My baby shower is this upcoming Sunday and MIL RSVP's yesterday by telling me she hopes I wont be angry that she isn't coming because she wants to go up to her campsite. (they go every weekend, but whatever)
Not so much a horror story. But my MIL will also not be attending my baby shower. She claims it will be awkward to be around my FIL (baby shower is at his house), they have been divorced for 15+ years.
I would kind of understand this if it weren't for the fact that they talk on the phone almost daily, see each other at a lot of family events, and are on very good terms.
DH is really offended by this. She has kind of dropped the ball on us ever since our engagement. Pretty much his entire family has, except FIL. It sucks.
Sorry that became a mini rant.
because it didn't fucking snow enough for me to build my own
Not so much a horror story.nbsp;nbsp;My baby shower is this upcoming Sunday and MIL RSVP's yesterday by telling me she hopes I wont be angry that she isn't coming because she wants to go up to her campsite. they go every weekend, but whatevernbsp;Just more annoyed than anything.nbsp;nbsp;
Atleast she RSVPed! My MIL showed up at my house the night before my shower with a gift. So I assumed that meant she wasn't coming to the shower. But she never gave a reason.
I really do love my MIL, but she has a chronic case of foot-in-mouth disease. She does not mean any harm, but she'll say something without thinking and hurt feelings ensue. This happened about 6 weeks ago, but I just found out about it 2 weeks ago, and MIL found out yesterday, so it's fresh in my mind.
My DH & I had a bit of a whirwind year, our wedding was moved up 5 mos early because of our surprise BFP, we had from Jan-Feb to do pretty much ALL pre-wedding festivities and then got married in early March. Things had finally settled down from the wedding and then focus shifted to the baby. My sisters in law threw us a baby shower near the end of April, which was so kind of them. I know how much time and effort goes into planning an event like that, (I'm currently planning my sister's wedding shower, it's a circus!) so I know they were tired & stressed by the end of the day.
Well, apparently after DH & I left the party and the SILs & MIL were cleaning up my MIL made a comment along the lines of "ok, we need a moratorium on babies and weddings for the rest of the year, I need a break!" Well, you guessed it, one of my SILs had found out a couple days earlier that she was pregnant, and had just told her DH the day before the party. She drove home from the shower crying and upset, convinced that she/her pregnancy/her baby were going to be an inconvenience, that no one would be excited for them, etc. They announced the pregnancy on Mother's Day (SIL was about 11 weeks by then) and of course everyone is THRILLED for them, but when she told me later what our MIL had said after the shower I had to laugh out loud, because of COURSE she would say something like that and of COURSE someone in the room would be pregnant. Thankfully my SIL was at a place where we could laugh about it together, the sting/hurt was gone by then, and we could just roll our eyes at the whole thing. It wasn't the first and it won't be the last time she says something that comes out wrong, but luckily we're all pretty resilient at this point.
Warning
No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100?F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100?F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
MIL has been telling everybody that she wants the baby out NOW. And has been saying that since I was 31 weeks. She keeps on asking me why I'm not more impatient for the baby to come. Well, I would like it for my baby to make it at least to term before coming.
Also, H got a call yesterday from the ILs. They have a cradle that they said we could use, which I agreed to. Along with picking up the cradle they had 3 boxes of all of H's baby clothes and all of his toys. I already have all of the clothes that we need right now, and I don't need ALL of H's 30 year old baby toys. I just don't have time to deal with it. Maybe had they given them to me 10 weeks ago, it would be different, but I have too much to do to deal with all of this. And although FIL said we could get rid of whatever we don't want, MIL threw a fit that we would get rid of her baby's toys.
So we told my MIL back in Thanksgiving that we were pregnant and due July 18th. Her response (after being happy) was the baby can't come while she is on her annual cruise July 5th - 12th. Umm. ok. Not my problem.
So now we are almost 34 weeks, and we have GD and low PAPP-A. So the chance that we'll be induced early - by a week or so is looking really good. So this lead to several conversations over the past few days of her saying as long as we wait until she is in Bermuda then she can fly back. Ok - whatever.
Well last night, she brings it up again and says she should be able to get back in time to be with us in the delivery room. Umm. No. No. No. Long discussion and some tears on her part - because apparently we are excluding her from our child's life because we want a few hours with our baby just to ourselves, she agreed not to be in the delivery room. But then announced she will be staying with us for at least a week after we get home. To help. So we agreed but if she doesn't help and instead drives us crazy - home she goes. (She lives 20 min away btw)
And all of this when it was HOT and I developed sciatica over the weekend. Not the best day ever.
