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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

DH has little to no relationship with DD

292 replies

Dioomly · 14/01/2025 00:46

DH is 52, I'm 38, we have been together for 6 years and we have a DD who has just turned 3. I have 2 children from my previous relationship who are 9 and 10, he also has 2 children who are 20 and 22.

DH has a role which requires long hours, roughly he leaves for work at 7.15, gets back at 6./45. He doesn't need to work these long hours really, he could start at 9 and finish at 5.30 but he likes to be "first in and last out". He could also WFH 2 days a week but doesn't.

I do dinner for the kids at 6pm, I find any later is too much chaos, then DD gets her bath around 6.30/45. DH plays no role in bath time, he says when he gets in he is tired and just wants to eat, so I do it. I also do bedtime as it is the same story. He goes out for post work drinks every Thursday without fail, normally getting home around 10/11pm. On the weekends, he barely interacts with DD, he drives I don't so if it is the weekend my older kids are here he takes them to clubs, he says he is too old to get on the floor and play, he doesn't do weekend bath/bed as he says bathtime hurts his back and she sleeps better for me. In the summer he plays golf basically every Saturday. We do family trips to museums etc. but he often goes ahead with the older kids.

I'm a stay at home mum so I expect to do more of the parenting but I basically do it all. This really upsets me as he is very close to his older kids. Neither live in the UK now but he calls them weekly etc. He also just seems to have put more effort in with his older kids. He is French, his ex wife is Italian and when they were little they each spoke their own language to their kids, so his kids are perfectly fluent in French, Italian and English. I suggested we do the same for DD with French but he said no, it was hard work and he only did as parents who are no longer with us didn't speak English but had the kids for 2 weeks every summer,

He is also in my opinion not giving DD the same opportunities as he did for the older kids. His older kids were privately educated, one excelled in sports to the point they paid £50,000+ for her to train in Europe as a teen. He has said as my children aren't privately educated he won't be paying for it for DD, he also said he won't facilitate hobbies to the level he did in the past as it was an expensive decision and annoying. However he happily pays for his older kids flights several times a year (not saying he shouldn't, it just feels like he is being tight with DD but not his older kids). He has even once said "DD isn't as pretty as DSD is she" which I went mad at and he apologised (then saying he just meant as she is pale and his older DD has lovely olive Italian skin).

I feel like I resent him now for his lack of involvement, whenever I try to talk to him about it he says he is sorry and will try harder and does for a few days then stops, he blames his age.

AIBU to think he is being awful to DD?

Leaving wouldn't be easy and I know here it's often said to just leave but I'm not in a position to do that and I don't actually want to leave.

OP posts:
JustJoinedRightNow · 14/01/2025 00:51

Maybe point out he's only 52, not 82. Ugh, what a lazy sod

Poppyseeds79 · 14/01/2025 00:54

Was he actually fully on board at the point you decided to try for DD3?

OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 14/01/2025 00:54

Do you not feel that would be unfair if your youngest child went to private school when you don't and didn't send your older children to private school ?

What he and his former wife did regarding their children does not matter, it is the family you are living as now that matters.

\will you be returning to work ?

Dioomly · 14/01/2025 00:54

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Dioomly · 14/01/2025 00:57

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ForZanyAquaViewer · 14/01/2025 00:59

He literally got more unreasonable the more I read. Quite the feat.

You know he’s being awful to your DD. You KNOW. You don’t need us to tell you.

OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 14/01/2025 01:04

DD is being treated the same by dh as your other 2 children are,
DD has no idea what schooling that his children had many years ago - they are adults now and have very little relevance in your day to day lives as they don't live with you - do they and DD will not resent this - are you sure it is not you that is being resentful.

Duckingella · 14/01/2025 01:07

The novelty of having a younger woman wife has obviously worn off with a toddler of his own now involved.

He could spend more time at home and put in more effort with his child but he deliberately chooses not to;he doesn't need to first in,last out he's using it as an excuse to avoid parenthood.

You're simply a bang maid to him.

You might not want to leave your marriage but he already seems to have one foot out of the door.

Berlinlover · 14/01/2025 01:09

This reply has been deleted

This has been deleted by MNHQ for breaking our Talk Guidelines.

How does the pill fail?

Eenameenadeeka · 14/01/2025 01:13

I agree with him on the school part but the rest of it is very sad.

BigSilly · 14/01/2025 01:14

The poor guy works all week to keep a roof over your head runs your DC about all weekend. He's in his 50s - he is knackered!

MumonabikeE5 · 14/01/2025 01:15

Did he actively want a child or did he agree because you wished to have another?

it sounds like his parenting days happened 2 decades ago and that he is into the next phase of life.

and that probably won’t change, no matter how unreasonable you think it is.

