A mother has sparked controversy after posting her house rules for her daughter, that other people on social media thought went a bit too far.
The Maroochydore mum, who wishes to remain anonymous, recently posted on a social media site, Sunny Coast Community Board, her house rules for her daughter to remind her, “you are part of a family, we are not a motel and I am not your maid”.
The house rules titled “Rules for living in our home” included the warning that if the rules weren’t followed then “you can find somewhere else to live”.
She posted the rules on her daughter’s bedroom door and on the kitchen fridge on Tuesday night so it would be “the first thing she would see when she got home”.
The rules included that on the days she was not working, she “get out of bed by 10am”, and on the week nights she wasn’t at work, she’d be home between 5pm and 6.30pm to “help prepare dinner and have dinner with the family.”
The mother also wrote: “You will then wash up take all the rubbish out. You can then go out with friends until 10.30pm if you choose.”
The daughter would also be required to “clean the bathroom once a week, completely” and keep her room clean and tidy.
“Respect is earned,” the rules read. “You are part of this family, we are not a motel and I am not your maid. You need to show respect to be given respect.”
There was a disclaimer: “P.S. No, we are not kicking you out of home, this will be your choice for not following these simple rules.”
However, the said rules earned the ire of some people on social media such as one woman who wrote: “I’m an 18 year old girl I would honestly hate my parents if they spoke to me like that.”
But the mum defended her house rules and said that she only wanted to discipline her daughter. “We love our daughter to bits, but since she got her (driver’s) licence, she has got worse and worse,” she said.
She added that the family had become exasperated as both she and her husband worked long hours and started early but their daughter would arrive home late and wake everyone out. “We have talked to her so much helping out, to be part of a family. The last resort was to put it in writing and lay down some ground rules,” she said.
Despite some backlash, the mum said that while it has only been one day since the rules were put up, she said it was working so far, and now, she encourages other parents to try the same tactic.
“She was up before 10am and washed the dishes and helped cook,” the mum said. “For all those people who commented it would make me lose my daughter, it worked.”
Source: Sunshinecoastdaily.com.au