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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To have said I won't be having grandson anymore?

377 replies

Fireplays · 23/02/2026 18:38

My ds is 16 and teen years have been really difficult tbh with his behaviour and school attendance and just general attitude to everyone. He smokes weed and vapes and went completely off the rails, he was brought home by police a few times etc and as you can imagine it was an extremely stressful time.

He failed all his GCSEs, did he care? Nope. He currently goes to college but is on his last warning for attendance as he just wont get up in the morning.

He has a gf and she gave birth to their baby in June last year so he's now 8 months, considering she was heavily pregnant she did do well in her GCSEs and started a apprenticeship in January this year. I don't know what she sees in him tbh.

Before her apprenticeship started she asked me if I would have grandson 2 days a week and her mum has him the other days. I agreed and I usually pick him up at about 8:30 and have him all day I give him a bath here and get him ready for bed and usually drop him off at about 6. I also have him the odd afternoon if I can if her mum has somewhere to be as she also has younger children so it could be an appointment or whatever for them.

My son is at college (or supposed to be) during this time but even when he's home he doesn't do much for baby as “his gf asked me to babysit not him”.

The other day he came home from wherever and went to work on his motorbike.
I've told him today that if he gets kicked off his course then I won't be having grandson anymore and it'll be up to him to care for him and he flipped it back on me and accused me of not wanting to spend time with dgs and called me cruel etc and told his gf so now she's messaging me too

Was I really in the wrong?

OP posts:
OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 13:36

Why don't you go and see your GP?
You son is still 16. He may be able to get support from CAMs.
I don't think anything you or your H can do will make any difference.

Mainly because your 'feelings' don't match any action.

Being at your wits end means you make changes.
take the bike away.
Sit him down and say you won't stop making enquiries till you know where he gets his money.

You're not doing anything - just moaning.

90sTrifle · 24/02/2026 13:37

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 10:44

I agreed to look after my grandson because my son would also be at college so therefore wouldn't be able to care for him. I also dropped down my hours for it, we aren't necessarily struggling but it feels whatever we do he throws it back in our face. We've really tried with him, tough love, calm talks, boundaries anything. I don't see how from just a short post posters are saying we don't/didnt parent him. And to posters saying he didn't become like this overnight - he did!

In year 7 he was well behaved, never got a detention and the only time he was late was if the bus was late which wasn't his fault so therefore they didn't punish him. He always handed his homework in on time and while he wasn't the most academic top set student he tried. The first half of year 8 was the same but then a switch flicked and he changed and didn't respond to consequences. He just made sarcastic comments (and still does). Then he got worse the older he got. With the police bringing him home etc.
We do ask where he's going/where he's been but he doesn't answer and we can't stop him going out and there's no way to force him to tell us.

His gf doesn't want grandson in nursery yet at his age, I have him 2 days a week and her mum 3, there's no way they can go and live with her mum and she has younger children and the house is overcrowded to be living there FT.

I don't intend on throwing ds out, he's 16 I can't legally do that

Both my children were in nursery at 7 months as I needed to head back to work to pay the bills. Both my children are in top grammar schools (17yo and 14 yo) so it did them no harm. In fact the opposite they learned to adapt and socialise from a very early age. The GF just wants an easy life so gives the baby to both grandparents.

Your situation makes my blood boil and brings back memories of very difficult times. Unfortunately I’d like to say it’s just one baby but it’s probably the start of so many other issues. You need to step back. They need to see how hard it is raising one child so they do not repeat it until adulthood. Stay firm, your DS goes to college or he looks after his DC. If he doesn’t want to, then HE tells his GF this. They decide together about nursery. Give them back the reins to do as they wish but count you out.

OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 13:38

90sTrifle · 24/02/2026 13:37

Both my children were in nursery at 7 months as I needed to head back to work to pay the bills. Both my children are in top grammar schools (17yo and 14 yo) so it did them no harm. In fact the opposite they learned to adapt and socialise from a very early age. The GF just wants an easy life so gives the baby to both grandparents.

Your situation makes my blood boil and brings back memories of very difficult times. Unfortunately I’d like to say it’s just one baby but it’s probably the start of so many other issues. You need to step back. They need to see how hard it is raising one child so they do not repeat it until adulthood. Stay firm, your DS goes to college or he looks after his DC. If he doesn’t want to, then HE tells his GF this. They decide together about nursery. Give them back the reins to do as they wish but count you out.

I agree but at the same time it's easy to overlook how immature most boys are at 16.
A father at 15!

90sTrifle · 24/02/2026 13:46

OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 13:38

I agree but at the same time it's easy to overlook how immature most boys are at 16.
A father at 15!

