I hate being tasked as an admin! And not having a partner to enforce parenting rules
Something that drives me crazy is how my husband treats me like his admin - he'll ask me to start a task for him that he will just end up eventually doing himself (because it is directly for him and I can only do so much on behalf of another adult), or he'll talk to me about our kids instead of directly communicating what he wants TO the kids. Like he expects me to take his thoughts and pass them along to the "staff".
Examples:
- He asked me to look at options for him to upgrade his phone through our current carrier. I looked, told him the options, but he ultimately went in and looked himself any way. So why have me start this task?
- He asked me if our 16 year old received a W2 from her (first) employer for tax purposes. My knowledge of this is equal to his. As in, I have no idea, and the only way to find out is for me to ask our kid. Why doesn't he just ask her himself?
And yet when I ask him for his partnership in committing to and enforcing standards at home, he rarely does it. For instance, I asked him "do you think it's ok for our teens to sit in their rooms all weekend, most likely on their devices?" He says no. But when I ask him to help me come up with some ground rules and then actually enforce them, he doesn't do it. So I am left to being the only parent "parenting" them.
Or when I say "instead of complaining that the kids don't take out the trash, can you please ENFORCE this by reminding them?" - he says yes, but then continues to take out trash and grumble about it. Because - wait for it - the kids are always in their rooms!
Posted Feb 4, 2026, 6:31 PM UTC