Im off on holidayIm not here to babysit anyone! My mother-in-law left me in the lurch, but I got my own back.
Every family has its skeletons or dramas. Some are torn apart by inheritance squabbles, others battle drink or betrayal, and some simply have no shared values at all. Ours is actually perfectly fineexcept for my mother-in-law. Had it not been for her, life would have been just about perfect. I spent years trying to build a bridge between us, but it all came to nothing.
I know theres a special bond between parents and their children. But a mummys boy at thirty-seven? Thats pushing it far too far. My husband and his mother are full of secrets; theyre forever whispering together behind my back, always talking about things I apparently shouldnt hear. On top of it all, I get the sense that my mother-in-law barely has any time for our son, her own grandson.
This happened just recently in our family. Our son usually spends nearly his whole summer with my parents at their holiday cottage by the sea, but every year, my mother-in-law can never spare a single week to have him over.
This year, because of the pandemic, my mum couldnt take time off workshes a doctor. Dad isnt in the best health, so looking after a lively boy is too much. I couldnt get any leave either, so we ended up pinning our hopes on my mother-in-law. I arranged with her weeks in advance.
A week before we were due to drop our son off, she rang me up and announced, Ive been given a holiday, so youll need to sort out your child another way.
I was gobsmacked. I just hung up, completely floored as all our options vanished. She was about to have a grand old holiday and couldn’t care less about her grandson. Later, I learned she hadnt been given the trip at allshed booked it herself, full well knowing our son was meant to be with her then.
Before she left, she asked my husband to keep an eye on her greenhouse and give her precious garden a water while she was away. Of course, with him working all hours, who do you think she expected would be lumbered with it? Me. But I put my foot down and said plainly, I wont lift a finger. You let me down and lied. Im not doing you any favours. You want a rest? Have a rest. If your tomatoes shrivel to twigs, thats your lookout, not mine.
Obviously, my mother-in-law was livid, but she didnt cancel her trip. And now here I am, frantically searching for a summer camp for my son; I need to find some way hell be looked after.
Did I make the right call?
