My mother-in-law offered to help us with childcare over the summer. Now she’s retired and has lots of spare time, so we agreed.
Both of us work, and with three children, it’s nearly impossible to take a proper holiday. Usually, we take time off from work in turnswhenever one of our children is unwell or has a school event. On rare occasions, if everything’s quiet at home, we might sneak away for a weekend, but that’s as much as we can manage.
For the past three years, we’ve had a twenty-year mortgage. We’re tired of moving from one rented place to another, so we figured settling in our own home was best, even if it means higher monthly payments. Working all summer means holidays are simply out of reach, especially with most of our income covering the mortgage. Besides, with school closed for the summer, we have no one else to mind the children while were out. At least, during those sweltering months, we know theyre safe and comfortable in the place thats truly their own.
My mother-in-law offered to help us with the children for the summer. Shes retired now, with plenty of time on her hands, so we agreed. As summer approaches and we take the children to my husbands mother, we always bring a food shop and slip her some money for extra treats. She never spends her own pension on the children; she says its not much to live on. We usually hand her some cash in personit still works out cheaper than hiring a nanny. Everyone seems fairly content with this arrangement.
But then my husbands brother, who also has three children, decided to bring his kids round to their grannys as well. His lot, though delightful, are younger and much harder to managethey need constant attention. He didnt bother to bring any food or money along; in truth, we had to feed them out of our own pocket.
Its perfectly normal to feel this way. Many times, Ive asked my husband to have a word with his brother, but he refuses; he doesnt want to stir up trouble. But why should I work so hard, only for someone else to shirk their share? How can I talk to him honestly, without it turning into a row?