Yes, but OP is on the right side of this mess. Her DS has the opportunity to walk away from the relationship and just be a weekend Dad. He might get his act together in time. What OP doesn’t need is to helping this relationship blossom by doing all the hard work and then get dumped with yet another ‘unplanned’ pregnancy next year.

OP should give the ultimatum. DS will or will not look after DC (baby should go to nursery really). Watch the relationship fizzle out, when GF realises he’s useless. And be a weekend Dad forever more. It’s the best outcome of a very very shit situation. Hopefully GF will then learn from this too before she has multiple kids with him.

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 14:02

I checked his phone pretty regularly (once a week/or every 2) when he was younger and there was never anything alarming I found. When his behaviour changed the only thing different was he was searching for porn but it was blocked due to our restrictions so nothing came up. We don't check his phone now as he simply won't give us the phone and we don't know the password (his gf does though I think) so can't look through it when he leaves it lying around. He once gave us a fake password and then seemed pleased with himself when it gave us a timeout because we tried too many times. We once were going to try with the touch ID when he was asleep but it didn't work and we tried on quite a few occasions but it failed. He now has a different phone which doesn't have touch ID.

@OliviaWhatshernameyes, my son his gf and grandson stay at her mums at the weekend and they care for him not her mum. The gf just wants to go so she sees her mum and siblings and ds goes most of the time too. I don't care for grandson when they're both here and I doubt her mum does, the only time we do is during the week when they aren't here.

There was a CAMHS referral a while back but we still haven't had the initial appointment and I fear he won't engage when we finally get it.

His gf doesn't want him in nursery until he can walk and properly benefit from it due to the news and her mum is lucky enough to be a SAHM so she's seen her mum care for her siblings and they not go to nursery until they're 2+

OP posts:
bigboykitty · 24/02/2026 14:02

I'm sure the girlfriend already knows he's useless. I had to laugh at the idea of him stepping up and becoming a weekend dad. He has no interest in the child. He doesn't need rescuing from the girlfriend. She's the one with her head screwed on.

I have to say @Fireplays , I'm sure you love your son very much, but if so, you should get some parenting support for yourself to start to introduce some proper boundaries. Your H is obviously not going to be of much use in this. Time is of the essence, I would say. He's on a path that doesn't end well. Step up now, while he's still so young, and he may have a chance.

OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 14:08

His gf doesn't want him in nursery until he can walk and properly benefit from it due to the news and her mum is lucky enough to be a SAHM so she's seen her mum care for her siblings and they not go to nursery until they're 2+

There's nothing wrong with that, but this is not about her mum but about what works for everyone - you, your son, the GF and her parents.

Circumstances are different. Presumably her mum didn't get pregnant at 16 and have to rely on family to support her?

Her mum can do childcare if she wants to but that doesn't mean you have to if you don't want to.

bigboykitty · 24/02/2026 14:08

There's no chance he'll get input from CAMHS.

Re the phone, again, it's totally half-assed. I'll ask again, are you paying for the phone? If so, it's 'you will hand over your phone whenever I ask to check it or the account will br frozen. Your choice'

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 14:18

His gf probably does think he is useless I agree. I'd don't know what she sees in him. She has also tried with him and offered to help him study when he re sits his maths and English this year and he told her not to waste her time but then he was having a pity party saying he's just going to fail anyway when his gf offered to help, we originally offered to help him revise in an organized way last year but he didn't revise at all or if he did it was very little and he had no detailed notes for any subject. They've been together for over 2 and a half years bow though I sort of expected their relationship to have fizzled out long before now

I will talk to DH later about what we can do about his bike etc

OP posts:
Saz12 · 24/02/2026 14:35

You pay for his phone, so you have every right to withhold it. What consequences did he get for giving you a fake password? It's ridiculous that you were fanning about with fingerprint ID whilst he was asleep.

Your DGS might HAVE to go to nursery if your DS doesn't step up. That's not on you. What is he paying toward his child? Why does he have money to run his bike, smoke weed, and vape but not for nappies etc?

Sit down with him and DS and explain to them that you love GS, but DS is missing out on being a father AND missing out on his future with the situation as it stands. He either needs to get an education so he can provide for himself & son/family in the future, or take on more of the childcare... or both.

90sTrifle · 24/02/2026 14:48

If this was my son now and he has shown no interest in the child and clearly just wants to be a child himself, I would be sitting him down and asking him if he truly wants any of this. He didn’t get the choice when GF was pregnant (her body, her choice) but he gets his choice now.

