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Why is it always HIS Mom and Dad?

Started by 2chickiebaby, October 26, 2009, 04:39:15 AM

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2chickiebaby

Why does the son suddenly "wake up" and realize HIS own Mom and Dad were not who he thought they were when he gets married?  How does that happen?   

Why is it always his family that gets thrown out?  Not hers? 

Kinzey

I'm not sure about that. I think its the dominant family that gets the most attention. We spend more with my husband's family because they almost force us too. They created more opportunities and throw fits when we reject them. But my brother's wife's family is wonderful but very controlling and my parents have been thrown out. My sister's husbands family is very passive so my parents have more time with them. Its all about which family is willing to throw the biggest tantrums or which family bows down to the couple.

CarolN

Is it possible that DILs are just more tolerant and possibly "forgiving" when it comes to her own family?

2chickiebaby

Does any of this hurt your parents or is having you and your sister enough to soften the blow of your brother? 

2chickiebaby

Carol, always more tolerant.  Always.  They would die if their husbands treated their parents with disrepect. 

They will say that they can tell their parents "no" and it will be okay but in reality, it's okay with her parents because her parents have total access to them anyway.  There are no barriers and our sons are certainly not disrepecting them. 


Kinzey

My mother doesn't care for my sister in law and she is always bringing up how she and my dad are ignored. I don't think my brother even realizes its going on. She has never said anything to him though and it puts my sister and I in a bad position because we don't want to out sister in law who we adore!! She is a precious woman and she is dominated by her family as well so I don't think its her fault

mom2

I have a Daughter but it didn't soften the blow for me. Our son has never, not one time, treated the DIL's family with disrespect and I am proud that I raised a son like that. He is a good husband, good father but he sure fell short of the son role. I just wish I could understand.

mom2

Kinzey,
Do you think your mom and dad are ignored by her or they just feel that way ?

Ihopeuknow

In my situation my husband came from a family where his mom and dad coddled him and his sister.  They were very quick to let them give up on things that they didn't immediately like or didn't immediately make them comfortable.  When he was introduced to me and my family he saw that there was a different way of being and he liked it.  My parents encourage independence and being tough in the face of adversity.  It didn't make what his parents had been doing wrong, just not for him.

I think we stay away from his family a lot of times because they demand our time.  They get very angry if we can't make it to an event and the fall out is the same for a major holiday or a random bbq on some idle Saturday.  There's no difference between an important event and something less formal. 

Kinzey

I don't think she does it on purpose if thats what it comes across as. I think my mom just feels that way because my brother was her little boy. My dad doesn't feel the same about my sil but he won't openly disagree with my mom. My sil is a quiet person who in my opinion is a push over when it comes to her family and feels guilty when they give her a hard time.

2chickiebaby

when you said, "her little boy".  My DIL whispered to me awhile back...."you don't like it that I stole your little boy".  Course, no one heard it but me.  I never said a word, though I wish I had slapped her and been done with them right then. 

What a disgusting and heartbreaking thing to say to a Mother!  She was victorious in her way of saying it. 

A lot of parents do everything for their kids!  We did. Nothing was too much for them. Just wanted a family.  Never did I dream this person would enter my life. 

My husband is quietly so discouraged.  It breaks my heart...such a good man, such a great father.  She will get this back in her face in spades because guess what she has?  Nothing but boys.  I want to live to see this.

Kinzey

I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound bad. My mom just always called my brother her little baby boy just like I'm my daddy's little girl. I just didnt' like hearing my mom say bad things about his wife when the rest of us never saw anything being done that was wrong on my sil's part.

2chickiebaby

it's okay....you didn't sound bad.  I am very emotional right now.  Anything said is heartbreaking to me. 

AnnieB

from my own personal experience, it is not always the son's family that gets thrown out.

As a DIL, I was happy to have a relatively normal family to marry into -- and it was my family that got left out more -- for the emotional health of myself, my marriage and my children.

Unfortunately, the guilt didn't let me keep my mother out long enough, she was very intrusive and I was not mature enough to break away from her until I was 39.  By then, I'd gone through two perfectly good husbands. 

And now I'm single and I'm the one caring for my mother.  Isn't that sweet?

lilyofthevalley

With my son and DIL, I realized that I wasn't being pushed out by her so much as ignored by my son.  And it's not that he ignored us, but it was his job to arrange visits and handle passing along information.  Back in my day (yes I feel old saying that :) ), the women tended to handle the social calendars for the family.  I asked my DIL once if we could plan a time for us to get together, and that's when she told me she'd love to but I needed to speak with my son because he handles coordinating visits with his side of the family.  Once I started asking my son and making it easier for him to plan a visit, things got better.  And while it's not what I did, it works for them and makes sense to me.  So maybe it's his mom and dad that are pushed away because our son's just aren't that good at social planning?  I know mine isn't.