Internet Backs Woman Whose Family Told Her to ‘Work Less’ While on Vacation She Paid For
A woman was frustrated when her family told her to "work less" while on a vacation she mostly foot the bill for. Now, she feels taken advantage of.
Sharing her story on parenting forum Mumsnet, the woman explained she "paid the bulk" of her family's $5,000 vacation as her parents are retired and she earns more money than her brother.
"I pick up the financial brunt ... just paid the bulk (75 percent I think) of a $5K family trip away, hosted Xmas, paid for the panto [play] trip for all, paid for the Santa day out at a theme park, paid for the kids activities etc. whilst away on trip," the woman wrote via Mumsnet.
"I do this because I love them. But I just don't think they make the connection between my effort and that cash. I work massively hard to get promotion, do hours of unpaid work, juggle all this with 2 under 6. My husband does the same. Both full time and it's tough," she continued.
Though she's usually happy to treat her family, while on vacation, they kept making comments about her working, telling her "you really need to work less," which left her feeling disrespected and annoyed.
"No one really acknowledged the financial cost to me of all these lovely things we did. All the time mom saying 'I hope your resolution is to work less.' I want us to be able to do these nice things together and my parents genuinely can't afford it. I do however want them to get the link between my effort and our good times and just say thank you," she concluded.
In the comments section, users rallied behind the woman, suggesting she should stop footing the bill for her family.
"I can understand why you feel upset and your family absolutely should be thanking you for the nice things you do for them (for the effort and financial burden). If your parents/siblings can’t afford these trips, maybe as a family you should find more affordable ways to be together, so everyone can contribute in a way that is accessible to them and the burden doesn’t go to one person," one person wrote.
"Time to stop being the family bank. They expect it and are taking advantage. And or are completely oblivious. Take a step back and realize it’s not worth it. It is worth more to have time off with your children and spouse," another commented.