Reddit Stories - SIBLING cares for her trio of CHILDREN without any GUIDELINES or limits, and

Episode Date: November 10, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #siblings #children #family #parenting #loveSummary: SIBLING cares for her trio of CHILDREN without any GUIDELINES or limits, and faces challenges and joys in equal measure.Tags: redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, siblings, children, family, parenting, love, challenges, joys, limits, caring, responsibilities, siblingslove, parentingtips, familylife, siblingbond, childrearingBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. Sibling cares for her trio of children without any guidelines or limits, and they disrupt every gathering. When I declined to purchase them presents for the holiday season, she accused me of neglecting the minors. I'm 28F and my sister Corinne is 32F. She has three kids, Jaden, 11M, Madison, 9F, and Brooklyn, 6F. Yes, those are their real names and yes, that should tell them.

tell you something right off the bat. Corinne has been married to her husband Derek for about 12 years now, and they both work decent jobs. Not struggling financially by any means. Now, I need to give you the full picture of what I've been dealing with for literally years with these kids, because this Christmas thing didn't happen in a vacuum. It started when Jaden was probably around four. Corinne decided that traditional parenting was too restrictive and that she wanted to raise

free thinking, empowered children. What this actually meant was that these kids have never heard the word no in their lives. And I mean that literally. Corinne and Derek use what they call general redirection instead of actual boundaries. The first time I really noticed how bad it was getting was at Jaden's sixth birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. This kid saw another child playing a game he wanted to play, so he just walked up and pushed the kid off the machine. When the other kids started crying and his parents came over, Corrine's response was to tell Jaden I can see you really want to play that game, and your feelings are valid, but maybe we can

find a way for everyone to have fun. No apology to the other family, no consequences for Jaden. The other parents looked at her with actual disgust. But it gets worse. At family gatherings, these kids treat everyone's houses like their personal playgrounds. Last Easter at our parents' house, Madison decided she didn't like the ham our mom made, so she threw her entire plate on the floor and demanded chicken nuggets. Instead of disciplining her or making her clean it up, Corrin actually asked Mom if she had any chicken nuggets. When Mom said no, Corinne sent Derek to McDonald's to get some. I watched my 65-year-old mother get on her hands and knees to clean up the mess while Madison sat there smirking. Brooklyn, the six-year-old, has this thing where she screams, and I mean screams,

whenever she doesn't get exactly what she wants, exactly when she wants it. We're talking full-blown, piercing shrieks that would make a banshee jealous. At my cousin's wedding last summer, she had a meltdown during the ceremony because she wanted to hold the bride's flowers. Corrine's solution? She actually went up to the altar during the middle of the vows and asked the bride if Brooklyn could hold the bouquet just for a minute. The bride was too shocked to say no, so this six-year-old spent half the ceremony waving around a $300 bouquet. Now, here's where it gets personal for me. I'm child-free by choice, and I've always been the fun aunt who spoils the kids in our extended family. I love kids, I just don't want my own. But with Corrine's kids, every interaction feels like

walking through a minefield. Two years ago, I took all three of them to the zoo for Jayden's birthday. I spent over $200 on tickets, food, and souvenirs. Brooklyn decided she wanted a stuffed elephant from the gift shop that cost $45. When I explained that I'd already bought each of them a souvenir and that was enough, she threw herself on the floor of the gift shop and started screaming like someone was murdering her. Jaden immediately chimed in that it wasn't fair that Brooklyn was upset, and Madison started crying because she said the screaming was hurting her ears. Instead of leaving or disciplining Brooklyn, I caved and bought the elephant just to make the screaming stop. But then Jaden wanted a $60 remote control car because Brooklyn got something extra.

Madison wanted a second stuffed animal to match Brooklyn. By the time we left the gift shop, I had spent another $150 on top of everything else, and I felt completely manipulated and taken advantage of by some kids. That was my wake-up call, but it took another year and a half for me to really put my foot down. The final straw happened at my birthday dinner in October. I had made reservations at a nice restaurant. Corrine insisted on bringing all three kids, which I was fine with initially. But within ten minutes of sitting down, it was chaos. Brooklyn was standing on her chair trying to reach the bread basket on the next table over.