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100?F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100?F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
Are you sure you and I don't have the same MIL? Her name is Val... She has a gardening complex too and regularly shames me for not having one of my own. I'm 8 months pregnant for godsake! I'm not crawling around in the dirt to to transplant hastas with you! The landscaping can wait this year. Seriously.
MIL lives about 3 hrs away and DH prefers to stay away from her because she's nuts. Last weekend she wanted us to drive up to her house for lunch. We passed because at 33 weeks I didn't really want to drive 6 hrs in one day in 100 degree heat just to hear her complain about how we were choosing to prep for baby the last argument was about us being ungreatful for not wanting to use her 50 year old bassinet instead of the new one my mom bought us and how we were irresponsible for not using crib bumpers..... She suggests that since "I am too delicate to handle the drive" that DH goes by himself. He says he prefers to stay home with me since we don't get to spend much time together during the week b/c of work. MIL then say "well are you afraid she meaning me is going to intentionally hurt the baby or herself? Because we can hire someone to stay with her so you can spend time with your family"........ WTF for the record I have no history of mental illness. She's just awful. She texts me all the time as well and if I don't respond immediately she call me mother to tattle on how "rude I'm being" and how "I ignore her". Balhhhhhhhhh I try smile and ignore it and keep the peace but seriously lady! I'm about to lose it on you!
Not so much a horror story.nbsp;nbsp;My baby shower is this upcoming Sunday and MIL RSVP's yesterday by telling me she hopes I wont be angry that she isn't coming because she wants to go up to her campsite. they go every weekend, but whatevernbsp;Just more annoyed than anything.nbsp;nbsp;
Atleast she RSVPed! My MIL showed up at my house the night before my shower with a gift. So I assumed that meant she wasn't coming to the shower. But she never gave a reason.
WOW!! I don't understand. Do they feel like we have taken away their sons and now have issues with us?? I dont get it
I have to confess that I can't complain too much. My MIL lives on the other side of the country, so I don't have to deal with her much. However, we are total opposites and it drives me fruit bats to be around her. Literally every aspect of our lives and personalities are different.
MIL had suspicions about me from day one, as I'm four years older than my husband, and he tended to be a little naive and taken advantage of in his younger years. He moved to the west coast in his early twenties, and I don't think his family had any idea what BC was like. And I tend to be on the liberal end of a very liberal society. I'm not a dreadlocked hippie that's going to give birth with dolphins or anything, but to them I might as well be.
MIL and FIL just tend to be very self-centered, and don't have an altruistic bone in their body. Opposite to my consume less and be environmentally friendly world view, MIL will go to Walmart for 8 hours and buys crap that nobody needs or wants, then either put it in "storage" (aka her hoard), or try to give it to one of us as something we might need. I try to stay away from Walmart as much as I can and support local business, and I really don't want cheap crap in my house. I absolutely do not buy unless something is needed.
Seriously, she buys stuff for herself, and then gives it to me as a present. I am 5'6" and used to be a size 6. On Christmas when we were first married, she gave me a size 12 pair of stirrup pants in a petite length, with a couple of cotton turtleneck long sleeves. This is basically what she wears all the time (she's seriously stuck in the 80's).
The city they live in just moved to bi-weekly garbage pickup, and bi-weekly recycling pickup, with compostable organics picked up every week. They absolutely refuse to recycle because it's too much effort to wash out a tin can and put it in a separate bin. So they biitch and whine about how their property taxes are so high and they only get biweekly garbage and had to go and buy more and bigger garbage cans. Um, there's two of them (all their kids have moved out), and they live in a 4000sqft house on 3/4 of an acre... Their property taxes SHOULD be high (it's only about double what we pay on our 1050sqft bungalow on a standard city lot). And we, including disposable diapers in our garbage, have less than one can of garbage biweekly, while they have three oversized cans. Urrrrrrrrrrghhhh!
There is so, so much more, but this is just getting a little long... Can't wait to see MIL for a couple weeks in July!! (sarcasm)
Are you sure you and I don't have the same MIL? Her name is Val... She has a gardening complex too and regularly shames me for not having one of my own. I'm 8 months pregnant for godsake! I'm not crawling around in the dirt to to transplant hastas with you! The landscaping can wait this year. Seriously.
