Teen Destroys Stepsister’s Expensive Dress Out Of Petty Jealousy, Mom Makes It A Teaching Moment
Teenagers are always a handful. And as a parent, sometimes you have to be especially strict with them, so they understand their mistakes.
Reddit user u/Otherwise-Cycle-2441 is a perfect example of that kind of strictness. Recently, her daughter made a poor choice to ruin an extremely expensive dress just out of pettiness. So the mother gave her quite a harsh punishment. And after the daughter called her a jerk, she went to r/AITA to ask if she was really a jerk in this situation.
More info: Reddit
When you are a parent, sometimes you have to be very strict with your children, even if that makes them call you a jerk
Image credits: Anelale Najera (not the actual photo)
A jealous teen ruins her step-sister’s expensive dress when they get into a fight
Image credits: Promfy (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/Otherwise-Cycle-2441
The teen’s mother ended up giving money to her stepdaughter to buy a new dress and making her daughter find a job so she could pay her back
For the upcoming quinceañera of a girl named Maria, her parents got her a dress. With all alterations, the price of the dress was around $3K.
Her step-sister, the OP’s daughter, named Bethany, was jealous of the whole party. So, her mother spent more time with her and even got her a dress for the party. The dress, of course, was cheaper than the step-sister’s, whose party it was.
Then, two weeks before the party, the girls got into an argument. Bethany scribbled on the quinceañera dress with a Sharpie. Then, she proceeded to rip the back of it. The whole family got mad at her.
The mother of Bethany, the OP, gave money to her husband and his ex-wife – Maria’s parents – to buy a new dress. And she told her daughter that she had to find a job and pay the full price of the dress back.
Bethany stated her mother is a jerk for choosing Maria’s side and making her pay. And that’s why the mother asked for Reddit’s opinion.
Image credits: Mike Kramor (not the actual photo)
If you aren’t sure what kind of celebration a quinceañera is, don’t worry, Bored Panda has your back!
Quinceañera is the celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday, marking her passage from girlhood to womanhood. It is both a religious and social event. It highlights the importance of family and society in the young woman’s life. It is celebrated in such places as Mexico, Latin America, the Caribbean, and in Latino communities anywhere else.
The celebration starts with a mass attended by the girl, her family, and her godparents. Then it is followed by a party, to which friends and relatives are invited. The party is usually as fancy as the means of the family allows.
So, as we can see, the event is a really big deal for a girl. Someone ruining the dress meant for it can ruin the whole event. And you don’t want to be remembered as a person who ruined your family member’s special night.
Coming back to the story, Redditors unanimously decided that the jerk of the story was Bethany – the daughter, who ruined the dress. According to them, there’s no way to spin the story that would paint her in a good light – her actions were very shady. After all, she’s old enough to understand that ruining such an expensive dress meant for such an important event was a no-go.
Commentators decided – ruining a dress was a shady move and the girl is old enough to understand why she shouldn’t have done it
Image credits: Karolina Grabowska (not the actual photo)
Bethany needs therapy! And pronto!!!! She also needs to be held fully accountable. Mom needs to reevaluate the values she’s helped instill in her daughter & maybe change track. A 16 acting out like that isn’t gonna fair well in her adulthood. And how did she ever think it was ok to act this way or to do so without severe consequence?
In a different context, she could end up having serious legal problems. Destroying somebody else's property is no joke. At 16, she is legally accountable for what she did. She needs to learn NOW to control her temper, or else...
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This is a world I'm not familiar with; the most expensive single piece of clothing I own was like $120.
Agreed, I think the most expensive piece I've ever owned was my HS prom dress. I think it was around $100. I understand the desire to look like an absolute princess for the quinceanera but, like wedding dresses, I will never understand spending thousands on a dress worn once.
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Firstly NTA Secondly everyone asking about the difference in the two girls dresses costs, party's costs are missing the main point! The 'child' who is 16? Should be old enough to not destroy property, to understand she is responsible and accountable. End of story. Else you are raising a 'Karen' who screams at cashiers and servers when she isn't served fast enough, when she isn't the center of attention, when she isn't first in line. It doesn't matter what one party costs or another's, by the way, at their ages why are the costs being discussed with them in the first place? Now that it is on the table they should be part of contributing to the household. Doing chores, having after-school jobs, mowing lawns, walking dogs, babysitting (learning responsibilities) giving money to mom and dad and learning that 'things' have value and when you destroy them you pay for them. At 16, it's late, really late to learn this lesson. Good luck parents.
Bethany needs therapy! And pronto!!!! She also needs to be held fully accountable. Mom needs to reevaluate the values she’s helped instill in her daughter & maybe change track. A 16 acting out like that isn’t gonna fair well in her adulthood. And how did she ever think it was ok to act this way or to do so without severe consequence?
In a different context, she could end up having serious legal problems. Destroying somebody else's property is no joke. At 16, she is legally accountable for what she did. She needs to learn NOW to control her temper, or else...
Load More Replies... This is a world I'm not familiar with; the most expensive single piece of clothing I own was like $120.
Agreed, I think the most expensive piece I've ever owned was my HS prom dress. I think it was around $100. I understand the desire to look like an absolute princess for the quinceanera but, like wedding dresses, I will never understand spending thousands on a dress worn once.
Load More Replies... Firstly NTA Secondly everyone asking about the difference in the two girls dresses costs, party's costs are missing the main point! The 'child' who is 16? Should be old enough to not destroy property, to understand she is responsible and accountable. End of story. Else you are raising a 'Karen' who screams at cashiers and servers when she isn't served fast enough, when she isn't the center of attention, when she isn't first in line. It doesn't matter what one party costs or another's, by the way, at their ages why are the costs being discussed with them in the first place? Now that it is on the table they should be part of contributing to the household. Doing chores, having after-school jobs, mowing lawns, walking dogs, babysitting (learning responsibilities) giving money to mom and dad and learning that 'things' have value and when you destroy them you pay for them. At 16, it's late, really late to learn this lesson. Good luck parents.
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