If his answer is no, then he gets to walk away from it all (gf and baby). When he grows up maybe he’ll want to reach out (possibly see on weekends) but until then he can be free of this and have the head space to develop into a nice young man.

I wouldn’t be thinking I want to see my GC if I was OP, I would be thinking, what is right for MY child from this point on.

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 14:55

Saz12 · 24/02/2026 14:35

You pay for his phone, so you have every right to withhold it. What consequences did he get for giving you a fake password? It's ridiculous that you were fanning about with fingerprint ID whilst he was asleep.

Your DGS might HAVE to go to nursery if your DS doesn't step up. That's not on you. What is he paying toward his child? Why does he have money to run his bike, smoke weed, and vape but not for nappies etc?

Sit down with him and DS and explain to them that you love GS, but DS is missing out on being a father AND missing out on his future with the situation as it stands. He either needs to get an education so he can provide for himself & son/family in the future, or take on more of the childcare... or both.

We took his phone for a few days but it just made the other issues worse, he was brought home by the police because he’d been near a group of lads fighting and causing trouble (ds says he wasn't one of them and there was no action by police) but he then twisted things and blamed us and said id he had his phone he could've texted us to pick him up and he never would've been caught up in it. He's very good at blaming other people for his actions.

The only reason we tried when he was asleep aswell was because I was worried that if he knew we were going to go through his phone he would just delete things he didn't want us to see, so I sort of wanted to do it without him knowing

OP posts:
ldnmusic87 · 24/02/2026 15:02

To be scared of your teenage son is how you arrived into this whole mess.

OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 15:07

Do your husband and you see eye to eye on this?

I have the impression you're not working together as a family unit. The fact you need to talk to him about the motorbike suggests he's passive and isn't doing much active parenting for his son.

Boys need male role models and boundaries- does your son have this?

nixon1976 · 24/02/2026 15:08

90sTrifle · 24/02/2026 13:37

Both my children were in nursery at 7 months as I needed to head back to work to pay the bills. Both my children are in top grammar schools (17yo and 14 yo) so it did them no harm. In fact the opposite they learned to adapt and socialise from a very early age. The GF just wants an easy life so gives the baby to both grandparents.

Your situation makes my blood boil and brings back memories of very difficult times. Unfortunately I’d like to say it’s just one baby but it’s probably the start of so many other issues. You need to step back. They need to see how hard it is raising one child so they do not repeat it until adulthood. Stay firm, your DS goes to college or he looks after his DC. If he doesn’t want to, then HE tells his GF this. They decide together about nursery. Give them back the reins to do as they wish but count you out.

Perfectly said

Notalotanota2026 · 24/02/2026 15:09

Fireplays · 23/02/2026 18:38

My ds is 16 and teen years have been really difficult tbh with his behaviour and school attendance and just general attitude to everyone. He smokes weed and vapes and went completely off the rails, he was brought home by police a few times etc and as you can imagine it was an extremely stressful time.

He failed all his GCSEs, did he care? Nope. He currently goes to college but is on his last warning for attendance as he just wont get up in the morning.

He has a gf and she gave birth to their baby in June last year so he's now 8 months, considering she was heavily pregnant she did do well in her GCSEs and started a apprenticeship in January this year. I don't know what she sees in him tbh.

Before her apprenticeship started she asked me if I would have grandson 2 days a week and her mum has him the other days. I agreed and I usually pick him up at about 8:30 and have him all day I give him a bath here and get him ready for bed and usually drop him off at about 6. I also have him the odd afternoon if I can if her mum has somewhere to be as she also has younger children so it could be an appointment or whatever for them.

My son is at college (or supposed to be) during this time but even when he's home he doesn't do much for baby as “his gf asked me to babysit not him”.

The other day he came home from wherever and went to work on his motorbike.
I've told him today that if he gets kicked off his course then I won't be having grandson anymore and it'll be up to him to care for him and he flipped it back on me and accused me of not wanting to spend time with dgs and called me cruel etc and told his gf so now she's messaging me too

Was I really in the wrong?

I get why you said it but don't stop seeing your dgs to try and prove a point to your immature son. He's already flipped it around and has the cheek to call you cruel.

Let it slide (for now).

OliviaWhatshername · 24/02/2026 15:10

We took his phone for a few days but it just made the other issues worse, he was brought home by the police because he’d been near a group of lads fighting and causing trouble (ds says he wasn't one of them and there was no action by police)

Do police really waste their time bringing a boy home if he wasn't actually involved?

Have you had their side of this or just your son's?

He could have walked away.

