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Step-parenting

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Step daughter packed her bags

20 replies

skinnymarshmallow · 08/03/2020 11:24

Any ideas on this. Step daughter is 16 and has been quite difficult from the get go. We had a shared 50/ 50 arrangement. Despite lots of attempts by me to build a relationship with her over the last few years she's been pretty shut off. Ignoring me, eating in her room etc. Lately work has been getting on top of me and I had a miscarriage at 11 weeks a few months ago which I'm still really down about. Dh and I agreed that all the kids needed to do be helping out more and taking responsibility for their own rooms and going to bed at reasonable hours rather than keeping the whole house up. A couple of days after this was agreed step daughter was playing loud music at 11:30 on a weeknight. Dh didn't get out of bed to deal so I got up. I told her off ( nothing terrible just 'what the he'll are you doing? It's late!') which is something I don't normally do and got a mouthful of 'you can't tell me what do do. You're not my mother' called me a bitch... Following this she said she was going to live with her mother because I'm horrible, she hates me etc unless Dh divorces me. She gave Dh an ultimatum which of course he refused. She now won't talk to Dh as he has chosen me over him according to her. Dh is very upset and it's all come at a bad time as Dhs mother has cancer and is in hospital. Step daughter has not made any effort with her very loving grandma either. Her bio mother is encouraging this as well as she's quite a jealous personality and hasn't remarried since divorce 10 years ago.
Dh desperately wants to know how to rebuild a relationship with his daughter who is ignoring his efforts to make contact at the moment. My feeling is to leave her to it until she falls out with her mother but I may be wrong. He hates that she feels she's been rejected. I can't decide whether this is truly what she thinks or just an excuse to be difficult and go live with her mother. Help!

OP posts:
Sotiredofthislife · 08/03/2020 11:31

Why is she not living with her mum in the first place?

Sounds like some space might be good for everyone. Your husband needs to step up and enforce his rules as a minimum. It really shouldn’t be up to you to be getting out of bed at 11:30pm to ask for quiet.

As for mum, not remarrying isn’t a sign of anything other than not remarrying. Don’t blame someone else who’s life you know nothing g about for whatever is going on under your roof. Your husband needs to parent his child and if that means she flounces off, so be it. Door can be left open, surely?

skinnymarshmallow · 08/03/2020 11:37

Sorry the mention of her mother was just for background. She is encouraging this and has behaved very badly in this calling me names etc. I don't want to give details as very outing

OP posts:
skinnymarshmallow · 08/03/2020 11:43

The reason she hadn't lived with her mother before is Dh has always been more hands on even when they were married as he works from home. Bio mother has a very active social life and is away a lot but apparently this will be changing

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TheMotherofAllDilemmas · 08/03/2020 11:52

No worries, believe me, if DSD is behaving like that in her mum’s house as well, her mum will be playing a conciliatory role very soon. Mum needs her free time to catch up with work, house chores and her social life so I am sure she would be encouraging contact very soon. It is very difficult to have them around all the time when you are on your own.

I do think however that as sad as your OH can be, he shouldn’t pander your such behaviour. I’m pretty sure my parents would have kicked me out of the house if I dared to speak like that to my mother, or any adult for that matter.

TheMotherofAllDilemmas · 08/03/2020 11:53

Your -> to

Lordamighty · 08/03/2020 11:58

She hasn’t been rejected though, she has been asked to show some consideration for others that’s all. I’m sure her DM won’t want to put up with that behaviour either.

SarahInAccounts · 08/03/2020 12:08

Your DH should never have let her behaviour get as bad as it did. None of this is your fault.

If she does want to come back after her mother gets fed up with her then he needs to give her a list of rules and make sure she keeps them.

She sounds awful but your DH let her get that way.

skinnymarshmallow · 08/03/2020 12:25

I know it isn't but at the same time it's hard to see him sad and me be the reason that's given for her not being here. He just wants to know if he should keep texting and calling or leave her be.

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LorenzoStDubois · 08/03/2020 12:29

Yeah your DH should have set her straight a long time ago.

i'd leave her to it, back at her mum's.

