Reddit Stories - Years of SACRIFICE UNVEILED_ Our Family's Epic Journey to Reclaim the ANCESTRAL Home_

Episode Date: August 23, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #ancestralhome #familyhistory #sacrifice #epicjourney #reclaimingheritageSummary:A gripping tale of sacrifice and determination as our family embarks on an epic journey to reclaim our ancestral home. Through years of hardships and challenges, we unveil the untold stories that shape our family history.Tags:redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, ancestralhome, familyhistory, sacrifice, epicjourney, reclaimingheritageBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. Spouse and I set aside funds for a long time to acquire my grandparents' former residents. During the family gathering, my sibling unexpectedly asserted that I had committed to allowing her to reside there. Oh my! 27F, wife, 30F, and I recently closed on our dream house and it has the family torn. Years ago my grandparents owned the family home, but when they died unexpectedly with a lot of medical debt and expenses our family had to sell their house. It was heartbreaking and sad and I

decided as a small child that one day I would buy the house back. I shared those dreams with my sister. I met my wife when I was 18 and she was 21. Her parents owned a small rental that they allowed her to live in rent-free, just paying for the expenses. She invited me to live with her a year into our relationship and we got married a year after that. I told her about my dreams of owning my grandparents' house and she fully supported me. We began putting large amounts of money back for a down payment in the hopes that the house wouldn't go on the market before we could afford it. Because we didn't pay rent and both had good jobs for our ages in the economy, we lived and we were able to put back a very, very large sum of money. My in-laws also offered us a sum of $75,000 for the down payment

and in total we put back about $185,000. About 20 years after my grandparents passed away their house finally went back on the market at a massive price. The house itself is huge with six bedrooms, a large lakefront estate, and several features including a pool and small guest house. We knew that this house would have a huge price tag and we skimped and budgeted for nine years to afford my dream house. My sister was also house shopping at this time but with a much smaller budget. Her and her husband have children, student debt, and rented for the past several years and were not able to put back money in the same way my wife and I were. When our grandparents' house went on the market, I sent the link to my sister and said that we were finally getting our grandparents' home

back in the family. She was very excited and said as much and that was that. My wife and I moved forward, visiting with the owners and real estate agents, having it inspected, and made an offer. They accepted and we were absolutely over the moon. Throughout this whole process my sister kept saying how excited she was to have the house back in the family and how nice it will be for her children to know this house and grow up in it like her and I did. Our grandparents' house was the location of every birthday, holiday, gathering, and reunion. And my wife and I planned on making it that way again. Which was why what my sister said didn't raise any red flags. Weird that she'd phrase it that way but not concerning. We had a barbecue at my parents' house to celebrate the final closing of our house.

During the dinner my mill offered to kennel our dogs while we were in the stages of moving to keep things easier and them safe and that was when my sister piped up. She asked why our dogs needed to be watched when the real issue was her kids. My wife asked what she meant and she said that her kids will need more supervision than our dogs and that she was confused as to why we'd be so busy that our dogs needed watching. I told her I was the one confused. I didn't know she was helping us move and that if her kids couldn't reliably be left, to their own devices than she absolutely did not need to help us pack. My sister proceeded

to ask why my wife and I would be packing. I told her the obvious, we just closed in a house. For length reasons I'll leave out a lot of the back and forth, but here's the gist of it. My sister had it in her head that we were buying the house to either a, rent to own it out to her family or B, transfer the title to her name and have her pay us back in time. Yes, that is literally what she was thinking, despite us never discussing anything like that once. When I told her that was not happening my sister through a fit, she was pissed because this was her dream too, and that it wasn't fair that only one of us could live it. That since she had children they deserved to grow up in the family home and what did my wife

and I even need all that space for? My wife told her that it isn't the family home anymore. It wasn't left in a will, we purchased it and now it is our home. And we decide what we will do with it. My sister told my wife to shut up and that she had no say in this family discussion. I informed my sister that if she spoke to my wife that way again we would not be having any kind of contact with her anymore. That she doesn't get to assume we're giving her a house and then throw a hissy fit when

she's put in her place. And we left. My in-laws spoke to us on the matter a few times, but all told us we were in the right and that my sister was very out of line. I assumed everyone would agree, but if they did I wouldn't be on this thread. I got texts and voicemails from my parents saying that we were out of line threatening my sister. They told me they were disappointed in me for taking my sister's dream from her and that I don't have kids so I can't understand or want to provide them with a good home and childhood like she had.