Tootiredcantsleep · 24/02/2026 15:12

"I've answered about the bike, I said he can legally ride it. Not sure why I need to repeat myself for posters who just want to judge and can't be bothered to read my posts. The reason u can't take the keys is because he has them on him most of the time or they're in his room where he is."

Is it a moped then? If he turned 16 the month before his baby was born, then rather than concentrate on his newborn baby and learning to be a dad, he was learning how to drive a moped? Is your husband actually insane?

nixon1976 · 24/02/2026 15:13

His gf doesn't want him in nursery until he can walk and properly benefit from it due to the news and her mum is lucky enough to be a SAHM so she's seen her mum care for her siblings and they not go to nursery until they're 2+

Honestly? This makes me seriously cross. There is nothing wrong with using nursery and she cannot stamp her feet and say 'no nursery' when she is expecting her mother and bf's mother to pick up the pieces. Can you not see how bonkers this is?

Also, just stop paying for his phone. Yes, it might escalate the situation but that might be what it takes to eventually sort things out...

ReadingSoManyThreads · 24/02/2026 15:21

nixon1976 · 24/02/2026 15:13

His gf doesn't want him in nursery until he can walk and properly benefit from it due to the news and her mum is lucky enough to be a SAHM so she's seen her mum care for her siblings and they not go to nursery until they're 2+

Honestly? This makes me seriously cross. There is nothing wrong with using nursery and she cannot stamp her feet and say 'no nursery' when she is expecting her mother and bf's mother to pick up the pieces. Can you not see how bonkers this is?

Also, just stop paying for his phone. Yes, it might escalate the situation but that might be what it takes to eventually sort things out...

It's not bonkers to not want to put your baby into nursery. It's a baby! Nursery for babies is usually only an option for those with no other options! I don't know why someone choosing to have family look after a baby, over strangers being paid NMW in a nursery setting makes you cross. That kind of reaction is kind of ridiculous.

That's even more mentioning the amount of wronguns working in nurseries. They should only be a last resort for babies, in my opinion.

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 15:23

I'm not scared him, I'm just tired and at my wits end.

DH isn't ds’s bio dad but he's really tried with him, he takes his son to football but because ds isn't interested (and never has been) the bought him the bike to do together as he bought it a few months before he turned 16 to work on together as something positive. I think dh won't want to take it off him as even when I wasn't happy with him actually riding it due to the danger and ds clearly isn't sensible, he said he was growing up and cars can be just as dangerous. They aren't as close anymore and he's just getting fed up with him too especially with the constant attitude

The police brought him home on a few occasions for just being a nuisance etc and they did say this but on that occasion he was just caught up in it apparently

I think it is a moped but ds calls it a motorbike and was talking about getting another in the future, when I tell him he needs a job for that he just shrugs

OP posts:
Sartre · 24/02/2026 15:24

whatsgoingoninmybrain · 23/02/2026 21:48

No, but she created and raised a deadbeat dad. As much as that is harsh for her to hear, she did. As he’s still a child, she is still responsible for him.

She has a hand in this situation. She is incredibly lucky that the mum is an amazing person who seems to be determined to do the right thing. The least she can do is help out with childcare so that the mum can increase her earning potential and give the child a good life.

I feel this is very harsh. I’m thinking about my DS who is very lovely, grounded, does amazingly well at school etc but he’s 16 next week and can I really imagine him being a father? No, the thought is actually laughable tbh. As hard working as he is at school and cadets, the rest of the time he just arses about on Discord and Roblox. Absolutely zero way he’d be able to parent a child even though he is way more mature than OP’s DS. They’re still children at 16.

I think the bigger issue is the fact he’s clearly involved in something illegal hence the unexplainable surplus cash. The baby and mother need support and the mother sounds like she’s doing a great job. OP’s son may come round as he gets older (I hope so) but he definitely needs some support getting there, maybe professional support.

AcrossthePond55 · 24/02/2026 15:28

Fireplays · 24/02/2026 14:55

We took his phone for a few days but it just made the other issues worse, he was brought home by the police because he’d been near a group of lads fighting and causing trouble (ds says he wasn't one of them and there was no action by police) but he then twisted things and blamed us and said id he had his phone he could've texted us to pick him up and he never would've been caught up in it. He's very good at blaming other people for his actions.

The only reason we tried when he was asleep aswell was because I was worried that if he knew we were going to go through his phone he would just delete things he didn't want us to see, so I sort of wanted to do it without him knowing

@Fireplays

We took his phone for a few days but it just made the other issues worse

What 'issues' exactly? He was brought home by police but 'no action'. So, no 'issue'. He twisted things and blamed you. So what? So do 1000 other teens. God knows my 2 sons blamed us for things they didn't like in their own lives. No issue, let him blame you.