Mine's Linda... and her daughter (my SIL) is her exact duplicate. Yuck.
This is also the woman that told me that grandma's are for spoiling... after DH and I told her that we would only be introducing ONE food at a time to baby because of potential allergies. Both DH and I have strong food allergies, and we'd like to slowly introduce food over the first few months to make it easier to figure out what triggers there are. She said she'll feed baby whatever she wants to, because her kids made out fine.
We brought this up early, because she's the one that fed her 2nd grandchild that had an extreme milk allergy ice cream bars at 7 MONTHS!! Despite knowing full well that she'd have a strong reaction and would spend the night crying in pain.
My poor ILs, MIL has been in and out of the psych ward for about a month. She won't take her full dose of meds while she's in there, she thinks they are trying to poison her. But then somehow she keeps managing to get herself out of the hospital. Then she goes off her meds again and ends up calling the police and going back to the hospital. It is so sad and frustrating for everyone involved.
The good news is she has stopped calling me during the week during her manic spells (I shut her down pretty quick.) The bad news is that she has taken to calling SIL's husband instead (he's a house husband and home during the day.) She told him her new plan is to kill herself, but stage it so that it looks like FIL did it so that he goes to jail for her murder and that is how she will get her revenge on him.
Is it wrong that I'm hoping they cancel their trip out here in August?
My MIL lives five hours away and we went to visit last week. She informed me she would not be attending my baby shower. She didn't even know one was being planned or anything. My friend just sent out invites today and its scheduled for a Saturday later this month. She is taking off work tomorrow to come to my sister in laws baby shower. I'm like WTF??? At least mine isn't on an odd ball day! I mean who has a shower on a Tuesday at 11:30 anyways? Oh well I don't really care and she has given me money to get the baby some things, but it still stings a little.
My poor ILs, MIL has been in and out of the psych ward for about a month. She won't take her full dose of meds while she's in there, she thinks they are trying to poison her. But then somehow she keeps managing to get herself out of the hospital. Then she goes off her meds again and ends up calling the police and going back to the hospital. It is so sad and frustrating for everyone involved.
The good news is she has stopped calling me during the week during her manic spells (I shut her down pretty quick.) The bad news is that she has taken to calling SIL's husband instead (he's a house husband and home during the day.) She told him her new plan is to kill herself, but stage it so that it looks like FIL did it so that he goes to jail for her murder and that is how she will get her revenge on him.
Is it wrong that I'm hoping they cancel their trip out here in August?
Goodness, you definitely win the award for MIL Gem of the Week!
(And no, I'd totally want them to cancel as well, so no guilt required).
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100?F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100?F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
Wow, she is completely obnoxious.
And she's a terrible gardener, you don't transplant plants in the summer, especially not in 100 degree weather. They are all going to die now. How dumb.
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100?F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100?F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
Wow, she is completely obnoxious.
And she's a terrible gardener, you don't transplant plants in the summer, especially not in 100 degree weather. They are all going to die now. How dumb.
In all fairness, we don't normally get 100?F weather this time of year... it's currently a more average 61?F, and is scheduled to be in the mid-sixties for the rest of the week.
My MIL hasn't contacted me (via phone, text, FB or anything) since we were out there visiting the first week in Dec. Even knowing I was in the hospital and have been so severely ill she has not called to see how baby and I are or sent a get well card or anything. She hasn't even texted or called DH to see how we are (I asked). And she will wonder why when she arrives a couple weeks after LO is born why I am cold and b!tchy and won't hand over control of my girls, house and baby to her.
DH got a text last night from his dear old mom asking if i would bake 40 cupcakes and decorate them like Hello Kitty for my 4 year old nieces birthday party in about 2 weeks.
Now for a little background, i am the go-to person in our circle of friends and family for any and all baking needs. I love to do it and am very crafty, so people tend to love my work. However, i am 35w2d and currently been having Prodromal labor for the past 3.5 days so there is a chance I might not even be pregnant in two weeks. When my DH reminded his mom about this she sounded disappointed but seemed to understand.
I just find it strange that she would ask a women to bake and decorate a ton of cupcakes for a 4 year old who wouldn't know the difference from store bought ones when she is around 37 weeks pregnant. All i want to do is sleep... When i can get it.
