Mom cuts off childfree friend after she scolds her for letting her 20-month-old touch her bowl: 'She found it really unacceptable that my baby was touching her things.'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Mar 7, 2026 8:00 AM EST

If she thinks that a toddler isn't going to grab things that don't belong to them, she's in for an awakening when she becomes a parent. 

It's not always easy to maintain friendships with people who are at a completely different stage of life than you. There's a huge difference between a 32-year-old who is single and living in the city and a 32-year-old who is about to have their 4th kid while living in the country. Their priorities are totally different, and so are their social lives. You can maintain a friendship with somebody who is going through a different stage of life than you, but a great deal of the population is unsympathetic to the struggles of someone they find unrelatable. A mom who is struggling to keep it together might roll her eyes at her friend whose biggest problem is getting ghosted on Hinge. A single woman who feels like a failure for not being in a long-term relationship might not care about the politics of Mommy and Me groups. 

It doesn't make you a bad person to feel disconnected from people who are deeply entrenched in their problems and lack empathy for what you're going through. We all go through stages of life where we are so caught up with our own problems that we struggle to care about anyone else's. If you really want to maintain a friendship with someone in a different phase of life, you have to give them the grace that you would want to receive. 

Add as a preferred
source on Google
Advertisement
  • Cute adorable baby boy eating citrus fruit
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • The mom in this story is rightfully upset with her childfree friend. Her friend insists that it's okay for her baby to come over, but then she freaks out when the baby does normal baby things. Her baby didn't cry for hours. She literally just touched a bowl. 

  • I am sad about cutting off child free friend

    Last weekend i was invited to dinner at a friends house. It was our first time visiting with 20 month old baby.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • We where doing our best to keep her entertained. baby grabbed a small essential oil bottle and a singing bowl lying on the table.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • Essential oil bottle with towel on marble table in bathroom
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • I checked in the moment whether it was okay, she didn't break anything, and honestly baby was just being a curious toddler.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • She ended up handing the bowl to my friend's husband, who played along and thought it was Later that evening my friend texted me saying she found it really unacceptable that my baby was touching her things.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • And we had a bit of a discussion about it. I felt a bit shamed. She says she expects parents to keep their kids in check more.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • Ever since my pregnancy, I've felt little understanding and connection to her. She would casually say "just come out for dinner, just bring the baby!".
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • She could always rant to me about all her small relationship. But ive noticed i have less energy to hold space for that.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • A woman sitting at a table with plates of food
    via Victoria Romulo (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • All combined I've decided I dont want her in my life for now. Im feeing sad and angry but also bad about not cutting her out sooner considering how draining the relationship has been.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • The funny part is that she desperately wants kids soon. And tbh i cant wait for karma to come around.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • And wonder if this isjust part of the motherhood process ??
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • s3v3ralattemptsmade Imaginary kids are the easiest to parent
    via u/s3v3ralattemptsmade
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply This made me laugh
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • froyoda4 Yeah that's ridiculous- if I was having kids over I'd make sure anything I care about is put away. It's common sense. Maybe they've never been around kids like growing up or maybe they were raised in a strict household. But absolutely I hope she gets her karma and I hope her children aren't treated like she tried to treat yours
    via u/froyoda4
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply Yes exactly! She has no other friends with kids and grew up in a strict household. In all fairness i really do hope she learns to do better and treats her kids differently
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • Interesting Narwhal82 I was raised in a strict household and my dad told me once that I didn't climb all over everything like his grandkids do. I got the photo album of my baby and toddlerhood and found the photo of me standing on the top shelf of the bookcase. The shelf itself held encyclopedias, so it had duct tape along the front so I couldn't pull them off. My diaper was held together with masking tape, because I liked to climb to the top shelf of the bookcase, fling my diaper off, and then
    via u/InterestingNarwhal82
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply Hahaha yes i also feel shes exagerrating to match her viewpoint
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • AncientLights444 The biggest baby is your friend
    via u/AncientLights444
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply НАНАНА
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • Snarkonum_revelio What do you mean by "about all her small relationship"? It's fine to not have the space for a lot of ranting, and it's fine to be annoyed by her not understanding toddler behavior, but I'd encourage you to take a good look at your own behavior. Did you change when you got pregnant? Are you making space for her life or do you consider her relationships beneath you now? It's possible that was a typo, but your phrasing is very dismissive and it's possible she's picked up on that,
    via u/Snarkonum_revelio
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply Ah fair point. Was not fair to be dismissive. Perhaps "about every small relationship problem" is better phrasing, english is not my first language. However you certainly have a point. We have been annoyed by each other. And have spoken about that at length. And agreed to disagree that were both not on the same frequency with each other anymore.
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • bc202002 Wow this is downright cruel and way worse than OP's friend IMO. Like, even dog trainers say to take one bite first before serving food, but can you imagine the psychological impact for a sad hungry baby who gets used to watching their mom enjoy a leisurely meal while chatting with a friend before they are allowed to eat? That legit seems like how serial killers are made.
    via u/bc202002
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply I agree this sounds way worse and downright r de
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • lifebeyondzebra Maybe she needs to see the Polly puppy episode of Bluey ✓
    via u/lifebeyondzebra
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply Have not seen that one either. Will do hahah
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • MamaMoonstruck Aww shes still learning how to share!
    via u/MamaMoonstruck
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply Hahahaha this is true!
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • nyc-to-tpe-2022 What if you just pulled back a bit? Not cut her off completely? What are the other ways she's been draining?
    via u/nyc--tpe-2022
  • MiniLovesPizza78 Original Poster's Reply I feel like it has been draining to explain the hardships of newfound motherhood to her. However maybe i will just pull back for now until she enters the stage of parenthood again and hopefully we can reconnect on that
    via u/MiniLovesPizza78
  • EvenHuckleberry4331 I'd like to add - the whole concept of what she was saying is pretty dumb and totally lacking any awareness; but I also am off put by her calling to lecture you about it. Like sure friends should be honest, but that was really unfairly forthright and condescending and really un-friendlike... as in it's like she's not even your friend, but a coworker or something. I'm sorry she did that, it was mean.
    via u/EvenHuckleberry4331

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

scolding annoying toddler childfree friends parenting bowl mom
Scroll Down For The Next Article