Hello!

If you’ve ever craved just a moment’s peace and quiet to hear your own thoughts, you’ll sympathise with this mum who wants nothing more than a blissful, child-free Mother’s Day.

The mum has confessed to being thrilled with the idea of not having her children home on Mother’s Day, but is wondering if it makes her an a**hole. The mum, aged in her 40s, has primary school aged children, and while she adores them, she needs a break.

“First, I love them more than words, yadda yadda,” she explained on reddit. “Husband is awesome and we have a great relationship. He definitely does his share of child rearing (not exactly 50/50 due to logistics of our jobs) but definitely does more housework than I do. We are really one of those happy families.

“But. I’m TIRED. And crave QUIET. I do drop-off every morning because hubs goes to work at 6am. Getting the kids up, dressed, fed, packed and off to school – ranges from seamless cheerful mornings (rare) all the way to all of us screaming and crying and punishments threatened (luckily also rare). But, kids will be kids and so the 10th time of ‘Mum? Mum? Maaam? Maaaaaammmm!’ from two floors away (while I’m in the bathroom no less), combined with “X hit me”, “Y stole my spoon”, “I forgot to do my homework”, “I can’t find my shoes”, drive me effing batty.”

“I work a full day at a semi-demanding job where I talk to people most hours of the day. Weekends are generally pretty chill without too many commitments with maybe an hour or two where the kids are preoccupied and I can have ‘me time’ to read a book or stare at TikTok or whatever.”

‘I get an entire day to myself’

Sounding familiar? The frazzled mum says she has the opportunity to enjoy some solid child-free time over Mother’s Day weekend – and she’s grabbing it with both hands!

“Hubs volunteered to take the kids Friday afternoon to FIL’s house and be back Sunday afternoon. (Mother’s Day). I love this idea as it gives me TWO mornings to sleep in and an entire full day to myself. Plus the kids love FIL’s house and will have a blast.”

While she’s completely fine with the situation, her friends and family have weighed in with varying opinions.

“Well – to hear others’ reactions – the fact that I will wake up Sunday morning to a quiet house obviously means I am a horrible person and really don’t love my kids at all. I mean, (gasp!) what MOTHER doesn’t want to spend Mother’s Day with her CHILDREN!’ Hi, Yes, that would be me. Someone even told my husband he was the a**hole for making Mother’s Day about him and his family (who I love btw).

“I want time to myself but please tell me – am I the a**hole? (This is happening regardless … so more just curious on how bad I should feel about it).”

Hmmm … what a tricky one! Let us know what you think in the comments below.

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  • Each to their own.
    I liked to spend time with my kids. When they are older and have moved away from home and cant visit for special occassions thats when I will have child free Mothers Days.

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  • If that’s what mum wants on Mother’s Day then who is to tell her she’s wrong?

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  • Nothing wrong with some time for yourself !

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  • A day off to just worry about me and do stuff just for me, eat a hot meal in piece would be amazing but it is highly unlikely. A girl can only dream

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  • I wish I will be able to have a day off just for myself

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  • Maybe next year for me…

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  • Me time is important. I completely understand kids being everything (can’t tell you when I last had a sleep in) but if your run down you can’t give your babies your everything. I think we do that for our husbands on father’s Day. Enjoy whatever free time you manage to grab!

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  • Everyone needs a little me time. If you take time for yourself you will have more to give your children.

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  • Definitely not like you will get time to your self the kids will be bursting with excitement to see you when they have returned and you will be eager to see them all too. No doubt your day will be showered with love and attention so i dont see at all them gone a few hours in the morning makes any difference

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  • No it doesn’t make you bad for wanting it.

    I told my kids I would like a weekend away for me. Just so I can have some me time, relax and refresh.

    Sometimes we need to have time out in order to be on top of life demands and hectic pace

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  • I don’t think so

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  • I don’t think it makes you selfish, but personally I love spending the day with my son and family, I can have a kid free day another day, mothers day is about being with the kids after all, thats the only reason you’re a mum!

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  • I think it’s a wonderful idea. Everyone has a great time and it’s not like you won’t see them on Mother’s Day. The fact that it was your husband’s idea shows that he knows how much it would mean to you. To answer your question though, no it doesn’t mean you’re an a**hole for looking forward to having the time to yourself, I’m sure deep down it’s what a lot of us would like (just not too often). It’s a win/win for everyone. Hope you had a very Happy Mother’s Day.

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  • I think it’s a great idea and the kids can give Grandma a breakfast in bed instead. Win win all round. The presents they have made for you at school can still be given when they get home on Sunday and you will feel better for having had some time to yourself. One day you might regret this, but at this stage it is what you want and need.

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  • Haha we had a kid free dinner so I cant complain. It was lovely

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  • Haha, I do get it. In my house, I ask for a day where I don’t have to consider any meals eg. brekky, lunch, dinner. Someone else has to take total charge. Hubby actually does that for me. I can see a nice quiet day of doing what I want would be appealing, but I figure our kids grow up and we will get that soon enough anyway.

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  • You can’t be the best mum for your kids of you don’t take care of yourself, that includes your mental health. I totally get needing a day or two to recharge. Self care is important and we need to stop mum shaming, and normalise self care.

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  • It’s called self-care. Taking care of herself, putting her needs first. I think every Mother at some stage in life has thought that – needing my time alone, no kids, partner or husband. If that what she wants, then grant her the wish.

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  • If that’s what she really wants she should get that- it’s her day. But she should still allow her kids time to give her gifts and maybe make her breakfast.

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  • I don’t think you are horrible for wanting to have me time. You can’t always be the best mum if your cup is empty. If it was me, I’d do mothers day with the kids and have a me weekend another weekend (either before or after).

    Reply

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