Father Upset By His Wife's Closeness With Her Daughter, Redditors Tell Him To Stop Meddling In Their Connection

"Cassie and Carly have a very different relationship than the rest of us."

Filip

• Published in Interesting
• March 31, 2024

A parent's role is to support their children whenever they need it. Some children want their parents to always be there for them, while others lose this need as they grow up.

Both instances are correct because there is no written rule about when children should stop needing their parents. But, a Reddit user wasn't sure that this parental support in his family was healthy, so he asked online to check other opinions.

The OP has been with his wife, Cassie, for five years and has been married for the last two years. She has two children, Calvin (12) and Carly (15), from a previous relationship, and he also has two sons, Cole (13) and Callum (17), from his past relationship.

Both had partners who passed away when their children were very young. Cassie and Carly share a close bond compared to the other children. Carly still calls Cassie 'Mama' or 'Mommy', and the OP thinks it's so childish.

Their closeness is pretty obvious in gestures like cuddling and sharing the bed, actions not shared with the boys. Cassie also takes extra steps for Carly, like packing her lunch and directly communicating with her teachers regarding grades—actions she doesn't take for the boys.

All this led the OP to believe Cassie favors Carly, although Cassie assures it's just because they're both females. One morning, Carly woke them at 4 a.m., distressed from a nightmare, a situation he hadn't dealt with since his sons were much younger.

After a long shift, he was understandably agitated but waited to discuss the matter with Cassie without the kids present. He expressed his concern that Carly, at 15, was too reliant on her for comfort, especially with college on the horizon.

Cassie called him insensitive for denying Carly comfort, which led to a significant argument. Consequently, Cassie went to her mother and left him to manage their two sons' morning routine alone.

The OP asks:

The OP explained they have four kids, three sons and a girl

But, his wife and the stepdaughter have a noticeably different relationship

The last incident worried the OP about his stepdaughter's behavior

So he tried to talk to his wife, but she got mad at him

A Redditor said the relationship between his stepdaughter and wife is absolutely normal

Calling her mother 'mommy' doesn't make her childish

It's not the OP's business to dictate the mother-child relationship

The OP is wrong, confirmed another Redditor

She just sought comfort from her mother, there is nothing wrong with that

A Redditor said the OP has valid reasons to be concerned

Redditors told the OP that his perspective is wrong. He can't dictate the mother-child relationship.

His stepdaughter is the only girl of four children, of course, she would seek comfort from another woman. If his stepdaughter needs her mother's support, she should feel free to ask for it.

Also, this kind of situation occurs rarely, so it should not worry the OP. The relationship between his wife and stepdaughter is just fine.

Filip