I agree with him regarding school- much better she is similar to her closest in age siblings.

send her to French classes, let her watch French speaking cartoons.

it’s a shame he is so hands off, but I doubt it will change.

cocoloco23 · 14/01/2025 01:18

Berlinlover · 14/01/2025 01:09

How does the pill fail?

Antibiotics? Stomach bug?

VictoriaMum323 · 14/01/2025 01:19

Wondering if it would be helpful if you got a full time job so that parenting would have to be shared.

PullTheBricksDown · 14/01/2025 01:20

Berlinlover · 14/01/2025 01:09

How does the pill fail?

Isn't it a bit late to ask this?! OP can't return the child for a refund

Poppyseeds79 · 14/01/2025 01:20

He sounds very much stuck in his comfortable routines. Agree with PP that sending Dd to French lessons is a good idea though. If she starts to pick it up he might bond with helping her with it, and give them something shared.

Beyond that sadly it might just work out that he's not prepared to be more hands on though. I'm 45, and time with my DG's is fantastic, but would I bugger want to do it all over again full time. Been there, got the T-shirt!

HPandthelastwish · 14/01/2025 01:21

I'm not surprised he's shattered.

This is the downside of large age gap relationships he is more Grandad age than Dad. Grandads are great at playing for short bursts. He's had his children in his youth, he might have said the right words to be supportive when you found out you were pregnant but very few men are likely wanting to run around after tweens in his 60s.

He's learnt his lesson and knows how he wants to parent this child and doesn't want to do the running around.

You have a choice, you stay and continue having him lay out his boundaries or you leave him and get Child Maintenance until he retires which if wealthy he could do sooner rather than later.

poemsandwine · 14/01/2025 01:22

I think he feels like the 3 year old is your responsibility. You didn't actively try, but he wasn't going to tell you not to have the baby, so here you are. He works more than he needs to, but there are three children to feed, etc. He seems involved with the older ones. Perhaps he'll be more involved with her when she's older. I've seen that with men I know.

PinkArt · 14/01/2025 01:24

Berlinlover · 14/01/2025 01:09

How does the pill fail?

Your question isn't relevant to the OP's issue, but like any contraception it's not 100%, even when taken exactly as it should be. It can also fail because the woman has a stomach upset or is sick as an eg.

MumonabikeE5 · 14/01/2025 01:26

All this “grandad age” is a bit of a stretch.
loads of my kids friends parents -like her dad, are 50, heck one is 60.

but they are first time round parents.

I don’t know if id ever want to do this all again. Either.

steff13 · 14/01/2025 01:29

Berlinlover · 14/01/2025 01:09

How does the pill fail?

I got pregnant twice on the pill. And once on an IUD.

SouthLondonMum22 · 14/01/2025 01:31

He's 52, not 82. He needs to start parenting his own child and you need to stop enabling him.

''My back hurts if I bath her''
''That's a shame. If your back is so bad, I suppose you can't stand around playing golf all day either''.

''She won't settle for me at bedtime''
''She will the more you do it. What lovely daddy/daughter time you can spend together after not seeing her all day''

So what if he works full time? Plenty of parents work full time and still manage dinner, bath, bed etc.

wigsonthegreenandhatsforthelifting · 14/01/2025 01:32

Go back to work and get rid of him!

He sounds horrible.

Newyearpug · 14/01/2025 01:36

I'm 52 ,the thought of doing it all again fills me with dread .
You hear so many stories of men pushing women in to terminations when contraception fails .
At least he let you decide with no pressure from him.
He sounds great with your older kids ,again you hear many stories of this not being the case in step families
3 year olds are hard work.
I was a sahm too ,I did everything ,dh worked ,I ran the home and kids .
Private school ,I agree you can't send her and not your kids .
he's working hard to put food on the table for 5 people,
and you are in a privileged position of having all your time with your children,fully financially supported.
He's not all bad ,I expect he will be more engaging when she's older .
I wouldn't have any more happy accidents though

SouthLondonMum22 · 14/01/2025 01:39

Newyearpug · 14/01/2025 01:36

I'm 52 ,the thought of doing it all again fills me with dread .
You hear so many stories of men pushing women in to terminations when contraception fails .
At least he let you decide with no pressure from him.
He sounds great with your older kids ,again you hear many stories of this not being the case in step families
3 year olds are hard work.
I was a sahm too ,I did everything ,dh worked ,I ran the home and kids .
Private school ,I agree you can't send her and not your kids .
he's working hard to put food on the table for 5 people,
and you are in a privileged position of having all your time with your children,fully financially supported.
He's not all bad ,I expect he will be more engaging when she's older .
I wouldn't have any more happy accidents though

Why are men allowed to opt out of parenting until they are older? Like you said, 3 year olds are hard work and OP doesn't get to opt out of the hard bits and only do the more fun bits when she is older so DH doesn't either.

Plenty of people work full time and then do dinner, bath and bed with their kids. It's no excuse.

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