We did our maternity photos the weekend before this last one and my husband sent them to her. There is one where we wrote out a bunch of baby names and stuck them on my belly. My MIL called me and threw a bleeding fit because one of the names was John, her FIL's name also her BIL's as Junior and one of her nephews as a Third.nbsp;I wouldn't have answered except she used their landline instead of her cell, so I thought it was my FIL. I'm not exaggerating when I say she threw a fit. She wanted to know why we were using John and why we wouldn't use Joseph her dad's name and blah, blah, blah. When I reminded her that there were six other names on there and we weren't set on any of them yet, she said "Well good. This family has enough Johns and it's not fair to leave my side of the family out. It's so disrespectful to me and to my dad just because you have the same last name as grandpa doesn't mean you have to use his name."Next, I reminded her that this is my child and her son's child, not hers and that she had the chance to name her kids. She started crying and telling me I was rude.Then she called my mom to complain about me. Mom didn't answer she was at work but she did listen to the fiveminute message MIL left, which included something about how selfish I am to keep MIL out of the delivery room and how I'm not letting her be a part of her grandchild's life. Mom won't be there either unless my husband passes out. He can be kind of squeamish around blood. Mom was furious. She called and asked me what I wanted her to do and I told her to ignore the moron. She's still mad though. She also thought I had been exaggerating how nuts MIL is, but I think she gets it now.nbsp;For the record, we aren't naming this boy John, though now I am sorely tempted to, just to piss the witch off. We aren't using the names of any of our grandfathers, mine or his.nbsp;
Yikes!
Sounds like I'm not the only one with an MIL from Hell. Holy crap y'all!
It is so cathartic to hear everybody else ***! I am NOT the only one. Thank god I think I am more stressed out about MIL's involvement in this baby's life than I am about giving birth and being a FTM. No joke.
Then she called my mom to complain about me. Mom didn't answer (she was at work) but she did listen to the five-minute message MIL left, which included something about how selfish I am to keep MIL out of the delivery room and how I'm not letting her be a part of her grandchild's life. (Mom won't be there either unless my husband passes out. He can be kind of squeamish around blood.) Mom was furious. She called and asked me what I wanted her to do and I told her to ignore the moron. She's still mad though. She also thought I had been exaggerating how nuts MIL is, but I think she gets it now.
Why do MILs (or Moms, friends, sisters) all assume they'll be in the delivery room? This really isn't about you! You'll see the baby, I just want to see her first.
And I laughed - I'd be tempted to name him John out of spite too!
Not a horror story, just typical and irritating. DH calls his parent Saturday to see if they are going to come over Sunday for dinner. FIL works a half day Sunday, so they never get here until later and DH had scheduled an afternoon golf game a few weeks ago. So, mil says that her friend's son is coming over to do some work on their house so she can't leave. Why he can't be there alone neither of us understand. So she tells us we need to go to them. They live an hour and a half away, DH tells her we are going to the club and he has plans so we can't. She then says, but I haven't seen Li in weeks and weeks and weeks. He just looks at me like, what am I supposed to say to that? He just said, well then, I guess we will see you on Father's Day. She gets silent and hangs up.
You want to see your grandchild so badly, stop complaining and get in the damn car!
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100°F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100°F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
OMG your MIL sounds psycho. She sure has your FIL and DH wrapped around her finger!
I can definitely relate to the delivery room stresses - my own mother is the queen of guilt trips and won't understand why I don't want family in the delivery room. Her own words: "I want to be there when you have an "I want my mommy moment," and I can be there to hold up your knee while you push!" Umm, I haven't had an "I want my mommy moment" since I was maybe 4, and we do NOT have the kind of relationship where I'd want her even in the waiting room, let alone the delivery room, because I can't trust her not to come in and micromanage.
I thought we'd settled it but when I gently brought up other issues like how we live in a small apartment with no space for the things she's constantly bringing us that we don't want or need for the baby (cloth things when we're going disposable because *she* doesn't believe in disposable, for example), she first called my brother to tell him that I'm "ripping the family apart" by not letting family be a part of the birth (his response to me: "Dude. Your vag, your call"), then sent this little gem as part of a longer passive-aggressive e-mail (because yeah, she can't even call me):
"Being part of unique events in your life such as the birth of Abigail would be a profoundly powerful time for our family. It is all about family and love and joy and sharing a new life with loved ones. I will, of course respect your wishes. My own personal wish is that you allow yourself to experience joy and love from those who love you and will always be there for you if you let us, not JUST when YOU need us."
What do you even do with that? I told her that just like her birth experiences weren't about her mother and her mother's wants and needs, mine isn't about her and her needs and "personal wishes."