That it's only fair we set up a way to give her the house and that we could afford to find something else. Even my more distant relatives have said that it was cruel of us to take that from her. I'm honestly super shocked and taken aback. Entitled people thinking they should get their relatives' houses, but I never expected to live it. This feels surreal and I hate that we're starting this new chapter out on such a sour note. Edit. While this blew up in such a short amount of time. Thank you for your support and if this continues to be interesting and not blow over I'll definitely update.

Yes, this unfortunately is a real situation. And in case anyone is curious. Yes, the house is big and expensive, but it's severely outdated, which is why the size and features don't exactly match the price in today's housing market. Like I don't think any owners after my grandparents renovated a single thing. Also, I am a woman, LOL. Update 1, I can't read and respond to all of these comments, but, thank you. I will continue to update but since posting yesterday morning not much had happened.

I will add a bit more of what's happened since the barbecue. I haven't responded to any messages my family have left. I honestly didn't think this was that big a deal but after scrolling through the comments for a while with my wife were both taking this much more seriously. A security system isn't an option at this moment. The house needs too much work at this moment to have cameras and such set up. They'd be in the way if everything else being done, we'd have to have them remove for several of the things we need done, and we don't even have internet access at the property at this moment. I will be scheduling meetings with some companies to start coming out and working on the property before we get to the cosmetics. However, we do

have someone coming out to change the locks on Thursday. We won't be moving into the house for a bit since it needs so much work before we're comfortable. I've had a few people suggest the story is fake because the price of the house doesn't match the features. The house needs a lot of work. It hasn't been updated or worked on in years and the price reflects that. Also, we are lucky to live in a state where property values haven't skyrocketed too bad. Comments Lurker 78, info, how much did the house cost if you put down almost $200,000 as a down payment? NTA, but your first mistake was sharing the listing with your sister.

OOP, the house was a little over $800,000, but down payment itself was only about $100,000. The rest was used for closing costs, moving costs, and renovations slash updates. It had a seriously dangerous deck that looked like it had been done by the homeowners that needs completely torn down and redone. OOP responds on getting a will in place regarding the house in case if she and her wife passes on. That way her family cannot fight over the legal rights of the property. OOP, honestly I never even thought of this. I've always assumed wills and trusts were enough, but this is a scary possibility. Thank you and I will be strongly considering this. Update 2, July 30th, 2024. Thank you to everyone for being so supportive and offering advice.

To those who suggested getting a security system in place, we are going to do that, but the house is not in a place where a security system can be installed. For the time being we're looking into getting some battery power trail cameras as suggested by one Redditor, I can't find your comment in the see anymore, but you know who you are, we don't have to worry about internet access and they won't be in the way of renovations. We are restoring the house back to its original glory, pre-carpeted bathrooms and mismatched wallpaper. Besides fixing broken shit and upgrading old appliances will be having the floors redone, paint, wallpaper, new windows, and opening up some walls that shouldn't be there. For the next two weeks my wife and I will be meeting with people coming out to work on

electricity, plumbing, and a few other things, and we do have a consultation with a home security company. Along with cameras we're looking to get alarms and door codes and set up an access gate around the property. One of those that needs either a passcode or to be led in by someone in the house. We've already made an appointment to have the locks changed and aren't concerned about my family trying to squat there. My in-laws have allowed us to park their camper trailer on the property while work is being done not only for peace of mind but to avoid commuting back and forth multiple times daily. For the actual update. I was hesitant to post this update since it's so soon after my original post, but I guess enough has happened for it to be useful information.

The events of the barbecue took place last week, but I only got around to writing it all out yesterday. I sent a message to my parents and siblings yesterday evening asking to meet up to talk things through and try and figure out what's wrong and what exactly the hell is happening. Earlier today my wife and I met my parents and my brother's family at his house before my sister arrived. I let them know that if they tried to interrupt or control the conversation we would leave. I told them that I never once even suggested my sister would be allowed to rent out the house or buy it from us. That you didn't know where she got the idea from, and showed them the text strings where I first sent her the listing and every conversation where I updated her on the progress.