Jaden was loudly complaining that there was nothing on the menu he liked and demanding to know why I hadn't picked somewhere with chicken tenders. Madison was using her fork to fling butter packets across the restaurant. When I asked Corrine to please get the kids under control because other diners were staring, she told me I was being judgmental and that kids need to express themselves. Express themselves by launching dairy products at strangers, apparently. The breaking point came when Brooklyn knocked over her entire glass of chocolate milk, and it went all over my white dress and purse.

Instead of apologizing or helping clean up, Karine laughed and said, well, that's what you get for wearing white around kids. like it was my fault for expecting basic table manners. I ended up leaving my own birthday dinner early, with a chocolate milk-stained dress and a completely ruined evening. The server looked mortified, and I left a massive tip because I was so embarrassed by their behavior. That night, I decided I was done.

Just completely done with enabling this nonsense. So when Corrine texted me in early November asking what I was getting my babies for Christmas, I told her honestly that I wouldn't be buying them gifts this year. She immediately called me and asked what she had done wrong. I explained that I felt like every interaction with her kids was stressful and that their behavior at my birthday dinner had really hurt my feelings. Corrine's response was to tell me that I don't understand what it's like being a parent and that I'm expecting too much from children.

She said I was being petty and vindictive and that I was punishing innocent kids for being kids. But here's the thing, I've spent time with plenty of other kids, in our family and friend group, and none of them act like this. My cousin's kids are seven and nine, and they say please and thank you, clean up after themselves, and can sit through a meal without causing a scene. My best friend's eight-year-old helps clear the table and has never once thrown food or knocked things over on purpose. Corrine keeps saying her kids are just spirited and know their own minds, but what I see are three little people who have never been taught that other people matter or that actions have consequences. I know Kareen's parenting

style is her choice, and I'm not trying to change how she raises her kids. But I also feel like I shouldn't have to fund and reward behavior that makes every family gathering miserable for everyone else. My parents keep saying I'm the adult and I should be the bigger person, but I feel like I've been the bigger person for years while watching these kids learn that they can treat people however they want without any consequences. At some point, doesn't someone need to show them that actions affect how people want to interact with you? So Reddit, am I the asshole for refusing to buy Christmas presents for kids who have never shown an ounce of appreciation and whose behavior consistently ruins family events?

Update 1, so I got a call from Corrine around 3 p.m., and she was screaming. Like, I had to hold the phone away from my ear because she was so loud. Apparently, her friend Jessica follows this subreddit and recognized the story immediately. Jessica sent Corrine the link with a text that said, Girl, is this about you? Corrine read the entire post, all 100 plus comments, and she is livid. She started the call by accusing me

of publicly humiliating her and her children on the internet and airing private family business to strangers. She kept yelling about how I made her look like a terrible mother and that I had no right to share personal details about her family. I tried to explain that I didn't use anyone's real names and that I was genuinely looking for advice. but she wasn't having it. She said I was cruel for writing about her kids that way and that she never realized how much I hated her family. Then she really went nuclear. She told me that

she's been protecting me from what people really think of my lifestyle choices, and that everyone in the family talks about how selfish I am for not having kids and how I wouldn't understand real love until I become a mother. She said Derek has always thought I was cold and judgmental, and that they've been walking on eggshells around me for years because they feel sorry for for me. That part honestly hurt more than I expected. I've always thought Corrine and I were close despite our differences about parenting. But wait, it gets worse. After Karine finished screaming at me, she immediately called our parents and gave them her version of events. By her version, I mean she told them I posted horrible lies about her children

on Reddit and that I called her kids' names and made fun of them publicly. Mom called me about 20 minutes later. She was devastated and kept asking how I could do this to family. She said Kareen was hysterical and that the kids were asking why at me hates them. When I tried to explain that I never said I hated the kids, just that their behavior is problematic. Mom cut me off and said that attacking children online was crossing a line she never thought I'd cross. Dad called next, and he was pissed. He said I had betrayed the family and that what happens in our family should stay in our family. He told me that Corrine is struggling and that instead of supporting her, I went and made her a laughingstock on the internet. He said he's ashamed of how I handled this