Sigh, I agree with the other poster who said that their biggest stress isn't even birth or being a first-time mom, it's dealing with mother/MIL stress...
Re: MIL Gem of the Week
Not so much a horror story.
My baby shower is this upcoming Sunday and MIL RSVP's yesterday by telling me she hopes I wont be angry that she isn't coming because she wants to go up to her campsite. (they go every weekend, but whatever)
Just more annoyed than anything.
LFAF Summer 2016 Awards:
Not so much a horror story. But my MIL will also not be attending my baby shower. She claims it will be awkward to be around my FIL (baby shower is at his house), they have been divorced for 15+ years.
I would kind of understand this if it weren't for the fact that they talk on the phone almost daily, see each other at a lot of family events, and are on very good terms.
DH is really offended by this. She has kind of dropped the ball on us ever since our engagement. Pretty much his entire family has, except FIL. It sucks.
Sorry that became a mini rant.
So was I! haha but I hope things stay calm for you Prim!
Me too. Lauren: Usually with her she is just stewing on something and will freak out when we see her next.
LFAF Summer 2016 Awards:
Atleast she RSVPed! My MIL showed up at my house the night before my shower with a gift. So I assumed that meant she wasn't coming to the shower. But she never gave a reason.
I really do love my MIL, but she has a chronic case of foot-in-mouth disease. She does not mean any harm, but she'll say something without thinking and hurt feelings ensue. This happened about 6 weeks ago, but I just found out about it 2 weeks ago, and MIL found out yesterday, so it's fresh in my mind.
My DH & I had a bit of a whirwind year, our wedding was moved up 5 mos early because of our surprise BFP, we had from Jan-Feb to do pretty much ALL pre-wedding festivities and then got married in early March. Things had finally settled down from the wedding and then focus shifted to the baby. My sisters in law threw us a baby shower near the end of April, which was so kind of them. I know how much time and effort goes into planning an event like that, (I'm currently planning my sister's wedding shower, it's a circus!) so I know they were tired & stressed by the end of the day.
Well, apparently after DH & I left the party and the SILs & MIL were cleaning up my MIL made a comment along the lines of "ok, we need a moratorium on babies and weddings for the rest of the year, I need a break!" Well, you guessed it, one of my SILs had found out a couple days earlier that she was pregnant, and had just told her DH the day before the party. She drove home from the shower crying and upset, convinced that she/her pregnancy/her baby were going to be an inconvenience, that no one would be excited for them, etc. They announced the pregnancy on Mother's Day (SIL was about 11 weeks by then) and of course everyone is THRILLED for them, but when she told me later what our MIL had said after the shower I had to laugh out loud, because of COURSE she would say something like that and of COURSE someone in the room would be pregnant. Thankfully my SIL was at a place where we could laugh about it together, the sting/hurt was gone by then, and we could just roll our eyes at the whole thing. It wasn't the first and it won't be the last time she says something that comes out wrong, but luckily we're all pretty resilient at this point.
My MIL offered me a beer and rolled her eyes (not in a joking way) when I said "no thank you".
Mine's just a story about MIL being a little over-pushy.
I'm not into gardening, and apparently she thinks that's a bad thing. I vaguely expressed an interest in hydrangea (for my wedding almost 2 years ago), and now she feels the need to push them on me whenever she can.
Saturday morning, she had FIL go out and dig up about 15 plants. She then called us (after they were dug up), and asked if I wanted them. When I said that I didn't want them today (Saturday), because it was over 100?F outside and I didn't want to risk heat stroke... she layed a guilt trip on DH. She then convinced DH that we should do supper, so I figured that she had given up on the plants, and was going to leave it to some other time --- I didn't know at this point that they had already dug them all up.
DH and I spent the day not feeling well because of the extreme temperatures/humidity (we don't have AC). We didn't really want to do dinner, but figured that since she was so disappointed in me not wanting the plants, that she had to be placated.
Well, we had set a time for dinner at 5:30, and they showed up at 4... with all these plants.
She made FIL (who's just getting over a horrible cold and was coughing up phlegm the whole time, who's 75) and DH (who clearly wasn't feeling well and had a huge headache from the heat), go and mow the lawn, weed the area she wanted them planted, and then plant them.
We were inside, since I was absolutely not going to budge on the whole working outside in 100?F weather thing, and she balked at me even going out to offer them water! It took them almost 2 full hours of work to get everything done, and she felt it was INCONVENIENT to go outside in the sun to give them water.