TheMotherofAllDilemmas · 08/03/2020 15:28

I would let her be, if you pander to the sulking behaviour of a nasty teen, they grow two heads full of serpents. Honest.

TheMotherofAllDilemmas · 08/03/2020 15:30

In other words, if I were texting and ringing my teenager when he is angry, he would only become more entrenched and angry. I would just ignore her and let her come back when she is ready, at this time he needs to focus on his mum.

ColaFreezePop · 08/03/2020 15:36

As PP said let her be and move to her mother's.

Unless you all live in detached houses with no neighbours nearby if she tries the loud music thing at her mother's, if her mother doesn't stop it a neighbour will.

Oh and tell you DH that he needs to step up with his children not leave it to you. If all adults around children discipline the same, then children soon realise what things it is worth not making a fuss about.

HelgaHere1 · 08/03/2020 15:46

It's not your fault she went it's lazy arsed DH cos he wouldn't get out of bed. And that was just a crappy convenient excuse for her to flounce off.

I would say she will rebuild relationship sharpish when she wants money from DH. Or falls out with DM.

Give her a few years and things will sort out

skinnymarshmallow · 08/03/2020 21:11

He is regretting not getting up as it's kind of been the catalyst for this but I think it would have happened anyway.

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skinnymarshmallow · 11/03/2020 21:04

Update on this. Bio mother is

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TheMotherofAllDilemmas · 11/03/2020 21:15

Whatever you do, don’t call her biomum, honestly, she is her mum and you are stepmum, simples. She had done far more than procreating her.

skinnymarshmallow · 12/03/2020 16:18

I don't call her bio mother in the home. I was just using it for clarification here. I posted half a post there for some reason. Bio mother after initially saying she wanted to cut us off is now asking us to have them while she goes on holiday with her boyfriend. So that didn't last long!

OP posts:
Lillygolightly · 12/03/2020 16:56

The thing here is first of all is that house rules are house rules and should be stuck to by everyone.

Enforcing these house rules should not be your sole responsibility. DH needs to actually get up and reiterate to his DD that these are his rules too and not let you he painted into some type of wicked step mother role.

It is not at all uncommon for teens to have these sort of remarks and make these sorts of ultimatums at this age. DD is using the step parent angle l because that is the available ammunition, she would still say/do similar things even if this were not the case.

The DD’s behaviour is not about you, it’s about being a teen thinking she is on the verge of adulthood who doesn’t want to be told what to do by you or anyone else. She has to be shown and taught that regardless of how adult she thinks she is, and that there are rules that we all have to abide by and there still will be rules even when she is an adult...that’s just life!

DD also has to learn that there are consequences to her actions, it’s now up to your DH to decide what those consequences are. He might like to explain to her that while he loves and cares for her very much he will not tolerate someone (even his DD) not respecting the house rules, and that as his wife you pay for this house too and that it also your right to enforce those rules too. He might also like to add that now DD is old enough to chose who she would like to live with she is free to make that choice. He will always be sad to see he go of course should she choose to live with her mother instead, but that she is always free to return home with him/you but will always be expected to abide by the rules of the house. It’s up to her.

If he has the conversation above it removes her ammunition, there will be other battles of course and she may still choose to stay with her mother (though I’m sure her mother has rules too) but this should hopefully nip in the bud regular threats of leaving and her going back and forth between the two houses. If DD is allowed to think she has your DH over a barrel on this matter, than she is going to keep on using it and he is going to be tying himself up in knots to keep her from leaving every time she doesn’t like something.

skinnymarshmallow · 12/03/2020 17:04

@Lillygolightly you're totally right and this is what I've been saying to him. The step mother ammunition is just an easy excuse for her. The thing is though now I think her mother wants to get her back to us as she's had a couple of weekends of being the sole parent and I think dh will just be so grateful to get her back he'll back down on all rules etc

OP posts:
LittleLittleLittle · 13/03/2020 11:59

OP then you have a DH problem.

Do you have any older mutual friends who are sensible? He needs it explained to him going down the easy path with children doesn't guarantee they will respect you and want to see you when they are adults as all relationships need boundaries.

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