and that I need to apologize immediately and delete the post. The thing is, I'm not entirely sure I want to apologize, because I didn't lie about anything. Everything I wrote actually happened. But I'm starting to wonder if posting about it was the right choice. Kareen texted me screenshots of some of the comments calling her a bad mother and saying her kids sound like nightmares. She said reading those comments made her physically sick and that she couldn't even look at her children without thinking about what strangers on the internet were saying about them. She told me about how she's been doing her best as a mother and that she chose gentle parenting because she was raised with strict discipline and it gave her anxiety

and self-esteem issues. She said she never wants her kids to feel the fear and shame she felt growing up and that she'd rather have confident, assertive children than kids who are afraid to express their needs. I honestly didn't know Kareen felt that way about our childhood. We had pretty normal parents who expected us to follow rules and face consequences when we didn't. I never thought of it as traumatic, but maybe she experienced it differently than I did. Now she's saying that she won't bring the kids to Christmas dinner if I'm going to be there, because she doesn't want them around someone who sees them as monsters. Mom is begging me to apologize and take down the post so that Christmas isn't ruined.

My brother called too, and he was actually pretty reasonable about it. He said he understands why I was frustrated, and that Corrine's kids do have behavioral issues, but that putting it on Reddit was probably not the best move. He thinks I should apologize for the post but stick to my boundary about the Christmas gifts. Derek hasn't contacted me directly, but Corrine said he's disgusted with me and thinks I'm a toxic person who has been pretending to care about their family while secretly judging them. Apparently, he's been telling Corrine for years that I looked down on them, and this post proves he was right. The worst part is that some people in the comments found Corrine's social

media accounts. She had to make everything private because people were leaving comments on her photos of the kids. Nobody said anything directly mean, but people were making comments like so well-behaved. And such angels. In a way that was clear, clearly sarcastic based on my post. Corrine is convinced this is going to follow her kids forever and that when they're older, people will find this post and it will hurt them. She keeps saying I've damaged her children by writing about them this way. I feel terrible that it escalated this far.

I genuinely didn't think anyone we knew would see it, and I definitely didn't want Corrine to get harassed online. At the same time, I'm frustrated because she's acting like I made everything up, when all I did was accurately describe things that actually happened. Some of you pointed out in the comments that Kareen's parenting style isn't actually gentle parenting, it's just permissive parenting with a fancy name. A few people said that Kareen's kids are going to have a really hard time in the real world if they don't learn that their actions have consequences.

All of that makes sense to me, but now I'm wondering if I was wrong to err this publicly instead of just setting my boundaries privately and dealing with whatever family drama resulted. The thing is, talking to Corrine directly has never worked. Every time I've tried to address the kid's behavior, she gets defensive and turns it into an attack on her parenting. She always says I don't understand because I don't have kids, and the conversation ends with me backing down to keep the peace. I thought maybe getting outside perspectives would help me figure out if I was being reasonable

or if I really was expecting too much. But now it feels like I just made everything worse. Mom wants me to post an update saying that I was wrong and that Kareen is actually a great mother. Dad wants me to delete everything and pretend it never happened. Karin wants a public apology and for me to admit I was lying about her kids. I'm supposed to go to my parents' house tomorrow for our traditional pre-Christmas cookie baking day. But Kareen said she's not coming if I'll be there. Mom is beside herself because this is something we've done every year since Kareen and I were kids.

I don't know what to do. Update 2, Jesus Christ, I don't even know where to start with what happened at Christmas dinner yesterday. I'm writing this from my apartment. First, let me catch you up on what happened between my last update and Christmas. I ended up not apologizing or taking down the post, which probably wasn't the smartest move for family harmony, but I just couldn't bring myself to admit I was lying when I wasn't. The cookie baking day got canceled because Corrine refused to come if I was there.

