Things the grandparents do/say that drive you mad

[Jchihuahua]

I'm lucky as my mum and my MIL both do things exactly as I want them done!

 

[lousielou]

Me:(Sternly) Flexi, stop throwing your food on the floor please.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Now Flexi darling, we don't throw our lovely food on the floor do we? No, we eat it all up! Yum yum yum!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, don't hit your brother!
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi sweetheart, hitting isn't nice. It makes us all sad! Boo-hoo! Let's have no more hitting, ever again - let's sing instead!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, I've already told you, you need to tidy up your Lego before I get the paints out for you.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi my love, let's all work together as a team, like Bob the Builder! We'll all work really hard tidying up all this mess, and then mummy will let us paint some beautiful pictures! Hurrah!

She does this all the time.

 

[BrokenfoREVer]

^^ that right there... would drive me freaking INSANE!

 

[jojo_b]

Accidentally calling herself mummy instead of nanny. Argh!

And babytalk from the mil: me saying "Fin stop climbing please" gets translated immediately by her into "Finny Winny sit on your bot bot". He's two years old for goodness' sake!

 

[katy1310]

I can't fault my own parents, but FIL always fills her up with lots of junk food when he has her. She only gets chocolate, crisps etc as a treat, and her normal snacks are fruit, crackerbread, cheese, breadsticks etc. When she has been at FIL's, she comes home for lunch but refuses to eat, and it turns out she has had 2 packets of crisps, half a packet of jaffa cakes and other biscuits!

 

[PrincessLeah]

My mum is pretty good .. except she has 48 years of childcare experience and feels she must constantly remind me of this. So for example, if we haven't visited for a couple of months (she lives 4 hours away) and we are staying for dinner, I would say "Mum, leave Leah's dinner on the side for a couple of minutes to cool please". Then I get reminded that she has 48 years childcare experience and acts all offended. But then the next day she will make lunch plans for us all to go out, until I remind her that Leah naps at lunchtime so I will be at home while she sleeps, not sitting in a restaurant eating a meal. So it's like she acts as if she doesn't need to be reminded about Leah's routine, but in reality, she does need to be.
When I was a new mum, I relied heavily on my mum to show me the ropes and pass on her experience. But I don't feel like an amateur anymore and am confident to make my own decisions. Mum seems to think I still need her to figure out what Im doing, but these days, I just don't.

 

[PrincessLeah]

Me:(Sternly) Flexi, stop throwing your food on the floor please.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Now Flexi darling, we don't throw our lovely food on the floor do we? No, we eat it all up! Yum yum yum!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, don't hit your brother!
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi sweetheart, hitting isn't nice. It makes us all sad! Boo-hoo! Let's have no more hitting, ever again - let's sing instead!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, I've already told you, you need to tidy up your Lego before I get the paints out for you.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi my love, let's all work together as a team, like Bob the Builder! We'll all work really hard tidying up all this mess, and then mummy will let us paint some beautiful pictures! Hurrah!

She does this all the time.

What is the name of your child?

 

[vaniilla]

"Oh he has a cold! I told you don't dress him properly you should look after him better"

undermining my decisions, mum = is Rowan wearing enough clothes me = yes, he is dressed if I thought he needed more on I would have already done so, mum = okay I'll just go get him a jumper.

constantly questioning my abilities! oh he feels cold you're freezing him, oh he feels warm he might have a slight temperature give him some calpol


I could go on! I love my family but my god are they overbearing

 

[Wellington]

MIL- 'ah, look, she's sticking her tongue out the side of her mouth as she's concentrating on that jigsaw! That's just like her great uncle X, he does that!'

i.e. MIL's brother.


Doesn't even fathom that it is a trait THAT HER OWN MOTHER has!!!

There are hundreds of these - but like others, if I don't laugh...... I'll cry!

 

[hattiehippo]

My MIL had a whole conversation last time we visited that went...

MIL to Tom, what's your name
Tom repeats his whole name
Ah goes MIL, my name is .... And grandad's name is ..... And daddy's name is .... Just like your name
Pointed look at me as mummy didn't change her name when she got married so isn't allowed to play MIL's game.