My mom asked to see the rest of the conversations about the house and I told her there were none. She informed me that my sister told them all that we had made an agreement that my wife and I would purchase it and then rent it out to my wife's family until they'd paid enough to buy it. That we would live in the guest house and they'd get the main house. She told them that we had went back on our deal and had absolutely shattered her dreams of raising her kids in the house she grew up in. We gave our side and it wasn't difficult at all to convince my parents that we were telling the truth. With the lack of evidence on my sister's part and absolutely no legal documentation,

my parents didn't even attempt to try and back up what she told them. My parents were very apologetic and let us know that they never would have said those things to us had they known the truth and that they supported us 100%. My brother was supportive of us as well, but he was never one of the people harassing us over this so his reaction is less important. Around then my sister and her husband showed up. My bill is a doormat and will give my sister. whatever she wants, so I wasn't expecting much from him. I asked her to produce any of the necessary evidence to prove that I told her we'd rent the house out to her. That her lie was ill-conceived and that she better have a good explanation. She attempted to suggest that I had deleted

the conversation but when she couldn't produce said messages either her story fell apart. She started crying, saying it wasn't fair that we got everything handed to us and that we didn't need a house this big and that we were rubbing our wealth in her face. So to my understanding, she thought she could trick everyone into bullying us into renting our house out to her? I guess? Like some kind of fucked in the head Scooby-Doo villain? Instead of using ghosts to scare us away, she's using a fake rental agreement that she didn't even attempt to make look or sound legit. We let her know that she had a lot of apologizing to do before we'd consider having a relationship with her moving forward and that she wouldn't

be welcome in our home for a long time. At the moment our relationship with my parents is rocky at best, for obvious reasons. They let us know that they're here to support us if we need moving assistance or help with renovations, but it'll take some good, hard thinking to decide if we're okay with that. We will not be giving anyone in my family a spare key, but my wife's parents will receive one for emergencies. The house won't be an estate to host guests for a bit, so we are choosing to cross the can my family be trusted at our home bridge when we come to it? To answer some common questions I've noticed in the comments. My sister obviously has some screws loose, but my parents don't really coddle her. She's what you can consider the golden child and the baby,

but honestly most of her antics up until this point were just one-uping achievements during our childhood or seeking more attention from our parents. She's dramatic, entitled, and a little selfish, but has never displayed this level of crazy before. Yes, we will get a security system but not for a bit. No, my family will not be trusted with a key. Yes, I am a woman. I know it's crazy how can two women be married, L.O.L. My wife and I do not have kids and will not have them in the future. My sister has done some odd things, but nothing is absolutely absurd as this. We will be meeting with an estate planner to put everything into writing. We plan on leaving the property to my sill and her kids with my mill as the executor of our estate for the time being. My sister and her family rent a small

house in town. They aren't struggling per se. They each are college educated with good jobs, but children are expensive and then adding in student debt and $2,000 a month in rent and you aren't exactly living it up. Also, there's a surprising amount of people mad at my wife and I for being rich. We are not wealthy. My in-laws are comfortable and are generous enough to allow us to occupied their rental at no charge. They bought a new house decades ago and just didn't sell their previous one. So they allowed my wife to live there. The down payment was my wife's college fund from years ago. Her parents put money in it, but when she decided to go into a trade, they kept the money and saved it specifically for the purpose of a down payment. When we told them that the house

was up for sale finally, they offered the college fund they had kept for her. We worked good paying jobs but were able to save so much because we didn't have to pay $2,000 a month for housing. We did skimp and save and we did damn well earn it. We lived below our means and spent years foregoing any kind of luxuries to afford something we wanted. So yeah, not as drama-filled as a lot of people were expecting or hoping. I don't see this as the end of it, not at all, but for the time being my wife and I are focusing on dealing with our new house and not my sister. She's blocked on both our phones as of this morning and I'm not sure when I plan on unblocking her. Comments

True underscore True underscore 1593 Leaving it to your sill is mad work. You're closer to your sill than your sister? Oop, the sister who attempted to trick, bully, and harass her way into taking the house we just bought and turned my entire family against us? And my sill is my wife's sister. So yes, she's just as close. close to us as my sister. Closer after the stunt my sister just pulled. Ladder Silabubb 5560. And I would have gotten away with the house if not for those meddling lesbians.

Oop. Okay, this one got me. Every day. Gal. NTA. Your sister is delusional and has made up a narrative in her head that she is owed or entitled to certain privileges. Your parents are crazy for reinforcing that narrative to her. Good on you for taking your wife's side and not standing for the disrespect. Live at underscore Western 71.33. NTA. Do not ever give your parents or sister a spare key or the door code. Ever. Now on to the next story. Story two. Exa's new wife asked my daughter to call her mom. When I talked to my daughter, I found out a heartbreaking secret that changed everything. I, 27F, and my ex, 26, we have a six years old daughter together. Things weren't working for us so we broke up last year and decided to co-parent. We both have custody. He got married