Mom was heartbroken and kept calling both of us trying to mediate, but Corrine was firm that she wouldn't be in the same room as me until I made things right. For about a week, it looked like Christmas dinner was going to be canceled too. Corrine told my parents she wasn't comfortable bringing the kids around me, and Dad was furious with me for ruining Christmas. But then Mom had what she called a brilliant solution. She suggested that Corrine and her family come for Christmas dinner, and I could come later for dessert after they left. That way the kids could still have Christmas with their grandparents,

but Corrine wouldn't have to deal with me. I was hurt that I was basically being banished from my own family's Christmas, but I agreed because I didn't want to be the reason the kids didn't get to see their grandparents on Christmas. Well, Corrine apparently changed her mind at the last minute. She decided that having me come at all, even after they left, was disrespectful to her family. She told Mom that my presents would taint the whole day because she'd spend the entire time thinking about how I was going to judge her kids later. So Mom made another executive decision. She called me Christmas morning and said that Corrine was already on her way over, and maybe I could just drop by for a few minutes to say Merry Christmas and then

leave before things got awkward. I should have said no. I should have just stayed home and watched Netflix like my gut was telling me to. But it's Christmas, you know? And I missed my family. I got to my parents' house around 2 p.m., and the second I walked in the door, I could feel the tension. Corrine was in the kitchen helping mom with dinner prep, and she literally turned her back to me when I said hello. Derek was in the living room with the kids, and he just nodded at me without making eye contact. Mom was trying so hard to keep things normal. She was being overly cheerful and chatty, asking me about work in my apartment, clearly trying to fill the awkward silence.

Dad was civil but cold, he answered when I spoke to him but didn't initiate any conversation. The kids were actually pretty normal at first. Brooklyn ran up and hugged me like nothing had happened, which honestly made me feel even worse about everything. Jaden and Madison were distant, which was probably their parents coaching them on how to act around me and me. I had brought a bottle of wine for my parents and some fancy hot chocolate bombs for the kids, not Christmas gifts, just a peace offering.

When I gave the hot chocolate to the kids, Brooklyn got excited and wanted to make them right away. Mom said that was fine, and I was actually starting to think maybe this could work out okay. That's when everything went to hell. Brooklyn wanted to make her hot chocolate with milk instead of water, so Mom was heating milk on the stove.

Brooklyn was bouncing around the kitchen, getting more and more excited, and she kept trying to touch the pot to help. mom and I both told her multiple times to step back because the stove was hot, but she wasn't listening. Corrine was right there, but she was giving me the silent treatment and apparently decided that meant she wasn't going to parent either, because she didn't say a word to Brooklyn about the stove safety. You can probably guess what happened next. Brooklyn reached up to grab the pot handle, and even though I caught her arm before she actually touched it, she lost her balance

and bumped into the stove. She didn't get burned, but she got scared and started crying. I immediately knelt down to make sure she was okay, and she seemed fine, just startled. But Kareen completely lost her mind. She came flying across the kitchen, snatched Brooklyn away from me, and started yelling about how I put her daughter in danger. I tried to explain that I was actually trying to prevent Brooklyn from getting hurt, but Kareen started screaming that I grabbed Brooklyn and that I was taking my anger out.

on an innocent child. She kept saying I was violent and that she knew I would hurt her kids eventually. Derek jumped up and got in my face, telling me I had crossed a line and demanding that I leave immediately. Dad tried to calm everyone down, but Kareen was hysterical and kept saying I was dangerous and that she should call the police. The worst part was that Brooklyn stopped crying and was looking around confused, asking why everyone was yelling. Madison started crying because of all the shouting. I kept trying to explain what actually happened, but nobody was listening to me. Corrine had decided that I deliberately tried to hurt Brooklyn, and nothing I said was going to

change her mind. Mom was crying and begging everyone to calm down. She kept saying it was Christmas and that we needed to work this out as a family. But Corrine was already packing up the kid's stuff and telling Derek to get the car. As they were leaving, Corrine turned around and told her. told me that I was everything wrong with this family and that she was done pretending I cared about anyone but myself. She said the Reddit post proved that I hate her children, and now I was physically threatening

them too. Derek told my parents that Karin and the kids wouldn't be coming to any more family events if I was going to be there. He said they needed to choose between Karin's family and me, because he wasn't going to expose his children to someone who resents their existence. After they left, Dad exploded at me. He said I had destroyed our family and told me that Karin's kids are the light of his life, and now he might not get to see them anymore because I couldn't just keep my mouth shut.