Sheesh.
(And don't even get me started on how she's probably sent FIL back over to our house again today with more plants that I said I didn't really want. GAH!)
MIL has been telling everybody that she wants the baby out NOW. And has been saying that since I was 31 weeks. She keeps on asking me why I'm not more impatient for the baby to come. Well, I would like it for my baby to make it at least to term before coming.
Also, H got a call yesterday from the ILs. They have a cradle that they said we could use, which I agreed to. Along with picking up the cradle they had 3 boxes of all of H's baby clothes and all of his toys. I already have all of the clothes that we need right now, and I don't need ALL of H's 30 year old baby toys. I just don't have time to deal with it. Maybe had they given them to me 10 weeks ago, it would be different, but I have too much to do to deal with all of this. And although FIL said we could get rid of whatever we don't want, MIL threw a fit that we would get rid of her baby's toys.
Baby boy 7.10.13
So we told my MIL back in Thanksgiving that we were pregnant and due July 18th. Her response (after being happy) was the baby can't come while she is on her annual cruise July 5th - 12th. Umm. ok. Not my problem.
So now we are almost 34 weeks, and we have GD and low PAPP-A. So the chance that we'll be induced early - by a week or so is looking really good. So this lead to several conversations over the past few days of her saying as long as we wait until she is in Bermuda then she can fly back. Ok - whatever.
Well last night, she brings it up again and says she should be able to get back in time to be with us in the delivery room. Umm. No. No. No. Long discussion and some tears on her part - because apparently we are excluding her from our child's life because we want a few hours with our baby just to ourselves, she agreed not to be in the delivery room. But then announced she will be staying with us for at least a week after we get home. To help. So we agreed but if she doesn't help and instead drives us crazy - home she goes. (She lives 20 min away btw)
And all of this when it was HOT and I developed sciatica over the weekend. Not the best day ever.
Are you sure you and I don't have the same MIL? Her name is Val... She has a gardening complex too and regularly shames me for not having one of my own. I'm 8 months pregnant for godsake! I'm not crawling around in the dirt to to transplant hastas with you! The landscaping can wait this year. Seriously.
WOW!! I don't understand. Do they feel like we have taken away their sons and now have issues with us?? I dont get it
I have to confess that I can't complain too much. My MIL lives on the other side of the country, so I don't have to deal with her much. However, we are total opposites and it drives me fruit bats to be around her. Literally every aspect of our lives and personalities are different.
MIL had suspicions about me from day one, as I'm four years older than my husband, and he tended to be a little naive and taken advantage of in his younger years. He moved to the west coast in his early twenties, and I don't think his family had any idea what BC was like. And I tend to be on the liberal end of a very liberal society. I'm not a dreadlocked hippie that's going to give birth with dolphins or anything, but to them I might as well be.
MIL and FIL just tend to be very self-centered, and don't have an altruistic bone in their body. Opposite to my consume less and be environmentally friendly world view, MIL will go to Walmart for 8 hours and buys crap that nobody needs or wants, then either put it in "storage" (aka her hoard), or try to give it to one of us as something we might need. I try to stay away from Walmart as much as I can and support local business, and I really don't want cheap crap in my house. I absolutely do not buy unless something is needed.
Seriously, she buys stuff for herself, and then gives it to me as a present. I am 5'6" and used to be a size 6. On Christmas when we were first married, she gave me a size 12 pair of stirrup pants in a petite length, with a couple of cotton turtleneck long sleeves. This is basically what she wears all the time (she's seriously stuck in the 80's).
The city they live in just moved to bi-weekly garbage pickup, and bi-weekly recycling pickup, with compostable organics picked up every week. They absolutely refuse to recycle because it's too much effort to wash out a tin can and put it in a separate bin. So they biitch and whine about how their property taxes are so high and they only get biweekly garbage and had to go and buy more and bigger garbage cans. Um, there's two of them (all their kids have moved out), and they live in a 4000sqft house on 3/4 of an acre... Their property taxes SHOULD be high (it's only about double what we pay on our 1050sqft bungalow on a standard city lot). And we, including disposable diapers in our garbage, have less than one can of garbage biweekly, while they have three oversized cans. Urrrrrrrrrrghhhh!
There is so, so much more, but this is just getting a little long... Can't wait to see MIL for a couple weeks in July!! (sarcasm)
Monster Truck (It's a GIRL!) is due 19/02/2015!
