The Challenge Of Towels
You would not believe how much “towels” are a source of contention in blended families!
Whether it’s the stepkids using too many towels, or they don’t hang them up to dry. Instead, they just leave them laying on the floor. We all know that damp towels just sitting on the floor cannot only make them smell horrible, but they can also get mildewy. And let’s face it, no one wants stinky, mildewy towels!
Why Is It A Big Issue In Stepfamilies
It can definitely be an issue in nuclear families as well, but blended families come with extra challenges. The ideal situation would be the stepparent asking the bio parent to handle the issue and the bio parent does so without complaint. But, that doesn’t always happen.
Just because the stepparent has an issue with the towels, doesn’t mean the bio parent does. The bio parent not seeing it as an issue can frustrate the stepparent.
The stepparent wants the bio parent to make their bio kid pick up the towels or not use so many of them. And unfortunately, it can come across to the stepparent as the bio parent is siding with their bio kid and not supporting them as the stepparent. The bio parent can feel that the stepparent complaining about the towels is just another way for the stepparent to complain about their kid and the bio parent’s parenting, or lack of parenting.
What Can You Do
Some stepparents can Nacho towels easier than others. Meaning they determine the towel issue is not one they want to waste energy fighting about or their hill to die. They choose not to fight about it and let it go.
If you can’t Nacho the towels and your significant other doesn’t seem concerned about the towels, what are your options?
One option is to assign different colored towels for each kid. We used white towels with different color stripes. Each kid had their own “color”. If they chose to their towel on the floor and let it get stinky, then they could either wash it or use a stinky towel. Their choice.
Another option is you can keep your own stash of towels in your own bathroom so you don’t worry about the stepkids messing up the ones you use.
Or, if the stress of the towels sitting damp on the floor causes you more stress than just picking up the towel, then pick up the towels.