Why are you so afraid of him? You haven't mentioned that he's been violent towards you or his dad. So what if he rails against you. You know the truth.

You say he has the keys to his bike. Fine. So when opportunity arises you and DH simply 'remove' it. Since he isn't going to college, what does he need a bike for? Surely there is a relative or friend who will agree to store it for you. Or, since DH apparently knows how to work on it, he removes a part to disable it. As far as his phone goes, you take it away. While he's sleeping if needs be. Or barring that, you deactivate it. Since he isn't using it to further himself nor to let you know where he is, why does he need a phone? Internet? Change the password.

We never had the degree of problems you've had with your DS. Why? Probably because when they started pushing the limits we took immediate action. We physically took their car keys. We deactivated their phones. We grounded them. It worked because we nipped it in the bud. The internet wasn't as big an issue for us, it was still in the days of 'dial up modems'. Did we get pushback, tantrums, and shouting about how horrible we were? You bet we did but we faced it with love and resolve. Because we knew that the day would come when they would both thank us for keeping them on track. And they both have. Did we make mistakes along the way? Sure we did. But all is forgiven and forgotten and they are both now men we are very proud of.

I realize that it's too late for that now, you have ceded control to your son. But it's never too late to take it back. I suggest you start by consulting with some sort of expert, perhaps a counselor who specializes in adolescent behaviour. But the consequences need to start now. Again, what exactly are you afraid of?

nixon1976 · 24/02/2026 15:29

ReadingSoManyThreads · 24/02/2026 15:21

It's not bonkers to not want to put your baby into nursery. It's a baby! Nursery for babies is usually only an option for those with no other options! I don't know why someone choosing to have family look after a baby, over strangers being paid NMW in a nursery setting makes you cross. That kind of reaction is kind of ridiculous.

That's even more mentioning the amount of wronguns working in nurseries. They should only be a last resort for babies, in my opinion.

I couldn't disagree with you more, on every single point.

However this is the OP's thread and I don't think it would help her for me to argue with you so I'll bow out now.

BertieBotts · 24/02/2026 15:33

it feels whatever we do he throws it back in our face. We've really tried with him, tough love, calm talks, boundaries anything. I don't see how from just a short post posters are saying we don't/didnt parent him. And to posters saying he didn't become like this overnight - he did!

OP have you ever considered having him assessed for ADHD? The "overnight switch" is one way ADHD can present, as often with ADHD, the person is unaware that they are experiencing difficulties relative to others their age and they are resting heavily on strategies to compensate for these difficulties, often strategies like intelligence or quick-thinking, being very good at cramming or "winging it" at the last minute, being articulate/charming making people give them the benefit of the doubt, or giving a false impression that they have understood/remembered something they might not have grasped. This is not always obvious to outside observers such as parents, teachers etc.

The problem with compensatory strategies is that they are like a house of cards holding the whole thing up, and the demands on executive functioning (which is the name for the brain processes behind self-directed action towards a non-immediate goal, which are highly impaired in ADHD - this is everything relating to organisation, self-motivation, self-discipline, time management, impulse control, emotional regulation) increase sharply throughout secondary school and into young adulthood.

So when something stops working, which might happen because they have aged out of certain support (e.g. homework stops being as heavily supervised, projects are given as a whole thing rather than broken down into steps) or just the expectations of them increase because they are assumed to be able to manage (e.g. academic level increases past a level they can wing it, or they have more unsupervised time with friends) and because they still can't manage whatever thing it is they struggle with, but their compensation strategy to get them out of trouble is no longer working either, everything starts to fall apart and then the pressure of one thing failing leads to the next and it can look like a very sudden collapse, seemingly out of nowhere - particularly if something destructive like drugs is involved.

People will probably jump on me for suggesting it, but it is common and it is one possible factor which could be present and if it is present, it helps to know because there is medication and also strategies (and simply the understanding is something in itself).

I've seen the "sudden" turnaround in myself (went from straight A student assumed to be on track for university, to failing and then not bothering to go to class, getting a really unsuitable bf, dumping him but then rebounding with someone who seemed more sensible but was a car crash in other ways, teen pregnancy, single motherhood, almost drowned with the responsibility/overwhelm) and my eldest (went from doing OK at a prestigious school to just not turning up and scraping the bottom of the barrel with his grades, fingers crossed we caught this in time) and the opposite way with DS2 (went from angry chaos goblin who could not cope with school/school could not cope with him, to the point we were all querying whether he needed a special school, constant arguments at home, to a quirky but cheerful, cooperative and motivated child literally overnight on starting medication).