I feel my son expects me to dump my wife after a disastrous family holiday but I love her

DEAR DEIDRE: AFTER a disastrous family holiday, my son says he never wants to see my wife – his step-mum – again.

I’m 65 and this is my second marriage.

My wife is younger and doesn’t have kids, but she seemed to get along well with my son, his partner and their five-year-old daughter.

Whenever they visited us, it was always fun, so I arranged for us all to go away together last summer.

I booked two caravans next to each other by the sea. I thought it would be lovely. Instead, it all fell apart on the third night.

While I was cooking, I heard shouting coming from my son’s caravan.

My wife came in crying with my son following, angrily claiming my wife had shouted at his daughter for borrowing her make-up.

The next morning, my son packed up and they all went home.

When we got back, I tried to patch things up but my son is adamant that he won’t be in the same room as my wife again.

I’m caught in the middle. I feel he expects me to dump her but I love her, and I don’t want to go through another divorce.

MORE FROM DEAR DEIDRE

DEAR DEIDRE

My dad installed CCTV cameras as he's convinced my mum has been cheating on him

BAD HABIT

I am addicted to vaping and think about it as soon as I wake up

DEIDRE SAYS: No family gets along all the time. Fallouts are sometimes inevitable, especially on holidays. Does your wife feel she did anything wrong?

Would she consider apologising to your granddaughter for shouting? It is always better to reprimand children calmly and clearly so they understand exactly what they have done wrong.

Your family is important to you, so arrange a calm get-together with your son and wife, explain you love them both and need them to sort out some guidelines to avoid future blow-ups.

Could you all agree to highlight any issues with the parents, rather than disciplining your granddaughter directly?

There is a strong chance your son will never see eye-to-eye with your wife. He has been clear about that, and it’s not something you should feel responsible for.

Nor is it your job to fix. Read my support pack on blended families which contains a lot of advice about managing tricky dynamics.