My toddler calls my ex's new wife 'mama' - the man allows it
"Because she is his mum when you're not there," the ex bravely told the mother of his child.
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A mum has taken to TikTok to vent after discovering her toddler has been calling her ex-husband's new wife 'mama'.
"I just met up with my ex-husband to exchange our son and I found out that my toddler has been calling my ex-husband’s new wife ‘Mama,'" Michelle Kimball says in the clip, which has since amassed thousands of views and comments.
"So when he said it in the car I was like huh? So I marched my butt over to the car where he was and asked, 'Has Ryder been calling her mama?'
"And he said yeah because she is his mum when you're not there."
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"I birthed him"
But Michelle sternly told him that she is not his mum as she is the only one who gets that "privilege."
"I just want to know how you guys feel about this. Am I just in my emotions of being upset about this?
"Because I birthed him. Because personally, I am the only one who gets to be called [mum]."
She also reveals that her parents didn't stay together when she was a kid either and she "couldn't imagine" calling someone else mum back then.
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"Way out of line"
The comments were equally split, with some saying they too would feel hurt, while others shared experiences of calling their own stepmums 'mum'.
"I would lose my sh*t," one comment bluntly said, racking up 29k likes.
"His response to you was disrespectful," someone wrote.
"Yep, way out of line," a third agreed. "It doesn’t matter if she’s around or not. She is always his mother and should be treated as such no matter if mum or dad are together."
"She is NOT his mum!" another viewer supported.
Others pointed out that the new wife "shouldn't be okay with that."
Michelle replied: "I agree! She has kids!!!!! She is good to Ryder so I’m not trying to dog her, but I’m really hurt. How would she feel if her kids called someone else mama?"
Then, others tried to make Michelle see a different perspective.
"My boys call their stepmum Mama, and I’m totally okay with it. She is there when I can’t be and treats them like her own. It may seem like the worst thing in the world, but those babies are loved," one person offered.
Another voiced: "As a kid who got in trouble for calling my step mum, mum. Don’t bring this up to your son. My step mum was literally a second mum to me and it hurt me that my mum would get mad at me for it."
"It depends if your son wanted to do that or did your ex tell him to. If it was your ex's idea it's not okay but if it's your child's idea I think you should respect it," one person advised.
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Originally published as My toddler calls my ex's new wife 'mama' - the man allows it