OK...a bit of background. My boyfriend is the oldest of 6 kids. He has 3 brothers around his age (all about a year apart), a 14 year old sister (Amy), and a 7 year old brother (William). The older boys and his dad are all up north hunting right now, so his mom wanted to go out for dinner with the younger two, myself, and one of the other brothers' girlfriends. So, tonight, we went for dinner.
I get there and William is all in a snit about something. Apparently he was upset that his mom gave him the kid's menu to order off of. He eats very little - a kid's meal would be more than enough food for him. So, he spends about 10 minutes sulking, until his mom finally says he can order off the regular menu. He wants a cheeseburger (which they have on the kid's menu, but they are little ones and he doesn't want those). So, he grumpily decides that is what he'll have, and his sister (who, by the way, is 13 going on 7, maturity-wise...but is also treated like crap in a family of boys...their family has a pecking order...mostly based on age, but Amy, because she's a girl, is definitely at the bottom of the list...unfortunately, in her parents' eyes as well) makes a comment about how he won't be able to fit it in his mouth...and he decides he doesn't want anything. His mom fusses over him asking him what he wants about a billion times before the waitress came to take our order. When she came, he still didn't want anything, so we placed our orders without his. His mom said "fine, you won't eat them"....but I knew that wouldn't last long. Well, our food comes, and he decides he wants something. So, she orders him the adult burger (which is what I have, and with it in front of me, is clearly too much for this 7 year old) and a pepsi.
OK, at this point, I'm a little frustrated by what a spoiled brat his mom is letting him be. But, when he proceeded to whine for the next 15 minutes until his food came, and his mom started sharing HER food with him while he waited, I really had to bite my tongue. Not to mention that his mom kept making comments about how it was Amy's fault because she made the comment about the burger.
His food eventually came, he ate very little of it, and took the rest home for later.
Jeez....why did he even get any food at all? It was 4pm...not even really dinner time. If it had been me and he had refused to order in the first place, he wouldn't have got anything at all until he got home. And I certainly wouldn't have been catering to his every whim and whine. He chose not to order with the rest of us....at very least...he should have had to wait for his food while the rest of us ate ours.
Even after he got his food, he continued to be a pain. A couple times, he hauled off and hit his sister for no apparent reason. He started blowing bubbles in her pop. When we got the mints with the bill, he took like 3 of them (there were extras) and then stole one of Amy's (when Amy tried to take it back, she got reprimanded).
William really is a good kid, despite questionable parenting (not just this...many, many other things make me wonder how my boyfriend turned out as well-adjusted as he is)....from what I can tell, he does well and behaves at school. He has spent weekends at our place, and he behaves well. However, at home, he can be a little terror and they let him get away with it. I've never once seen him punished for misbehaviour....and he has done plenty of things that have needed punishment of some sort.
Amy, on the other hand, gets b*tched at constantly from parents and siblings alike and is the only one in the house that is required to do anything in terms of housework. Granted, she's very whiny and immature, and really does need to learn to act her age, but I still feel bad for her. If William is told to do something, and doesn't do it...then the buck gets passed to Amy. Really, I'd probably whine that it wasn't fair either. William is spoiled by everyone (parents and older brothers)...and I suspect Amy has pretty much been fending for herself since she was 7 and William was born.
Anyway, that is my vent for the evening. What a ridiculous hour of my life!
I get there and William is all in a snit about something. Apparently he was upset that his mom gave him the kid's menu to order off of. He eats very little - a kid's meal would be more than enough food for him. So, he spends about 10 minutes sulking, until his mom finally says he can order off the regular menu. He wants a cheeseburger (which they have on the kid's menu, but they are little ones and he doesn't want those). So, he grumpily decides that is what he'll have, and his sister (who, by the way, is 13 going on 7, maturity-wise...but is also treated like crap in a family of boys...their family has a pecking order...mostly based on age, but Amy, because she's a girl, is definitely at the bottom of the list...unfortunately, in her parents' eyes as well) makes a comment about how he won't be able to fit it in his mouth...and he decides he doesn't want anything. His mom fusses over him asking him what he wants about a billion times before the waitress came to take our order. When she came, he still didn't want anything, so we placed our orders without his. His mom said "fine, you won't eat them"....but I knew that wouldn't last long. Well, our food comes, and he decides he wants something. So, she orders him the adult burger (which is what I have, and with it in front of me, is clearly too much for this 7 year old) and a pepsi.
OK, at this point, I'm a little frustrated by what a spoiled brat his mom is letting him be. But, when he proceeded to whine for the next 15 minutes until his food came, and his mom started sharing HER food with him while he waited, I really had to bite my tongue. Not to mention that his mom kept making comments about how it was Amy's fault because she made the comment about the burger.
His food eventually came, he ate very little of it, and took the rest home for later.
Jeez....why did he even get any food at all? It was 4pm...not even really dinner time. If it had been me and he had refused to order in the first place, he wouldn't have got anything at all until he got home. And I certainly wouldn't have been catering to his every whim and whine. He chose not to order with the rest of us....at very least...he should have had to wait for his food while the rest of us ate ours.
Even after he got his food, he continued to be a pain. A couple times, he hauled off and hit his sister for no apparent reason. He started blowing bubbles in her pop. When we got the mints with the bill, he took like 3 of them (there were extras) and then stole one of Amy's (when Amy tried to take it back, she got reprimanded).
William really is a good kid, despite questionable parenting (not just this...many, many other things make me wonder how my boyfriend turned out as well-adjusted as he is)....from what I can tell, he does well and behaves at school. He has spent weekends at our place, and he behaves well. However, at home, he can be a little terror and they let him get away with it. I've never once seen him punished for misbehaviour....and he has done plenty of things that have needed punishment of some sort.
Amy, on the other hand, gets b*tched at constantly from parents and siblings alike and is the only one in the house that is required to do anything in terms of housework. Granted, she's very whiny and immature, and really does need to learn to act her age, but I still feel bad for her. If William is told to do something, and doesn't do it...then the buck gets passed to Amy. Really, I'd probably whine that it wasn't fair either. William is spoiled by everyone (parents and older brothers)...and I suspect Amy has pretty much been fending for herself since she was 7 and William was born.
Anyway, that is my vent for the evening. What a ridiculous hour of my life!
