5pm after school he will want another meal at 8pm or depending how big the meal was he might not want much just something small.

DSS cannot cook for himself and in any case our kitchen is really really tiny so 2 people in the kitchen cooking at the same time would not work so it's always left up to me to sort. If he is at his mums he just orders takeway.

Three nights ago he had told us the day before he was coming to us and would be having food with us - great - i can then plan.
So i cooked enough for all three of us, ensured it wasn't anything DSS was allergic to, then he rocked up as i was plating up and casually said oh yeah i'm not hungry I had KFC with my mates half an hour ago...

DH doesn't think its a big deal and just says its fine, ill just eat his portion but its really not the point IMO! I think it's really disrespectful towards me as I'm the one worrying about what to buy, what to cook, having something quick in the freezer that i can just throw in the oven if he turns up.
DH doesn't worry because he doesn't have to plan, cook, go shopping and thinks i'm massively over reacting about something so petty.

AIBU to insist either he eats with us or he eats at his mums and to let me know which one within plenty of time??
He's a very sensitive soul so bringing this up usually leads to floods of tears that its not his fault he was hungry so he already ate etc - of course i'm not saying he shouldn't eat if he's hungry but to at least let me know??

OP posts:
TheSunShinesBrighter · 23/06/2021 15:52

he can order himself a takeaway online, go to KFC with his mates but gets all teary if i ask him for notice.

That’s not normal. Talk to your DH.

WorraLiberty · 23/06/2021 15:52

DH doesn't know how to use the internet (yes i know you probably are thinking BS in this day in age but he doesn't even have a smart phone!) so anything he needs for school or a new phone charger or just anything he needs I am generally the one that will order it online for him.

Your DH needs to learn to use the internet because he is a grown up and a parent.

If he insists on not learning, he'll have to take time off work to provide for his son's needs.

Stop enabling his shit parenting OP.

FeatheredHope · 23/06/2021 15:53

To quote classic MN, you don’t have a DSS issue, you have a DH issue.
Seriously, why are you his personal slave? Every update puts him in a worse light.

BruceAndNosh · 23/06/2021 15:53

nope, he honestly does not know how to use an oven

Using an oven is no more complicated than using a mobile phone.
I bet he is capable of using more complicated technology than an oven

Akire · 23/06/2021 15:53

So he’s there most days but some days he would have eaten already but he doesn’t want to make a plan that on Monday Wednesday Fridays he commits to eating at yours. Either when you eat or heating it up later?

AnneLovesGilbert · 23/06/2021 15:55

Can his dad use an oven?

Who are his parents expecting to feed and pander to him in a few years when he leaves home and works or studies if neither of them can be bothered to teach him? Or will you be expected to go with him to make sure he’s fed properly?

I started uni with a guy who couldn’t make his bed, make a cup of tea, do toast or wash his clothes. He was 18. He lasted a few days before having to drop out and go back home again. Which may have been what his mum had wanted.

Taliskerskye · 23/06/2021 15:55

Yeah this is basically all your DH
fuck all you can do about it though.

FeatheredHope · 23/06/2021 15:55

And on a more practical front whilst you get your DH to actually parent his kid, you keep the cupboard/freezer with easy DSS approved foods and you freeze the dinner you made for him this time so that next time he turns up unexpectedly, he can defrost it and reheat it or order a takeaway.

AnneLovesGilbert · 23/06/2021 15:55

@Goingplacestogether

I think this is standard teen behaviour, irrespective of him being a stepson.
It really really isn’t.
Triffid1 · 23/06/2021 15:56

SOOOO many things going on here:

  1. saying your'e going to be home for dinner then, in fact, not being home is, IMO, 100% unacceptable and extremely rude. This needs to be nipped in the bud otherwise he will be that (male) adult who is invited to a dinner party, doesn't turn up until 2 hours later, and then doesn't get invited again.
  1. The short notice thing is his problem, not yours. Agree with others - you do not need to prepare him a "proper" meal if he hasn't alerted you to the fact that he'll be home. Basic ready meal in oven, eggs/beans on toast etc.
  1. He needs to learn the bare minimum of operating in a kitchen - how to turn on oven, use microwave etc. Because he can then, at the very least, prepare his own jacket potato with beans or egg and bacon. Your Dh needs to support you on this because as a parent, sending a teenager out without even the most basic of skills means he has failed.
Deadringer · 23/06/2021 15:57

If he gives enough notice he gets fed, if he doesn't he doesn't.

WorraLiberty · 23/06/2021 15:58

@Goingplacestogether

I think this is standard teen behaviour, irrespective of him being a stepson.
Standard perhaps for a teenager whose parents have put their responsibility onto another woman.

Other than that, it really isn't.

Snoken · 23/06/2021 15:58

I would not put up with that at all! He will turn into an unbearably spoilt and obnoxious person if he thinks the world revolve solely around him and his whims. His dad is unreasonable too for putting you through this, and even more so his mum who sounds completely unreliable.

You are being left to pick up the slack from all of them.

AnneLovesGilbert · 23/06/2021 15:58

You have to show him how to prepare his meals if he isn't going to give you enough time to cook ahead for him.

No she doesn’t. His dad does. This is not OP’s job. He has two (pretty useless sounding) parents. Their failings don’t become OP’s responsibility.

misssunshine4040 · 23/06/2021 15:58

Teach him how to put a pizza in the oven etc.
Other than that I think you are being unreasonable.
He sounds like he's having a shit time with his mum and not really feeling very cared for so.
I think you need to let this one go as much as it's annoying.
If he's not around when your eating then put a ready meal in the micro or quick oven meal.

