While most of us can't afford to eat out at fancy restaurants every night of the week, we'll usually make an exception and splash out on a nice meal on special occasions such as birthdays.
But one man on Reddit has claimed his wife is so determined to save money wherever possible that she has started taking ready meals to restaurants and asking the staff to warm them up for her.
The man, from the US, explained his family doesn't need to cut corners quite so drastically and said his wife has even slashed the pocket money their children receive from $10 (£7) a week to $3 (£2).
He wrote: "For starters, I just want to say we do have money and don't have a need to save money. My wife currently works as a part-time nurse and I work in the local police department as a detective. We have two children, a 12-year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter.
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"My wife has started wanting to save money and it's starting to annoy the kids. For example, we were giving the kids $10 each week for allowance, but my wife decided that $10 was too much and lowered it to $3. I have told her that I think the allowance amount is too low, but she disagrees.
"Another example is that she will buy meals to bring to the restaurant to be microwaved. We have gotten looks before and it's always turned down. It results in her making a fuss and will be asked to leave. I have told her that she needs to stop and that when we go out, I am fine with her ordering whatever she wants."
The dad said things took a turn with his wife when they went out to a steakhouse to celebrate their son's 12th birthday.
Although he had told his partner it was okay to order whatever she wanted off the menu, she still decided to bring a ready meal with her - and the man accused her of "embarrassing" their son on his special day.
He added: "My son was turning 12 and he wanted to eat out at his favourite steakhouse. I did ask that my wife not bring any of her meals along to the restaurant.
"We arrived at the restaurant and sat down at the table. My wife gets up to use the bathroom and we order our drinks. When the drinks arrive, we give the waiter what we want to eat and my wife orders a small salad.
"The waiter comes back over with a meal and says 'Ma'am, we can't warm this up for you.' I see my son and daughter both look embarrassed and I apologise to the waiter.
"My wife spends the rest of the dinner staying silent and wouldn't touch the salad she ordered.
"When the evening was over and we got home, my wife and I began to argue about the evening. I told her that she was in the wrong for bringing a meal when I asked her not to. She started to argue back that eating out is a waste.
"I then said 'Well, you embarrassed everyone, including our kids.' She asked me to leave the bedroom and I am now staying in the guest bedroom."
Commenters on Reddit were divided over the issue, as while some said the mum was "cheap", others noted she could be struggling with money worries under the surface.
One person said: "Bringing your own food is one thing. She asked the staff to heat and serve her own food to her, I assume for free considering the reasoning was the wife being cheap. That makes it so much worse."
But another sympathised with the mum, stating: "Your wife probably needs some counselling as there is some deep-seated issues she has with money and spending. But her actions are adversely affecting your kids and your marriage.
"She has to get help or your marriage is going to continue to decline. I’m sorry. I hope she gets help."
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
