I have two kids with my wife. And due to some odd circumstances, things are more stressful than for other families. And we started out not-wealthy, as most couples do. One thing I did was commute on a motorcycle to save us money and back then it honestly saved us a bit more than $5,000 a year for me to do so. Because I work in tech, I had jobs which took me a good 20 miles from home or more at times. Wife was able to work locally. Every day - every single day - for years, I would hear my wife complain about me getting home a little later than she expected (by literally maybe 5 minutes), or complaining about how I wasn't there to help with the kids for the short times I was commuting. And trying to be the good husband, I would bend over backwards to make for more time with the kids and give her all of the relaxation time she wanted. All that in addition to continually fixing up the house - both inside and out. Finally one day I'd had it. I had a camera on my motorcycle helmet for safety, and I downloaded the video of my morning commute (the less hectic of the two) to the TV. And in a calm moment, I asked my wife to watch it. Over the course of 30 minutes, she went from having a shitty attitude about not needing to see this and what point was I making anyways to an utter and complete 'holy shit you do that?' And at the end, once she had composed herself, she asked what my point was. And I said, just give me 20 minutes of peace when I get home to get myself back together. She agreed. And that lasted for a couple of weeks. Some time later, wife was ragging on me about how I don't do anything around the house. I said, well, for starters, I do all of the landscaping and yard maintenance (front yard, back yard, slopes involved, removing trees and bushes, installing irrigation - all that stuff). And she replies that most weekends it only takes me maybe 30 minutes. So I said 'Good, then you do it, and I'll do the dishes and laundry.' She agreed. Oh boy. I had the dishes done before she managed to mow half of the front lawn (which wasn't big). I had the laundry done before she'd even gotten the mower to the back yard, all the while complaining and asking for help. And when she got to trying to mow the sloping lawn in the back yard, she all but gave up, asking how in the world I could do all of that in 30 minutes. I asked her to remember when I first started doing all that, how it would take me a couple of hours. But I'd learned better and more efficient ways of doing things and now could do it faster. And besides that I was bigger and stronger than her. And so I helped her with the slope. But then I reminded her she needed to do the edging with the weed whacker. And so I sat back and watched her try to do that. Finally I'd had enough of the horror and just took over and finished it myself. So from then on, when she'd complain about things, I'd say 'Hey I'll swap with you any time you want. I'll work from home, and care for the kids, while you go to an office and do all of the house repairs and landscaping and yard work.' And I was dead serious. We had the conversation a few times. And every single time, my wife declined the offer. And I finally got bold enough to tell her then to shut up with that shit. And finally - finally - she did. Every once in a while I hear some bitching about something or other. And I gently and politely remind her of the things I do to keep our family going. And maybe the tables are turning a little. Maybe. Sometimes I think they're not turning fast enough and I'm getting older and maybe, just maybe, I'm getting sick of this. Quick bonus story: One day she mentioned divorce. And I'd had it. I knew she was bluffing, but I decided I wasn't and would stare right down that barrel. So after things calmed down, I told her I'd been thinking about our assets. Then I gave her a rundown of exactly how things would divide up if we divorced. Sure sure, I know men get fucked in divorce. But I let her know what would be considered 'fair' (intimating that she'd have to fight for anything else). Buy did she change her tune fast, as it turns out she forgot I hold most of the monetary cards here. And maybe when she saw I was serious, maybe that scared her a little. Like just maybe I would just walk away. Because I know (and she knows I know) that she couldn't handle it alone. I could. I could take the kids and be okay. It would be hard for a bit, but I'd make it. Not her. Things would got to shit pretty quick. These days if I go out of town for a long weekend, I'll come back to chaos (like what just happened a few days ago). Fuck. Why am I writing all of this? These bitches don't know shit and need to be put in their places.