He’s Uncomfortable With His Stepson Calling Him Dad, But His Wife Accused Him Of Rejecting The Little Boy
If you’re a stepparent or foster parent, there are often a lot of emotions that run through you when your stepchild or kid calls you “mom” or “dad.”
One man recently upset his wife after he told her he was uncomfortable with his stepson calling him ‘dad’ because he already has a dad.
He’s 38 and has three kids with his current wife and a six-year-old stepson named Michel.
He and his wife were high school sweethearts, and she got pregnant with their first child when they were in college. However, his wife had a male best friend named Keith, who was clearly in love with her.
After he and his wife started a family and were raising kids together, she up and left him for Keith a few years ago and brought their kids with her. Not long after getting together with Keith, her mom had a son with him, Michel.
“I guess Keith had been whispering in her ear about all the things she missed out on being with me, and she left me for him,” he said.
“Fast forward about two years, and Keith was a controlling [jerk]. My wife got out of the fog, saw how he manipulated her and begged for me back. I’ll admit I was heartbroken and wanted her back, so I jumped at the chance.”
He and his wife are still married and had another child together. They’ve gone through marriage counseling and share custody of Michel with Keith, although Michel mostly lives with them. Despite Keith’s flaws, he’s been a very involved father and is a great parent to Michel. He pays child support and all his living expenses.
While Keith is great with Michel, he and Michel also have a special relationship. However, Michel started doing something that made him uncomfortable.
DimaBerlin – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
“Michel has been switching between calling me dad and my name,” he explained.
“He’s [only] called me by my name for years, so this confused me. I sat him down and asked him what was up, and he told me I was like a dad to him and [that his] mommy said he can have two dads. I told him that was sweet, but he already had a dad who loved him very much.”
When he told his wife what was going on, she was overjoyed, as she wanted them to be a big, happy family and didn’t want Keith in her life anymore.
He told her that while he loves Michel and is glad he sees him as a father figure, he’s not comfortable being called ‘dad.’
He told his wife he could get Michel to call him something else, but she wasn’t happy with that at all. His wife had an outburst and called him heartless, accusing him of ‘rejecting’ Michel.
How should he approach this delicate situation with his wife and stepson?
You can read the original post on Reddit here.
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