Parenting: 1-Year-Olds Community

Well, it sounds like your issue isn't necessarily an inlaw problem. Your son (and her other children) have clearly been driven away by her demanding behavior.

I have a good relationship with my inlaws because my husband has a good relationship with his parents. They are kind enough to let us stay with them when the Navy inevitably moves us across the country and we have time to kill between leaving on duty station and the house being ready at the next. I spent about a month with them before we moved to Germany and it looks like me and the 2 kids will spend about 2 months with them when we move out to California.

Of course, my MIL has always respected that I am not her and she is very mindful of how we are raising our kids and tries not to undermine us. She also thinks family is very important and her and FIL always offer to help us any way they can.

Sound like your DH just got a bad draw on his mother. Since he clearly doesn't want to spend a lot of time around her, you shouldn't feel obliged to either.

When I gave birth, it was just DH in the room with me. Of course with DD I ended up with an emergency c-section, but his parents did visit with me during labor. When DS was born, my mom was here in Germany to take care of DD while DH and I were at the hospital.

Haha i think we could have identical lives. My MIL and I DONT get along and it truly is her fault. She has never liked me or my SIL, she has always talked meanly about us to tons of ppl and we live in a small town, sorry things get back to us. She always acted nice to us to our face, but behind our backs she is evil. My DH let her watch him once when he was maybe 4ish months and i was pissed and she found out how my SIL and I really felt about her and then she was all ohh poor me BS. When i was preggo with my son i told her 2 or 3 times i dont want ANYONE except my husband at the hossy til we have the baby and get some alone time with him, my parents honored my request, after being in labor from an induction for hmm 14 hours and in the worst paining clinging to the siderail crying, and waitin for my epi, who flippin showed up my Gosh Darn MIL!!! i Was irrate!!

Since he was born, she has seen him hmm maybe 20 times and she lives 10 mins from here!!! she never makes an effort to come see him, she didnt go to his babyshower, didnt come to his baptism and now she has seen our daughter twice in 3 months and didnt come to her baptism either.

My parents on the other hand see our babys all the time, DH always asked if the are avail to watch the kids cuz deep down he knows his mom is an alchoholic and knows how shes treated me in the past.

So i totally get where you are comming from. My BIL cant stand his mom either, and she's so mean to her husband, who i kinda feel bad for cuz he is so nice and i wish he'd see the kids more, my DH on the other hand is one of those ppl that cant be mean and wants everyone to get along, which is fine, but once you've treated me like that, i know you arent really gonna change, what is done is done, you ruined it not me.

I'm so glad someone understands. My MIL was actually tolerable, believe it or not.......... and then I got pregnant. I told my MIL I didn't want her at the dr appointments and she tried to weasel address and appointment info from DH so she could show up and surprise me. I also laid out my delivery plan for her: I told her it would be just DH and I (I left out the my mom part because I didn't want to get into it). She says "Oh okay.... but I am coming". You tell her something and she doesn't listen. After DH kicked her out of the hospital (he kept her out of the room thank god) he told her she was NOT to come back until we called her to give her the okay. My labor started at 3AM Saturday, had my son at 1:09AM Sunday and I didn't get into my room to rest until 5:30AM because of complications with the placenta. So I had NO sleep and MIL shows up while I am in the SHOWER bright and early at 7AM. I was livid. She also showed up with some of her friends to show them her new grandson (???) And then she refused to leave, I was literally falling asleep sitting up. She stayed past lunch even though she arrived at 7AM. My lunch showed up and I didn't want to be rude by eating in front of people so I put it to the side..... she picked through and started eating it!


Believe it or not, her little rant about not spending time with him is much less annoying than what she USED to be. But she takes you by surprise: She will get better at her "listening skills" (I honestly feel like I am back to teaching kindergarten) and then she will get REALLY bad again. It seems to come in waves.
And I am SO GLAD that you guys agree that it is her and not me. She twists things and turns them so that it always seems like I am in the wrong and it really makes me second guess myself. I honestly do TRY to let her have some time with DS (asking her to babysit? even though DS hates her?). Her new husband is nice, but it is obvious that she bad mouths us about not wanting to spend time with her. He chastises us every time we go there about not bringing DS down there more so MIL can see him, "after all.... he is HER grandson".

You are right pheonix, it is DH's mother and if he doesn't want to spend time with her then I shouldn't feel obligated to either. Which has worked as an excuse until now, but now DH literally CAN'T spend time with any of us because he is working multiple jobs. MIL has latched onto that.... before she had to work with both our schedules which really limited availability, now? she only has to try and work with mine (or so she thinks)... so her demands have grown in number again. I'm kind of at a loss on how to handle it. If I tell her no, she might just show up at our house.... it is hard dealing with a person that just doesn't listen.
Oh, and re-reading what I said before I realized that one statement sounded a little harsh: "I won't allow DS to stay with her overnight". One reason is because he hates her... another is that she doesn't listen. She will keep him up until all hours, she will give him a bottle even though he hasn't taken a bottle in 8 months, once I caught her giving him wine... MY mother respects boundaries that I set and MIL kind of does whatever the hell she wants with him while he is in her care. So that is why I won't allow him to A)spend the night and be babysat at HER home (at my home I know that there is nothing here to harm him.... and we don't drink alcohol so I know he wont be getting buzzed while I'm gone).

It sounds like you really need to have a discussion with your MIL about boundaries. My MIL and I are VERY different people and there was trouble brewing until I finally sat down and talked to her. We still have issues between us and probably will for a very long time, but it still helped some. Whatever feels right to you and your husband, go for it. If she can't respect what you two want, then she needs a rude wake up call. (including shutting the door in her face if she shows up at your house.) Hope things improve permanently!

I wish that was all that I had to do, but I have talked with her SO MANY times..... I tell her "No.... you can't see DS that day, we are busy" and all of a sudden she is asking what time I want her to come over or what I am making for her for dinner. It is very frustrating talking to a person who doesn't "hear" you. It didn't use to be like this.... we used to be okay with one another, but then again.... that was when it was just DH and I. She went one whole year only seeing me and DH on christmas eve, and calling me ONCE only to ask for money (when we didn't have a kid). I miss those days.
So...... I don't know what to do. I give her an answer that is absolute "No" and it is not heard... it is ignored.... and she somehow morphs this "no" to mean what she wants it to mean. I really don't know how I can be more direct. Shutting the door in her face does no good.... we have done that before.

Yes we all have rotten mil stories. My mother in law has never liked me. My husband and I were married for a few weeks when a rumor started that i had been cheating on him numerous times with my ex since we had gotten together(over a two year period). It was later on found out that the person who started the rumor was a liar and made the whole thing up, she admitted it. My MIL still to this day believes the rumor and sees me as a cheater and not worthy of her son. She doesnt listen to a thing my husband and I have asked her to do or not do in front of our children. She smokes and swears in front of them not even blinking when we walk in the room, she puts thing on the TV that is totally not appropriate for a 4 year old and 1 year old to be seeing(Jerry Springer, Family Guy, Rated R movies). We have left his parents house numerous times because of her behavior my husband does not put up with her either anymore. We have stopped going over my in-laws house it has gotten so bad, especially since I am pregnant with my third child. Now her latest stunt she is pulling is telling people she knows our 1 year old daughter isnt my husbands even though both our children look just like my husband. I wish we could move out of state and far away from her.