I (43F) have two kids: a 16-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old son. I also have two stepchildren: Annie (14F) and Jamie. Annie has been on the basketball team since she was young and wears sports goggles on the court. While it was fine when she was younger, as a teenager, she’s been facing bullying over it. Recently, a teammate took a photo of her during practice and spread it around, which has made things worse. Annie has been begging my husband and her mom for contacts, but they think she’s too young, and this has led to her acting out.
My daughter plays tennis, and I allowed her to start wearing contacts at age 11 for her matches. Annie has been noticeably jealous of this. Recently, she went into my daughter’s room and threw out her contact lenses. My husband brushed it off, saying Annie is frustrated and that this behavior would pass. However, it hasn’t.
To protect my daughter’s belongings, I bought her a safe for her room and now allow her to lock her door when she leaves the house. My husband feels that I’m teaching my daughter to be distrustful of Annie and that I’m being unfair to Annie, who is going through a tough time.
I told him that Annie needs to face consequences for throwing out my daughter’s contacts, but he disagrees, arguing that punishing a girl who’s being bullied at school is harsh. I replied that if there won’t be consequences for her actions, then my daughter should at least be allowed to keep her safe and lock her door.
He thinks I’m being unreasonable and says I’m creating tension between the girls.
AITA?
