Parenting has evolved a lot, even since the 90’s/00’s. Responsibilities are more evenly split, and the stay-at-home dad is more common than ever.

But in this story, we get a throwback to when sharing duties wasn’t as much the norm… and how one mom clapped back at a her inconsiderate hubby.

Let’s travel back in time…

Mom put Dad in his place after a rude comment and a long few days

My dad worked long haul trucking when I was little, while mom worked part time from home so she could raise us kids.

This occurred when I was maybe 4 at the time, and my sister had just started walking (early 2000s).

Ah, what a time to be alive. Wonder what’s going happen between these early aughts parents?

I know all this because Mom brings it up any time she’s miffed at Dad if he “slacks” on parenting duties (mostly unintentionally on his part).

So basically Dad comes in from days in the truck, sees Mom half-passed out on the couch (she’d been fighting a cold the past few days prior), me watching TV, and my sister waddled up to him with her diaper sagging.

He, tired himself, blurted out, “Geez woman, you couldn’t change her?”

While trying to step around my sister.

Uh-oh, them’s fighting words…

According to Mom (and the way Dad flinches at every retelling), she just got up, looked him dead in the eyes, and said; “You’re in charge of the girls now,” then locked herself in their bedroom.

Power move, Mom. Let’s see how Dad copes.

Dad of course made a small stink about it, but he did change my sister, then tried to get the TV remote away so he could watch something.

Me, a little smart aleck, told him, “Mommy said I get TV today because I read a whole book.” And wouldn’t give him the remote.

Dad stormed off to confront Mom, as the only other TV was in their room.

Mom told him I was right and to “tough it out” through the door.

Mom’s taking sides. Is Dad gonna be tough enough?

Dad had to sit with sis and I while Dora played on the TV for the next two hours (it was a marathon day).

He knew that if he took the remote away from me when I was rewarded would backfire on him (that is another long story in itself).

Then Mom wouldn’t come out at dinner time, so Dad had to make dinner, but I was picky (undiagnosed autism actually), and had a meltdown over what he made (something with whole tomatoes).

Dad’s got his work cut out for him. Will Mom cave and help out?

Dad pleaded to Mom to please come out and help.

Mom told him to “man up and deal with it himself.”

Dad ended up just giving me cereal because I refused to eat whatever he cooked, and Dad knew that if he withheld dinner from me Mom would literally sic his parents on him.

(My paternal grandparents, especially Nana, were terrifying, and absolutely adored us grandkids. Nana even scolded dad in front of us for “not playing with [us] when [we] asked”. Love my grandparents!).

He then also had to make my school lunch for tomorrow, then get us kids to bed.

Wow, Dad’s getting a real taste of Mom life. Is he gonna learn anything from walking in her shoes?

Mom meanwhile kept him locked out of their room for the next 36 hours, using their ensuite and having him bring her meals (dinner, then breakfast).

Dad had to sleep on the couch, deal with my bedtime tantrums, and the next morning my before school meltdown, pack my bag, dress me, then walk me to school, all while dealing with my barely year old sister who would get into everything and was super fussy at the worst times.

Mom’s living like a queen. Bet Dad wishes he was on the road again…

According to Mom, Dad picked me up from school at the end of the day.

(He literally had to carry me home while I had a meltdown because he wouldn’t let me stay on the playground, which set off my sister in the stroller, and he spent the walk home getting stared at because he had a crying infant in a stroller and a shrieking little girl over his shoulder).

That’s when she finally came out, all rested, took one look at my disheveled, sleep deprived father, and said, “You really couldn’t keep them calm?”

Sick burn, Mom. How will Dad respond?

Dad never, ever made even a comment like that again.

Nor did he ever slack off on being a Dad when he was home when I was a kid.

Learned his lesson I guess.

Oh, and Mom still tattled on Dad, so Nana gave him a verbal whooping that weekend when we visited her and Papa.

Then she (Nana) made Dad do all the house chores while she, Papa, and Mom sat and played with my sister and me.

From his wife and his mom! What a wholesome tale of the past.

How does the comments section feel about this?

This person says, two days how about two weeks?

Another woman says, what if she never returned?

Another poster says he’s “that dad.”

This poster tells a similar tale of motherly resistance.

And someone else says, this is basically an old wives’ tale.

Dad had to walk a mile in mom’s practical Keds.

About time, too.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a rude customer who got exactly what they wanted in their pizza.