I just think yeh, whatever...he still looks like me rather than DH and is my son not yours, silly woman!

 

[mummy_ellie09]

Ladies, I admire you for keeping your sanity with MILs and mum's like you have!

J's paternal grandparents don't see him very often so don't really have any problems.
My parents are great, and have always helped massively if its been needed

 

[AP]

She feeds A bread or scones. All the time. Before her lunch. When we're not looking, of course!

 

[Fergie]

My MIL (who is normally really good) is OBSESSED with potty training. Boo is 16 months and not ready, but she is determined to "save us some money" by constantly telling me that she should be out of nappies by now . She is driving me nuts. Plus i should be out with her 3 times a day for a walk . I live in the middle of nowhere on a bloody hill, i'm 20 weeks pregnant and still feeling blooming awful and i have a serious health condition which means sometimes i don't have the energy to take her out for a walk (if i can't my OH does). She's really beginning to annoy the hell out of me and i'm not one who finds it easy to bite my tongue . If she's that desperate for Boo to get some fresh air then why the hell doesn't she come and take her out for a walk ??.

I actually feel a lot better now for getting that off my chest .

 

[Al Syr]

My MIL keeps trying to stick her finger in my newborn's mouth to suck on. Gross

My MIL stick my sons fingers in HER mouth who know for what reason but she does and so does my FIL, it disgusts me!

 

[lousielou]

Me:(Sternly) Flexi, stop throwing your food on the floor please.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Now Flexi darling, we don't throw our lovely food on the floor do we? No, we eat it all up! Yum yum yum!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, don't hit your brother!
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi sweetheart, hitting isn't nice. It makes us all sad! Boo-hoo! Let's have no more hitting, ever again - let's sing instead!

Me: (Sternly) Flexi, I've already told you, you need to tidy up your Lego before I get the paints out for you.
My mum: (High pitched sing-song Mary Poppins voice) Flexi my love, let's all work together as a team, like Bob the Builder! We'll all work really hard tidying up all this mess, and then mummy will let us paint some beautiful pictures! Hurrah!

She does this all the time.

What is the name of your child?

Alex - I call him Flexi Lexi

 

[mammy2oaklen]

my mum is amazing she does everything the way i do totally respects the way i choose to bring up my son even though it is slightly different to how she brought me up
my mil ....... everything is irritating which is why i never leave my ds with her. she talks to him like a baby wants to carry him hes nearly 2 for godness sake. consantly feeding him junk when.its nearly meal time call me mummy even though ive told her im mammy and not respect the way i discipline him she does it her way but the one thing i cant stand is waking him up when hes sleeping if we go to family parties or out for a meal my ds routine means he will sleep in his pram through the event but she feels the need to wake him then moan hes grizzly and grumpy i would be too if i got woke by her!!

 

[GypsyDancer]

My mum..i love her but she drives me crazy!
Shes always asking is my 3 month old is too cold..is he ok?? (he just coughed)
She tells my toddler off orbtells him to do things that im.not bothered about..like earlier i mixed his medicines in a smoothie..she then told him he had to drink it all before he was allowed in the front room (not true..i encourage him to drink it wherever he wants aslong as he dtinks it)
Shes slways telling him he needs to eat more dinner or he cant have anuthinh else..imm his mum..ill make that decision!
She always tries to get him to play with the toys shes got him and goes and asks him stupid questions like if a song comes on "..do you know this song? Do you know who its by?Do you like it?" hes 2 for gods sake hes not interested! And no he doesmt know the song from the 1960's! He likes nursery rhymes and disney!
She also nwver gives him her full attention..he'll take a book to her..shell start reading thrn will just stop and watch thr tv/text while lo's sat waiting!
And lastlyyy..she seems to keep forgetting how young my 3 month old is..she always tries to carry him on her hip like an older baby..he ends up flying about all over the place..the other day she tried to sit him up wuthout holding him and he fell face first into the sofa..she gave me an embaressed look but did it agaun today! And shes always shouting his name at him expecting him to respond straight away.. Agh..like i said i love her but she drives me crazy! :/