I recently babysat my grandchildren (5 and 4) for four nights and five days so that my son and his wife could attend a wedding in Mexico and enjoy a few days of vacation. They sought me because her mother would be unavailable, and I immediately expressed my discomfort.
It felt like a long time to watch the kids, and she stated unequivocally that the woman’s family is more important than the man’s, so I was annoyed that I was asked rather than her mother. I’ll admit that I caved when my son became very upset, but I felt/feel that they were manipulative.
While I had the kids, I was invited to a birthday party in Epcot and wanted to go. It never occurred to me to run it by my son or daughter-in-law, as I had the kids for a lengthy amount of time and they were certainly aware that they would be accompanying me.
My daughter-in-law had previously expressed a desire to save money for Disney, but she had done so for a variety of reasons and had never made it clear that it was anything significant to her. Also, it was Epcot. It’s not like I took them to the Magic Kingdom and they had a fantastic moment with their favorite character.
When they returned and discovered the truth, my daughter-in-law was enraged and fell into tears. She said I snatched one of her children first and labeled me entitled. To be honest, I didn’t take well to being branded entitled when she had previously requested babysitting. My son asked me to apologize because she was upset about missing their first Disney trip, but I declined and asked them to go.
My son contacted out again, saying I should have asked for something that huge, and his wife feels chєαtÑ”d. I understand she is a major Disney fan, but it was Epcot, not the original Disney, and I don’t think I should have had to miss out on a birthday party I wanted to attend. I informed my son I was not apologizing for anything, and that they should consider how they made me feel when they ignored my original no.