Mom was sobbing and saying that she didn't understand how we got to this point. She kept asking why I couldn't just apologize and make everything go back to normal. I tried to explain one more time that I didn't actually do anything wrong, not with the stove incident, and not with the original post. But Dad cut me off and told me that if I couldn't see how my behavior was hurting the family, then maybe Derek was right and I shouldn't be at family events anymore. So I left. I spent Christmas night alone in my apartment, ordering food and wondering how protecting a six-year-old

from a hot stove turned into me being banned from my own family. The thing is, I keep replaying that moment in my head, and I know I didn't grab Brooklyn roughly or put her in danger. I stopped her from touching a hot pot handle. In any normal family, that would have earned me a thank-you, not accusations of child abuse. But Kareen was already primed to see me as the villain because of the Reddit post. She was looking for evidence that I'm a terrible person who hates her kids, and she interpreted my actions through that lens.

I get that she's protective of her children. I really do. But the fact that she immediately jumped to your trying to hurt my daughter instead of, Thank you for keeping her safe shows me just how damaged our relationship really is. My brother called me this morning to check on me. He wasn't at dinner because he spent Christmas with his girlfriend's family, but Mom filled him in on what happened. He said that based on what Mom told him, it sounds like Corrine completely overreacted, but

that the family is fractured now and he doesn't know how to fix it. He also said that Mom is devastated because she's afraid she'll never see Carine's kids again, and Dad is talking about having future holidays without me to keep the peace. The irony is that if I had just let Brooklyn grab that pot handle and get burned, Kareen probably would have blamed me for not stopping her. There was literally no way for me to win in that situation. I don't know what to do now. Update 3, I'm done.

I'm absolutely fucking done with all of this bullshit, and I finally said everything I'd been holding back for years. So here's what happened. After Christmas, I spent about a week feeling sorry for myself and wondering if maybe I really was the problem. I kept thinking about what dad said about destroying the family, and I was actually considering reaching out to apologize just to fix things. Then my cousin Kim called me.

Kim is my mom's sister's daughter, and she was at that wedding last summer where Brooklyn had the bouquet meltdown. She heard about the Christmas disaster and wanted to check on me. During our conversation, Kim mentioned something that made my blood boil. Apparently, Corrine has been telling the extended family, that I attacked Brooklyn at Christmas dinner and that she's considering getting a restraining order against me because I'm unstable and dangerous around children.

A fucking restraining order for stopping a kid from touching a hot stove. Kim said most of the family doesn't believe Corrine's version because they've all witnessed the kid's behavior firsthand. But that Corrine is being very dramatic about the whole thing and painting herself as a protective mother defending her children from their abusive aunt. That was it.

I drove to Corrine's house yesterday afternoon while Derek was at work and the kids were at school. I knew she'd be home because she works part-time and usually has Tuesday afternoons off. When she opened the door and saw me, she immediately tried to close it again, but I put my foot in the doorway and told her we were going to have a conversation whether she wanted to or not. She threatened to call the police, but I told her to go ahead because I had plenty to say to them too about her lying about what happened at Christmas. She let me in. but she stayed by the door with her phone in her hand like she was ready to call 911 if I made any sudden movements. The whole thing was so ridiculous I almost laughed. I sat down on her

couch and just started talking. I told her that I was tired of being painted as the villain for having basic expectations about how people should treat each other. I said I was sick of her turning every conversation about her kid's behavior into an attack on her parenting, and that I was done walking on eggshells around her family. Corrine tried to interrupt me with the usual you don't have kids so you don't understand bullshit, but I shut that down immediately. I told her that I don't need to have kids to recognize when children are being raised without boundaries or respect for others.

