After a messy divorce or the death of a spouse, finding love again can feel so special. That's why one man on Reddit says he felt so blessed when he met his second wife after years of being a widower. That said, blending their two families together hasn't been easy because his second wife came with two daughters and he has one of his own. But recently, the tension appears to have boiled over, forcing him to call it quits for good.
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The anonymous dad recently shared his story on Reddit.
In his post, he explained that his wife was a divorced mom of two girls, who are now 11 and 13. As it happened, his own daughter (now 12) was right around the same age when they met, which seemed like the perfect fit.
Aside from falling in love, the dad was also happy that his daughter seemed to like his new girlfriend and was excited by the possibility of having siblings one day. Best of all, his wife's children seemed to like her, too, and while they didn't call her their "sister" or anything, they were always nice.
But there was one problem: the matter of his wife's ex-husband …
He describes the man as being "kind of an issue" right from the start, but says he felt secure in moving forward with the relationship as long as his own daughter wasn't exposed to the ex-husband.
For the most part, that's how things went for a while. But about two years ago — just after the couple married — things started to change.
"The girls' dad hates my daughter and [the girls] will spew that hate in our home, and will use it to bully my daughter," the poster explained.
Sadly, the things that are said are horrifying.
"A grown a-- man called my 10-year-old a fat, repulsive pig, a wh--- and the reason abortion was invented (to list only a few)," he relayed.
As a result, his stepdaughters have hurled some equally nasty insults themselves.
Not only have they called his daughter "dumb," but they've also mocked her for being shy and introverted.
Eventually, the dad put his foot down.
"I made it clear that could not continue if we were to stay married and my wife was determined she would get them to stop," he went on. "I got my daughter therapy and I did as much as I could to keep them separate. But even at night they started to taunt her."
Ultimately, this wound up being a deal-breaker.
"I made the decision to move out with my daughter and I told my wife our marriage could not continue," he shared. "She begged me to stay. She said she loves us and her girls need me."
But the dad was adamant.
"My daughter comes first," he told her, before filing for divorce.
Ever since, his wife's family has been hounding him to reconsider.
"[They] have been telling me how much my stepdaughters need me, how badly they need to see a healthy and good father figure in their lives, and that I will destroy them if I leave," he shared. "[They've told me] how they're important and I need to prioritize them."
But once again, the dad held his ground, saying that his stepdaughters are not more important than his own daughter.
This inevitably led to some major family drama.
"Outrage ensued and I was asked how I could say that," he shared. "They said my wife was prioritizing my daughter and being loved by her should be enough for her to understand her sisters need me to stay in their lives. And I am an a--hole for saying their granddaughters are not special."
He explained: "I told them that isn't what I said. But they said I dismissed two young girls and made it sound like they weren't worth fighting for."
Over the last few days, thousands of people have read the dad's story.
And so far, 99% of them have taken his side.
"You did the right thing," one person told him. "The only harsh and cruel thing said in that conversation was them implying that you were somehow harming your stepdaughters by choosing to protect your own child from their bullying."
"The girls may indeed need a healthy father figure in their lives," the commenter added, "but if you had stayed in that house and allowed their torment of your daughter to continue, then you no longer would have been the example they needed."
A lot of people accused his wife's family is being straight-up selfish.
"The grandparents only care about their blood family," one person told him. "It's a pretty warped and selfish way of thinking — but not unusual."
"Yeah the in-laws’ insistence that the people bullying his daughter should be prioritized over his own daughter is ridiculous," another person wrote. "He needed to protect his daughter from bullying, which he rightfully did."
A lot of people thought the entire situation was fraught with trouble from the start.
"The ex sure knew what he was doing, going after the daughter rather than OP," one person noted. "OP might have sucked it up and stayed around if the harsh words were only directed at him."
The sad truth of it is, the woman's ex has now destroyed two families — and doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon.
"The grandparents probably know that ex will wreck any future relationship and their daughter will be alone for the rest of her life," one person said. "This is fear is also prob fueling their unhinged behavior."
At the end of the day, this dad did the right thing.
Even if the "right" thing was (and still is) incredibly painful.
"How refreshing it is to see a parent actually walking away," one person told him. In the process, he's showing her that love alone is not enough — it's OK to leave a relationship that's not working or refuse to accept abuse in any form.
"His daughter will remember that her dad had her back," the commenter continued. And ultimately, that's the real lesson here.
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