Does a parent have the right to know about everything that goes on in their child's life? Arguably not. But you'd be hard pushed to find a parent who would agree when it comes to their kid's welfare, especially if it's happening under their roof.
So you can imagine one mum's upset when she discovered her sister helped to sneak her drunk daughter home in the middle of the night. However, not everyone thought she handled the situation in the best way when she shared what happened next online.
In her post to Reddit, the mum explained she found out her sister had been keeping a secret from her when she was looking through outdoor video footage after their dog escaped.
The parent, 35, shares a home with her husband and their two children aged 14 and 11, plus her sister. "We have an agreement, she doesn't have to pay rent, but help with groceries and watch the girls when needed or get them to or from school," she wrote of her sibling, 29, who she called Amanda.
She went on to explain that her 14-year-old daughter, named Madison in the post, has been getting into trouble recently. "She skips school, and sneaks out. I've found vapes in her bedroom, and weed pens," said the mum.
But she discovered her misbehaving teen's latest antics when she scrolled through the video footage and noticed something strange. "I see Amanda leaving then pulling up again around 45 minutes later at 3 am. She then gets out of her car, goes around to the passenger side and pulls out Madison, who is literally stumbling, Amanda's practically carrying her in. You could tell she was drunk," she claimed.
Enraged, the mum confronted her sister, who confessed all. "She then admitted to me that Madison had called her really drunk, she had snuck out. She then told me that Madison begged her not to tell us," the post continued. "I was so livid, Madison was home that day from school because she was puking, I thought she caught a bug when she was just super hung over."
However, the answer did little to appease the parent who said her sibling "betrayed my trust." "We should’ve been notified immediately," she added.
Unfortunately, the uncomfortable situation then went from bad to worse. "Madison is now grounded, and refuses to talk to Amanda for 'ratting her out,' and Amanda been mostly in her room. My husband told me earlier that Amanda was talking to him about how guilty she feels for upsetting me so badly," the post outlined. But the mum stands by her response. "I feel bad because it's days later and she's still upset, but she has to know she can't do those things," she wrote.
Controversially, not everyone agreed with her decision, however. Responding to her Reddit post, in which the mum questioned who'd been in the wrong, several commenters shared concerns over her approach.
"You were understandably concerned about your very underage daughter drinking, but should have taken a beat to calm down and consider a few things," thought one responder. A second said: "Your sister was put between a rock and a hard place. She had to choose between being loyal to your daughter or being loyal to you and she rightfully chose your daughter."
But another said: "Why are none of you talking about how dangerous it is for a 14 year old to be sneaking out and getting drunk. "Obviously as her mom op is worried and will have to give her punishments and if she doesn't want to face the consequences of her actions she should not be sneaking out of her house and drinking."
Meanwhile, others questioned emphasised the importance of being there for your children as well as setting appropriate boundaries. In an update to her post, the mum clarified: "Before my sister moved in my daughter has called me many times to pick her up in the middle of the night. She knows she can call me. I’m quiet when I pick her up, there’s no yelling or arguing. But she does have consequences the next day. In this situation she was trying to avoid her consequences the next day."
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