Then I really let her have it. I told her that her gentle parenting is actually just lazy parenting with a fancy name. I said that she's so afraid of her children experiencing any discomfort or disappointment that she's raising them to believe the world revolves around them. I explained that every other kid I know can sit through a meal, play nicely with others, and show basic gratitude when someone does something nice for them, but her kids act like entitled little tyrants because she's never taught them otherwise. Corrine started crying and saying that she was doing her best and that she didn't want her kids to have the same childhood she did. She brought up the strict

discipline thing again, talking about how scared she used to be of disappointing our parents. I told her that there's a huge difference between strict discipline and basic fucking boundaries. I said that teaching kids to say please and thank you is an abuse, and that expecting them not to throw food or destroy other people's property isn't trauma-inducing. Then I really went for the throat. I told her that her kids are going to have a miserable time in the real world because nobody else is going to cater to their every whim the way she does. I said that teachers aren't going to gently redirect Jaden when he pushes other kids, that Madison's future employers aren't going to send someone to McDonald's when she doesn't like what served at the company lunch,

and that Brooklyn's screaming fits are going to make it impossible for her to maintain friendships or relationships. Corrine was full-on sobbing at this point, saying that I was being cruel and that she loves her children and just wants them to be happy. I told her that loving your kids means preparing them for life, not shielding them from every consequence of their actions. I said that if she really loved them, she'd teach them how to function in society instead of raising them to believe that other people exist to serve them. Corrine kept saying that kids make mistakes and that they're still learning, but I pointed out that they're not learning anything because she never lets them experience the natural

consequences of their behavior. I told her that when Brooklyn screamed for the elephant at the zoo and I bought it anyway, I taught her that screaming works. When Madison threw her plate at Christmas dinner and Grandma cleaned it up while Derek went to get chicken nuggets, they taught her that other people will fix her messes and cater to her demands. I told her that I'm not the problem. The problem is that she's so invested in being the cool mom who never says no that she's forgotten her job is to raise functioning human beings, not to be her kid's best friend. Corrine tried to turn it around on me, saying that I clearly

hate children and that I'm jealous of her family. She said I'm bitter because I'm alone and I resent seeing other people happy. I laughed and told her that if she thinks her family looks happy to outsiders, she's delusional. I said that every family gathering turns into a stress fest because everyone has to walk on eggshells around her kids, and that she spends most of every event chasing after them trying to do damage control while pretending their behavior is normal. I told her that Derek looks miserable half the time, that our parents dread hosting holidays because they have to childproof their entire house like they're expecting a tornado, and that other family members have started making excuses not to attend events where her kids will be present.

That hit home. Corrine asked me if people really talk about her kids that way, and I told her honestly that yes, they do. I said that Kim's kids ask why they can't behave like Jaden, Madison, and Brooklyn, and Kim has to explain that different families have different rules. I told her that cousin Mike stopped inviting kids to his backyard barbecues after Brooklyn destroyed his garden and Madison finger-painted his fence with ketchup. Corrine was quiet for a long time after that.

Then she asked me what I wanted from her, if I wanted her to beat her kids or scream at them like our dad used to do sometimes. I told her that I wanted her to be a parent instead of a friend. I wanted her to say no when her kids ask for unreasonable things. I wanted her to make them apologize when they hurt or inconvenience other people and her to follow through on consequences instead of just threatening them. I said that I wanted her to stop making excuses for behavior that she knows is unacceptable, and to stop acting like anyone who expects basic courtesy from her children as attacking her as a mother. I said that I love those kids, but I'm not going to pretend that throwing tantrums, destroying property, and showing zero gratitude as acceptable behavior just to

keep peace in the family. Before I left, I told her that I was sorry for posting about our family issues on Reddit, and that I understood why that felt like a betrayal. But I also told her that I wasn't sorry for anything I wrote, because it was all true, and that maybe hearing it from strangers helped her see what everyone else has been too polite to say directly. Corrine said she needs time to think about everything, and that she'll talk to Derek about getting some professional help. I don't know if anything will actually change, but at least I finally said everything I've been thinking for years.