Husband makes crazy demand of wife on maternity leave - with a toddler

What he says to her while's she's trying to make him happy is even worse.

"He can't have it both ways."

That's how the mum of a newborn starts a post about her husband in a parenting group, because while she's on maternity leave, he's also demanding she 'step up' in housework.

Despite also caring for their toddler.

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"Should I tell him to do it himself?"

"My [husband] has asked I do a bit more around the house - 'step up' - now I'm on mat leave," the mum begins.

"Ok, maybe, but every time I’m doing a chore he either:

"1) tells me I’m doing it wrong and criticises my way/timing (eg washing needs doing and I’ll get to it mid-morning/lunch time but he thinks it should be first thing so it can be out on the line as long as possible whereas I’m timing it around DS’s feeds/naps/anything else I have planned for the day)

OR

"2) appears whilst I’m part way through and picks up the baby saying things like 'oh, is Mummy ignoring you?' in a baby talk voice."

Naturally, this makes the already exhausted poster feel like she's never doing anything right in her husband's opinion - which he shares often because he also works from home.

Finally, she asks: "Should I tell him he can stop criticising or do it himself?"

Image: iStock

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"How dare he speak to you like that"

Mums in the comments section were outraged for the woman's difficult situation.

"Tell him to record himself speaking to you and listen back and realise what an absolute beep he is being," one advised. "How dare he speak to you like that."

"You lost me at 'do a bit more around the house now I'm on mat leave'. No way he'd have got a 'fair enough' from me on that," another wrote.

And this mum wanted to clarify the situation:

"It's not paid housewife leave. You have a small baby and a toddler. He's rude, controlling, passive aggressive. The only thing I'd be doing more of is considering my future without him."

This woman agreed, writing, "Just tell him no you're not doing anymore around the house. You're on mat leave to look after your baby. Not be his micromanaged skivvy."

Many were appalled by the dad's immaturity, and one asked: "Does he pick the baby up and say 'oh is mummy ignoring you' when you're cooking his dinner? Thought not. Tell him to f*ck off."

Finally, a commenter offered this perspective: "This is not about washing. Go back to work full time and protect yourself."

Did you 'step up' your housework during maternity leave? Tell us about it in the comments on Facebook.

Originally published as Husband makes crazy demand of wife on maternity leave - with a toddler