She Asked Him to Watch the Baby—Then His Distraction Caused a Dangerous Fall
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It is critical to always keep an eye on an infant, especially when they aren’t in a 100% safe area.
What would you do if you put your baby down on a bed, but then asked your partner to keep an eye on him to ensure he didn’t fall off since you didn’t have a crib with you?
That is what happened to the mother in this story, but instead of going immediately to the baby, he partner followed her into the kitchen to try to ‘comfort’ her. As she worried, the baby fell off the bed, and now she is angry with her partner. He, however, refuses to accept responsibility for what happened.
Personally, I think it is clear that this was his fault, and he should simply apologize and try to do better in the future. Read through the full story below and see if you agree.
AITA for getting angry at my partner after our baby fell off the bed because he didn’t go to him when I asked?
I (34F) was on holiday in Spain with my partner R (44M), our 7.5-month-old son, and three of my four stepchildren.
Vacations can be stressful, especially with kids.
The holiday honestly wasn’t very relaxing for me. I ended up doing most of the cleaning, organizing, and keeping everyone on track. By this point I was completely overstimulated and emotionally exhausted.
One important detail: because we couldn’t find an affordable travel crib where we were, we were co-sleeping with our baby. I know everyone has strong opinions about co-sleeping, but it was the situation we were in.
There is nothing wrong with asking for some help.
One afternoon I reached my limit. I put our baby in the middle of the bed and from the 3 sides he was protected with blankets and pillows. He wasn’t right on the edge, but with only one side open, I knew he wasn’t somewhere I’d want to leave him unattended for long.
I walked to the bedroom door and asked my partner to please take over because I was overwhelmed and needed a few minutes.
Why isn’t he with the baby?
He immediately started walking toward the bedroom, so I assumed he was going straight to the baby. Relieved, I walked into the kitchen to grab something to eat.
A few seconds later, instead of hearing him with our son, I saw him walking into the kitchen toward me. He later said he was trying to comfort me because I looked upset.
The only way he could comfort her at this point is to go watch their little one.
I immediately told him, “Please, I need you to go to the baby. He’s not safe right now.”
Instead of turning around, he continued trying to hug me. I repeated that he needed to go to the baby. I was getting increasingly anxious because every second mattered.
Clearly, she had a reason to be worried.
Eventually I got frustrated and said something like, “If you’re not going, at least tell me so I can go back.” He replied that he never said he wasn’t going, and then slowly walked back toward the bedroom. There was no sense of urgency.
The second he reached the room, our baby started screaming. He had fallen off the bed.
He is just making excuses at this point.
Thankfully, after being checked, our son was okay. He cried immediately, was monitored closely, and didn’t suffer any injury. But those few seconds have been replaying in my head ever since.
My partner insists this wasn’t his fault because he had intended to go anyway, I was the one who left the baby unattended and not safe, and that he was only trying to comfort me first.
She isn’t wrong.
From his perspective, I overreacted afterward. From my perspective, I asked him multiple times to go to the baby because I knew he wasn’t safe alone.
I believed he had already taken over. If he had simply gone when I first asked, or even when I repeated myself, the fall almost certainly wouldn’t have happened.
AITA?
He clearly should have listened to what she asked for, and especially after she asked a second time. Now he is just making excuses, which is a very immature thing to do.
Read through what the people in the comments have to say about this difficult situation.
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This is quite an accusation. I hope it isn’t true.
His denial really is awful.
Here is someone who would hate to have a child with this guy.
Is she actually happy with him?
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a sister who let her brother maintain a shared car for years, and doesn’t want to start doing it herself now that he has his own car.
This is actually a good question.
He needs to accept responsibility and strive to do better from now on. When you are a parent, you get to make mistakes, but you don’t get to fail to learn from them.
Hopefully he is actually a good guy who is just deflecting because he feels guilty, but if not, then she needs to really protect their child.
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