ChargingBuck · 23/06/2021 15:59

DH doesn't think its a big deal and just says its fine

Of course it is. Absolutely 100% fine & no problem at all. FOR HIM.

I think you have 2 issues here - 1 is fairness in the relationship, the other is simple logistics.

You are in loco parentis for DH whenever DSS is staying, whether that's pre-arranged or ad hoc. Yes, DH works long hours, but isn't it convenient for him that when it is either his arranged turn for childcare, or when his ex is unable to parent for whatever random reason, he has a live-in nanny & housekeeper to take over for him?

You also work full time, & his "everything's fine" attitude must be hard to take. He has made you into Default Parent & I wonder how much of that is solely due to his late working - i.e. does he just expect you to step in without notice all the time? Does he see it as your job to take total responsibility for his child when he is working & his ex is either off-duty or doing her mysterious shirking act?

Of course you knew he had a son when you moved in with him, & it's a given that any 'step-parent' role should be based on accommodating the child's needs & ensuring they are happy & comfortable. But I think you need to have a deeper discussion with DH about his assumptions. The cooking scenario is a red herring, & I suspect you may be focused on it because it's too difficult to raise you feelings with DH because he 1) assumes this wifework should rightly fall to you & 2) he has been dismissive when you try to discuss it.

The logistics part - the red herring - take the emotions out of it & treat it as a separate issue from DH's assumption that you are his Au Pair.

You are having to cater for an extra family member who arrives without notice & you never know how hungry they are going to be.
It sounds like you've tried to regulate this by negotiating more notice, but don't want to labour the point because DSS gets upset. You also seem pretty sensitve to the fact that he shouldn't be pressed too hard on the issue, as it stems from the irregularity of his mother's commitment to 'her' resident days with him.

So how about you stop trying to solve it by changing how DH, Ex & DSS act, & instead, focus on changing the logistics.
You don't have to be a private chef. Just cook up a few dishes you know DSS likes & freeze them. That way, you can crack on with cooking just for you & DH on non-resident evenings, & if DSS rocks up ravenous, no problem - you've already catered for his needs, & everyone's happy.

It doesn't solve the fact that DH appears to have delegated all the wifework to you (I bet you do all the housework & admin too ...) - but it DOES solve the immediate dilemma, & removes some to the day-to-day frustration for you.

Knittedfairies · 23/06/2021 16:00

Allergies permitting, I'd be pointing him towards the bread bin and a lump of cheese.

AmandaHoldensLips · 23/06/2021 16:00

It's no wonder so many men turn out useless when they weren't even expected to turn on an oven by the age of 15.

HeckyPeck · 23/06/2021 16:00

I would say he needs to let me know by (whatever cut off you choose) and if he doesn't then he can make a sandwich or order himself a takeaway. Otherwise your DH can give him his dinner and he can make himself a sandwich.

I wouldn't be pandering to a 15 year old who is too lazy to learn how to cook/send a simple text.

You're not a maid OP!

Bluntness100 · 23/06/2021 16:01

I honestly couldn’t get worked up about this. Your husband already said he would eat it, otherwise you could freeze it, honestly this isn’t the hill to die on.

Drivingmeupthewall · 23/06/2021 16:03

I might be being an arsehole, but I suspect he’s lazy and manipulative. If he cries, Dasdy runs over and tells of nasty Stepmummy for being so cruel. And then he can sit on his arse while she sorts out everyone’s shit.

misssunshine4040 · 23/06/2021 16:04

He stays at home by himself in the afternoon/early evening -he has to when he goes to his mums as she's not there after school but he doesn't like being on his own at night, i think he watched too many horror films and thinks someones going to break in

Aw I feel really sorry for him to be honest.
I would just make the days him mum isnt in working etc the days he comes and stays at yours so you know what to make and he knows he's not alone

HUCKMUCK · 23/06/2021 16:04

The biggest favour you can do for this kid is teach him to be a bit more independent and how to feed himself. I know it's not your responsibility but until someone shows him how to do things for himself, you're going to keep being the one working around him.

His Dad should be encouraging him to start learning these skills. My DS is a year older and could easily feed himself all the time if he needed to. It might not all be health and nutrituous but he certainly wouldn't starve.

His parents have done him an injustice by not teaching him this stuff and letting him get away with being waited on hand and foot.

vinicunca · 23/06/2021 16:07

Where does the mother go all night???

I think this may be your problem, to be honest, as the DSS doesn’t seem to have any schedule / certainly of where he’s going to sleep - eg. Monday - Friday at mum’s; Friday - Sunday with you. Sounds all very haphazard for him?

Lara53 · 23/06/2021 16:08

He’s 15, not 5. He’s perfectly capable of cooking himself a simple meal - beans on toast, pasta and sauce, bacon sarnie etc. It’s not your fault he’s choosing not to learn. Push it back to his dad and tell him and his dad there’s a space in the freezer for them to stock up on some things he can microwave when he comes over.

My kids have been cooking simple meals for the whole family from 11/12 so I’m sure he could manage if he got of his backside - just don’t give him another option if you get no notice that he’s coming/ hungry. Oh hi X. Help yourself to something from the bottom drawer in the freezer, I already cooked before I knew you were coming over.