Mine's Linda... and her daughter (my SIL) is her exact duplicate. Yuck.
This is also the woman that told me that grandma's are for spoiling... after DH and I told her that we would only be introducing ONE food at a time to baby because of potential allergies. Both DH and I have strong food allergies, and we'd like to slowly introduce food over the first few months to make it easier to figure out what triggers there are. She said she'll feed baby whatever she wants to, because her kids made out fine.
We brought this up early, because she's the one that fed her 2nd grandchild that had an extreme milk allergy ice cream bars at 7 MONTHS!! Despite knowing full well that she'd have a strong reaction and would spend the night crying in pain.
My poor ILs, MIL has been in and out of the psych ward for about a month. She won't take her full dose of meds while she's in there, she thinks they are trying to poison her. But then somehow she keeps managing to get herself out of the hospital. Then she goes off her meds again and ends up calling the police and going back to the hospital. It is so sad and frustrating for everyone involved.
The good news is she has stopped calling me during the week during her manic spells (I shut her down pretty quick.) The bad news is that she has taken to calling SIL's husband instead (he's a house husband and home during the day.) She told him her new plan is to kill herself, but stage it so that it looks like FIL did it so that he goes to jail for her murder and that is how she will get her revenge on him.
Is it wrong that I'm hoping they cancel their trip out here in August?
Goodness, you definitely win the award for MIL Gem of the Week!
(And no, I'd totally want them to cancel as well, so no guilt required).
Wow, she is completely obnoxious.
And she's a terrible gardener, you don't transplant plants in the summer, especially not in 100 degree weather. They are all going to die now. How dumb.
In all fairness, we don't normally get 100?F weather this time of year... it's currently a more average 61?F, and is scheduled to be in the mid-sixties for the rest of the week.
DD1 7/10/08 DD2 8/11/10 DS 7/2/13
I have a lil rant, if i can even call it that.
DH got a text last night from his dear old mom asking if i would bake 40 cupcakes and decorate them like Hello Kitty for my 4 year old nieces birthday party in about 2 weeks.
Now for a little background, i am the go-to person in our circle of friends and family for any and all baking needs. I love to do it and am very crafty, so people tend to love my work. However, i am 35w2d and currently been having Prodromal labor for the past 3.5 days so there is a chance I might not even be pregnant in two weeks. When my DH reminded his mom about this she sounded disappointed but seemed to understand.
I just find it strange that she would ask a women to bake and decorate a ton of cupcakes for a 4 year old who wouldn't know the difference from store bought ones when she is around 37 weeks pregnant. All i want to do is sleep... When i can get it.
Yikes!
Sounds like I'm not the only one with an MIL from Hell. Holy crap y'all!
LFAF Summer 2016 Awards:
Why do MILs (or Moms, friends, sisters) all assume they'll be in the delivery room? This really isn't about you! You'll see the baby, I just want to see her first.
And I laughed - I'd be tempted to name him John out of spite too!
You want to see your grandchild so badly, stop complaining and get in the damn car!
Can they come plant at my house next?
I can definitely relate to the delivery room stresses - my own mother is the queen of guilt trips and won't understand why I don't want family in the delivery room. Her own words: "I want to be there when you have an "I want my mommy moment," and I can be there to hold up your knee while you push!" Umm, I haven't had an "I want my mommy moment" since I was maybe 4, and we do NOT have the kind of relationship where I'd want her even in the waiting room, let alone the delivery room, because I can't trust her not to come in and micromanage.
I thought we'd settled it but when I gently brought up other issues like how we live in a small apartment with no space for the things she's constantly bringing us that we don't want or need for the baby (cloth things when we're going disposable because *she* doesn't believe in disposable, for example), she first called my brother to tell him that I'm "ripping the family apart" by not letting family be a part of the birth (his response to me: "Dude. Your vag, your call"), then sent this little gem as part of a longer passive-aggressive e-mail (because yeah, she can't even call me):
"Being part of unique events in your life such as the birth of Abigail would be a profoundly powerful time for our family. It is all about family and love and joy and sharing a new life with loved ones. I will, of course respect your wishes. My own personal wish is that you allow yourself to experience joy and love from those who love you and will always be there for you if you let us, not JUST when YOU need us."
Sigh, I agree with the other poster who said that their biggest stress isn't even birth or being a first-time mom, it's dealing with mother/MIL stress...