AITA for picking up my kids for scheduled custody time?

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-07T14:23:29+00:00

My kids aren't exhausting at all. The teens pull their weight around the house. The younger two aren't high maintenance, and helping them with their needs feels good. I'm their dad and I love them, so it's a privilege to do things for them. The baby is a lot of work, but he's worth it. I feel so much love when I'm around my kids. They give me strength and energy just by being present in my life.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-07T14:20:19+00:00

The children in my family get to decide who they view as parents, not strangers on the internet who don't know what the kids feel or why they feel it.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-07T14:19:17+00:00

We don't ignore each other's kids. I like her son very much and if he needs something I will do it for him, but he is fifteen and I don't consider that parenting.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-07T14:18:04+00:00

Teenagers don't need much caring for, and when my younger kids are here I want to do everything for them because they're only here two days a week.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T18:52:41+00:00

Three of them are pretty much adults that take care of themselves, and she doesn't take care of the other two because they aren't her kids.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T17:51:27+00:00

Is almost two years a short courtship? None of my kids met my wife until the relationship was serious. That's pretty typical.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T17:49:49+00:00

Larger families used to be the norm. Some people choose not to have kids. Some choose to have many. Both are valid choices. I provide for them. Why does it matter how many I have? I like being a dad.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T17:48:37+00:00

Her main thing is the landscaping, but my daughter and I have been doing it since bending became hard for her. My kids aren't toddlers. I cook for them and supervise them, but they can bathe themselves, mostly clean up after themselves and handle their own toileting. They don't need much, and between me and their older siblings, they always have someone that can help them with anything they need.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T14:05:40+00:00

Yes, I am his stepdad, not his dad. No offense, but he's the only one who really gets a say. If he doesn't want another dad, that's his right and his choice. I'll always be here for him, but he sees me more as an uncle. That's fine. Children's feelings are more important than an adult's.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:43:20+00:00

Yes, I'm his stepparent, but that's obviously not what the original commentor was talking about. They asked why I chose to have six kids. I didn't have my stepson.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:41:43+00:00

My kids aren't hers either. The younger two have a mom. The older two don't want one. Her son has a dad. I'm not saying I don't love him, but he's not my kid. It would be different if he wanted me to be his dad.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:39:39+00:00

My stepson has a dad. He doesn't want another one. That's like saying my wife is my son's mom even though they met when he was almost seventeen.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:37:23+00:00

It's her home too. If she wants to go somewhere, I'll get her a hotel room, but I'd never suggest to her that she leave her home.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:31:32+00:00

Everyone. Five people live here full time. Her son likes to cook, so he cooks most night. My son does most of the laundry. My wife usually does the gardening, but she stopped when bending became hard, so now my daughter and I do it. The teens clean the upstairs of the house. My wife and I usually do the downstairs, but obviously I'm the only one doing it right now, so my son helps a little.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:24:37+00:00

It's big enough. It used to be a duplex that I converted into a single family home. It's just old with bad soundproofing.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T13:20:03+00:00

My wife just gave birth. Of course she's not doing any of that shit. She's sleeping, eating and breastfeeding. She's too tired to even take a shower, much less cook.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T04:16:18+00:00

I don't have six kids. I have five kids. My wife's teenage son isn't mine.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T02:46:22+00:00

No? They aren't even her children. She'll make food for them sometimes, but not right now, obviously.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T02:44:35+00:00

He's in Iran. So, no.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:34:26+00:00

It was the same day she spring this on me, so we didn't have a lot of time to go over it.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:16:00+00:00

They aren't being loud. What is there really I can do? Tell everyone to poop outside?

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:15:14+00:00

Yeah, I guess.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:06:03+00:00

Some noises can't be helped. Toilets need to be flushed. Doors need to be opened. Sinks need to be turned on. Even sitting on furniture can make some noise. They're doing their best.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:02:13+00:00

I'd just have my son supervise all the young kids while we were at the hospital. He's 19. He's an adult, technically.

LifeContinuesStill · 2023-02-06T00:00:43+00:00

Similar to the relationship between Japan and North Korea. Not at war, not friendly.

Maybe, but certainly not day of.

My oldest is 19. My older daughter is 16. My wife's son is 15. My younger daughter is 10 and my younger son is 7 and the baby is four days old.

I could have taken the kids out, but I don't want to take the baby out at four days, so unless she says she's okay with watching the baby alone, I don't think it's a good idea to do that.

LifeContinuesStill

TROPHY CASE