So the day before our holiday, my husband had this idea why dont we spend the summer at his parents cottage? Weve got two kids: our eldest, Henry, whos nine and looking forward to his long school holidays, and our youngest, little Grace, whos only seven months old. Honestly, I figured Grace would be far happier out in the fresh air than stuck in a muggy city like London. My husband reassured me that his parents wouldnt mind in the slightest in fact, he thought theyd be thrilled to have their grandchildren around. He even said they knew exactly how chaotic life can get with little ones, so they wouldnt expect too much from us.
I thought it sounded like a brilliant way for all of us to enjoy the summer, so I said yes. Looking back now, it turns out I was terribly wrong…
Just as we got settled in, my husband and his dad didnt fancy staying at the countryside, so almost straight away they headed back home for work during the week, only appearing for the weekends. When they came, it felt like they expected the house to be spotless, food on the table, and everything sorted so all they had to do was relax after a hard week at work.
So, most of the time I was at the cottage with the kids and my mother-in-law, Marilyn. It only took Henry a few minutes to turn everything upside down in the tiny place, so I basically had to keep an eye on him all the time. Grace was still a baby apart from caring for her, I needed to eat properly and catch enough sleep so I wouldnt lose my milk. Honestly, I was far more stressed and tense out in the peaceful countryside than I ever was back in the city. Enjoying the beauty of nature? Forget about it.
Marilyn and I quickly found our groove with chores. She was always out tending to her greenhouse and gardening, while I took care of things indoors like cleaning and cooking. We took turns watching the kids. Because of feeding Grace at night, Id head to bed early usually about 9 oclock while Marilyn was still outside digging in the garden. Every night after settling the kids, Id offer to help if she needed anything, but she always declined.
I kept quiet and just tried to get on with the domestic side of things, thinking wed got a pretty decent relationship going.
Turns out, I was absolutely mistaken. It all came to a head one weekend when my husband pulled me aside. Hed heard from his mum that she was upset with me, apparently because she was exhausted from working in the garden and felt like she wasnt getting any help from me, while I was just always resting. And get this: my husband even quoted his mum as saying, A daughter-in-law should get up at least two hours earlier and go to bed two hours later than her mother-in-law.
She was also miffed that I didnt bother making the childrens beds after their afternoon naps, which apparently is unacceptable in her book when it comes to cleanliness.
Maybe Im not the model housewife, but I genuinely dont see why Im meant to wear myself out in the garden just to please Marilyn. Sometimes I think youd get more peace at home in London, even with all the hustle and bustle.
