Im off on holidayIm not babysitting anyone! My mother-in-law let me down, but I gave her a taste of her own medicine.
Every family has its skeletons in the closet. Some have squabbles over inheritance, others wrestle with drinking or infidelity, and some simply cant seem to share values or interests. We dont really face those sorts of issues. Everything would be just perfectif only it werent for my mother-in-law. Ive genuinely tried to build bridges with her, for years, but it always falls flat.
I understand, a bond between parents and children can be really strong. But at 37, a mummys boy is a bit much! My husband and his mum have far too many secrets, always whispering behind closed doors, plotting or discussing things as if Im a stranger in my own home. Sometimes, I cant shake the feeling she doesnt care for our son, her only grandchild.
Let me tell you what happened just recently. Our son spends nearly the whole summer every year with my parents at their cottage by the coast, and my mother-in-law never once offers to have him for even a week or two.
This year, things went pear-shaped. Thanks to the virus, my mum couldnt take time offshes a doctor. Dad isnt up to looking after an active lad all day, given his health. I couldnt get any leave from work either We were really depending on my mother-in-law for help. I asked her a whole month ahead to step in.
A week before she was due to help, she rang me and said, Ive been gifted a holiday, so youll have to sort something else out for your son.
I was genuinely floored. I just sat there, phone in hand, in utter disbelief. We had no other options. My mother-in-law was off for a lovely time, not a care in the world about her grandson. Later, I found out she hadnt been gifted the trip at allshe booked it herself, knowing full well our son was meant to stay with her.
Before she left, she asked my husband if he could keep an eye on her greenhouse and water the plants while she was away. Hes always swamped with work, so, naturally, the job was pushed onto me. I looked her square in the face and told her I wouldnt lift a finger.
You let me down. You lied to me. You wont get any favours from me, not this time. If you want a restful break, then by all means, enjoy yourself. If your prize-winning tomatoes shrivel up, thats not my concern.
She was, of course, fuming, but she didnt change her plans. And now, Im running around in circles looking for a summer camp for my sonsomewhere, anywhere to take him while I sort all this out.
Was I wrong to do what I did?
