A Teenage Boy Is Busy With School And Extracurriculars, But His Dad Gets Upset That They Don’t Spend More Time Together
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When kids are little, they spend almost all of their time with their parents, but as they grow up, they become more and more independent and spend less and less time with their parents.
In this story, we hear from a teen who is frustrated with his dad. His dad keeps complaining because his kids don’t spend time with him, but the kids have legitimate reasons for doing other things. Between school, sports, friends and work, there’s not much time left.
Is the dad being a bad parent by constantly complaining that his kids don’t spend more time with him, or should the kids make more time for their dad?
Let’s read the whole story to decide.
AITA for not spending time with my dad
My siblings and I are 16-21 years old, but my father doesnt get that we are growing up.
The last week we’ve gotten into 2 unnecessary fighting and I don’t know how to get this point anymore.
On Sunday, my dad was livid by the fact that my older brother and I couldn’t stay at his house all day and my other brother did not come.
He was calling us disrespectful, how we don’t love him, how much he hates us, and how we never even care about him etc. (basic NPD manipulation but I rest my case)
But they had very good reasons for not being there.
My brother had to go back to college that day, and I was working a 1-8 pm shift at work.
My other brother was at the lake with his friend, where he told my dad that a month ago, multiple times.
We literally couldn’t stay longer cause we had stuff to do that didn’t involve him.
His dad got upset again.
On Wednesday, my dad got mad at me for not spending more time with him.
I got to his house Wednesday night at 10 pm because I had a club meeting.. for a club I’ve been apart of for over 6 months.
I told him I was gonna take a shower, and after I showered I just went straight to bed. I was tired and I have swim practice in the morning.
His dad got upset yet again.
On Thursday, I got up in the morning, sat at the table for a bit then told my dad I was gonna get gas and while I was at walmart, I got some needed hygiene products (deodorant and sunscreen).
I was gone for less than an hour and my dad was livid again at me for not spending time with him, and I was wasting my time doing other stuff and not with him, especially when I had to go to work at 12-8 pm.
Maybe I’m in the wrong and I’m in denial, but I legitimately don’t know what to do anymore. I have my own life now that doesn’t involve him 100% of the time.
It sounds like the dad simply wants to spend more time with his sons. Is he being unreasonable? Yes, but it’s still valid that he’s missing bonding father son time. They need to schedule time to spend together.
Let’s see how Reddit responded.
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This person has a suggestion of what to say to the dad.
Another person has a suggestion.
Here are some ideas of how to spend more time with his dad.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an incoming college student who does not want to share their grandparents’ monetary gift with a medically complex sibling.
A dad takes the dad’s side.
The dad is clearly complaining because he wants to spend more time with his kids who are growing up quicker than he would like. While they are busy and have their own lives, it’s important to carve out time to include their dad. Running errands together is a good idea. Or setting aside a meal time like breakfast to spend together. The dad might back off if there are certain times he knows he’ll get to spend with his kids. They need to fit their dad into their busy schedule.
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