My girlfriend and I met on a singles cruise to Jamaica. We literally bumped into each other on the ship and were inseparable for the remainder of the trip. When we got back to land and stateside, we decided to keep the party going and stayed in close contact with each other. Now two years later, we are embarking on new beginnings across the board.
Last month, I decided to introduce her to my 7-year-old daughter, and she introduced me to her 5-year-old daughter. I was so nervous to meet her daughter but was also glad to see that we trusted each other enough to bring the kids into the fold. We had dinner at a family-friendly restaurant, just the four of us, and afterward, we went skating. A great time was had by all, and we agreed to hang out once a month collectively.
Related: I Don’t Like Being a Mother and My Friends Are Judging Me for Having Around-the-Clock Nannies.
My girlfriend and I had plans to hang out this past weekend alone, but my ex-wife had to go out of town for work unexpectedly, and I ended up having to watch my daughter. My girlfriend came over to my place with her daughter, and we watched movies and played games. After all of that, the girls decided they wanted ice cream. Instead of packing everyone up in the car, I ran to the store solo, and my girlfriend stayed back to watch the girls.
I wasn’t gone more than 30 minutes, and upon my return, I walked into World War III. My daughter immediately ran to my side, and both of the kids were in tears.
My daughter was repeatedly saying that my girlfriend had hit her just because she wanted to play with my girlfriend’s daughter’s toy. Once I was able to get things settled down, I asked what had happened, and my girlfriend explained. She said that the girls were tussling over a toy and that my daughter hit her daughter. Reflexively, my girlfriend swatted my daughter, popping her on the leg softly from what she explained.
Needless to say, this incident has caused a bit of a rift between me and my girlfriend. My ex-wife is most certainly up in arms and is demanding a face-to-face discussion with me and my girlfriend. My girlfriend feels as though she doesn’t need to be involved in a meeting of the minds and wants to address the matter with me and me only.
Should I ban my girlfriend from disciplining my daughter altogether, or should she be allowed to exercise authority over my 7-year-old?
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