Victoria, are you pregnant?
I have an absolutely splendid relationship with my mother-in-law, Margaret. Ive been married for 17 years now, and my husband and I have two sons. At the end of last year, I found out I was expecting for the third time. I wanted to break the news to Margaret on her birthday, which is New Years Day, but honestly, I was nothing short of petrified.
You see, our family squishes into a tiny two-bedroom flat, where youd struggle to swing a cat with four people already inside And at that time, I was already 38, which isnt exactly spring chicken territory as far as pregnancy goes. In short, I was worried Margaret would give me the side-eye.
But, on her birthday, I had to pull myself together.
I popped round to hers, and she ushered me into the kitchen almost straight away, looking for a bit of help. Now, Margarets a sharp old bird, and she clocked something was up immediately. Didnt even blink didnt need to ask a single thing.
I was honestly gobsmacked by her intuition, but it was her reaction that really bowled me over. Margaret nearly burst with excitement and whispered that shed been itching for a granddaughter for ages.
So, under my mother-in-laws enthusiastic blessing, I welcomed a daughter this summer. For the third time, Nan was a superstar, doting on the baby and steadying us through all sorts of chaos. I was deeply grateful and treated Margaret just like my own mum.
Before I knew it, winter rolled around again, and there we were at Margarets birthday, now with our little princess in tow. Since Margaret had started baking like she was prepping for Bake Off, we decided to gift her a decent oven.
By the end of the party, we were heading home when Margaret stopped me. She asked for a moment of my attention for a big announcement.
Margaret said she was absolutely chuffed with her new granddaughter and wanted to show her thanks. So, she announced shed be moving into our little flatbut shed give us her own two-bedroom apartment. I was quite simply speechless. Yet again, I realised how lucky I was to have such a wise and lovely mother-in-law, who has become a true frienda rarity, if ever there was one.
Were still living blissfully and completely in sync. I truly admire Margaret, and secretly hope to pick up a pinch of her legendary wisdom myself one day.