few months back. I don't have any hard feelings or anything for him or his wife. He is a great father, but his wife she's going around saying not only she became a wife but she got a bonus daughter too. Last week my daughter was with her father and I saw his WhatsApp status. A video, she was asking my daughter to call her mom and saying how she just looks like her, how people think she is her birth mother. Without second thought I called my daughter's father. I was mad I had a fight with him and asked him to drop my daughter back to me and I don't regret it but everyone is saying I'm overreacting. Okay, maybe I'm but I can't see my daughter calling someone else her mom. Edit 1. She and my daughter doesn't look alike. She was asking my daughter to call her mom when

my child wasn't comfortable. I don't hate her and I don't wish my child to hate her too. I wish them to have a friendly relation where they can trust each other and be comfortable in each other's presence. Edit 2. Thank you everyone for your response. It means a lot genuinely. I appreciate it. I had a talk with my daughter. Once I have a talk with my daughter's father, I will update you guys. Comments? Neem Nits. Bonus daughter is fine. Asking her to call her mom isn't. Help your daughter find a couple unique nicknames for her stop mother that no one else uses. Barely Awake 2023.

She's insane if she thinks that's even remotely appropriate. I have a stepson and couldn't even imagine asking him to call me mom. Especially when his mom is, you know, a wonderful and involved mom. My husband wouldn't stand for it either because we all have a good relationship and even though they didn't work out he still has respect for her as his son's mother. Update, August 13, 2024. I made a post recently about how much. my ex's new wife asked my daughter to call her mom.

First of all, I'm genuinely thankful to you guys. I thought I was Jew overreacting and was going to leave the matter without doing anything. I had a talk with my six years old and I'm shaking R-N-I-P-K my daughter thought I was going to abandon her. Can you believe? I was dumbstruck I felt like I have lost everything in my life. My lovely daughter light of my life she thinks I'm going to leave her. I asked her why she thinks like that, but she was adamant on not telling me after, her, I came to know her stepmother told her that when I will get a new husband I will leave her

and make a new family. That women she even said it's only her father who will be with her till end. Is she insane? I told my daughter that I don't have any plans of getting married again and even if there's something like that I would never leave her, she going to always be my daughter. Truthfully speaking my daughter still is hesitant she still thinks I will leave her, I've taken a week off me and D my daughter we are spending it together with my parents. After the little vacation I'm getting a counselor for her. I had a talk with my lawyer. He said we got evidence and everything he can help me get full custody of my child.

I've no intention of dragging my ex to court again, but if there's another incident like this, I won't hesitate. After this I had a talk my ex alone. I told him everything about how our daughter feels, how his wife doesn't know her boundaries, how he would feel if I asked my daughter to call a random man dad. He said he had no idea things would turn like this. He only left them alone with the purpose to bond.

I feeling he's lying. I told him clearly that I won't let that women anywhere near my daughter, and if he is against it, we can just go to court. For now we have decided that he can meet our daughter at his parents' house, and after some time if my daughter agrees he can take my daughter to his home, it's his responsibility to not to let my kid alone with that woman. I had a talk with that woman too. She just started crying, putting all blame on me saying I'm jealous of her having my husband.

Why would I be jealous of someone having my ex? I don't have any energy to waste on her petty dramas. About that women I'd cry she's doing all this I gave it a lot of thought and only came up with this apparently my ex-in-laws are against this wedding so maybe she wants to get in their good side through my daughter or she's crazy. I just want to make things right for my daughter. I even came to know that my child thinks she's the reason for our divorce and many of you guys said he ex got married within year maybe he was cheating. Yes, he was cheating. I came to know about it recently and truthfully speaking I don't even want to confront him for this. I just want to leave him peacefully without much drama in life. Maybe someday I will ask him get the answers I'm looking for but are. I just want to focus on myself and my daughter. Again, I am really thankful to you guys I never thought my daughter would think something like this.

If it wasn't you guys I'd if I would have ever came to know. Come nets. Jeepers Creeper 74. You're not overreacting, you did everything right. Talk to your daughter, talk to your lawyer, spending time with your daughter, setting up therapy, talking to your ex and working out a plan that protects your daughter against further alienation through her stepmom. Your ex sounds like a jerk in general, but at least he's

willing to work with you, for now. If his parents are against his new marriage, you might want to make sure ex-mill also knows about the situation and the deal you struck with your ex. The only thing I think you could have done better is drive your ex to a vasectomy appointment. Because act two of this drama is going to occur when this woman has a child of her own with your ex and turns on your daughter. Boop. I had a talk with his parents. They said they don't care about this guy anymore and they only agreed to let him enter their house because he's going to meet their granddaughter there.

Moreover regarding vasectomy, ha-haha, I don't think I can force him, but I hope they can take responsibility if they have one.