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Reducing contact with Grandmother

(133 Posts)
veexox Tue 14-Jan-14 00:37:58

Hi I'm a young 20 year old mother to a 6 month old darling girl we have been living with partners parents since I was 8 months pregnant. Since baby was born MIL has been total nightmare snatching baby off me, feeding, changing, constant bombardment she won't leave us to just bond as a family of 3 she's always telling me what to do and putting me down. Since she was born MIL revolves her life around my child today for instance I previously told MIL could she look after LO for an hour alone as I needed to go to university to pick some work up I thought I was doing her a favour as I could easily have taken her with me . Little did I know MIL swapped her shifts when I told MIL I didn't need to go she hit the roof wouldn't speak to me so I had to go for an hours walk so she could spend time with my daughter I don't really let her babysit alone as I love spending time with my daughter... She's a lonely lady in an unhappy marriage and lives her life through her 3 sons since baby's been born she seems to think it's another chance to be a mum again. She's barged in on the birth, called me fat the list goes on and on. I've told my partner we either move out or I'm going without him he's tried talking to MIL but she doesn't listen we have told her we are moving out in a few weeks and MIL has hit the roof stating she will be going for custody and visitation 5 times a week. She's called me an unfit mother etc she just seems completely obsessed with my daughter! I'm thinking of cutting contact for a while until she stops being so clingy I don't want to cut her out of my daughters life I just want her to respect me as her mother and primary carer. How can I stop her doing this? It's really stressing me out I just want her to be Grandma !

Elegran Tue 14-Jan-14 15:51:08

He is encouraging this, though probably not intentionally. it is very nice for him to have his mum downstairs looking after him like a small boy and you upstairs to play at mothers and fathers with.

At some point he will have to decide whether he is grown up or not.

thatbags Tue 14-Jan-14 16:08:02

Or be told he's a grown-up and that grown-ups get their own breakfast. He should make his own sandwiches too. What a baby!

Move out! Preferably all three of you.

Soutra Tue 14-Jan-14 16:18:13

.OK your DH could make his own brekkie but all the other things you quote 2 snd 3 wistill be the case when you 3 live on your own and it's what most working mums cope with. You still haven't said what rent you are paying. You can't have ot both ways of you are enjoying rent free accommodation. What is your arrangement re food and bills too? It seems to be deeper than access to DGD. As everyone is saying,
move out to your own place and start being a grown up family.

Nonu Tue 14-Jan-14 16:38:03

that had not occurred to me , soustra but there is a lot of merit in your question !

JessM Tue 14-Jan-14 16:40:05

I would also ask "is the saving to buy a house" project realistic with only one income - in most parts of the country you would really struggle to save or get a mortgage at only 27 unless your DH is very well paid.
Have you been through the figures and maybe done a reality check of your own? And how is the saving going?

petra Tue 14-Jan-14 16:41:33

Has anyone seen the news that Vanessa Feltz has become a Granmother for the first time and WANTS TO BREASTFEED. Am I the only one who finds this so wrong?

FlicketyB Tue 14-Jan-14 16:47:41

Frankly, it makes me feel quite ill - and it is appallingly wrong. She is trying to do exactly what Veevox's MiL is doing.

jinglbellsfrocks Tue 14-Jan-14 16:51:53

Does the mother not want to do the breastfeeding herself? Or can't? Breast milk is the best option for babies as we all know. Guess the baby would n't mind who it comes from.

How would she get milk going though? confused

Is it much different from donating blood?

Riverwalk Tue 14-Jan-14 16:58:47

You can breastfeed without giving birth but why on earth a grandma would want to do this, heaven knows!

It's not a life-threatening situation if a baby doesn't have breast milk.

I can't believe she's serious, just maybe over-excited and attention-seeking.

Tegan Tue 14-Jan-14 17:02:23

Vanessa Feltz attention seeking; Surely this cannot be shock!

petallus Tue 14-Jan-14 17:03:56

veexox I get the impression from your posts that you feel you MIL has great love for your child and great love for your husband.

However, you don't seem at all sure how much affection she holds for you.

That must be hard for you.

jinglbellsfrocks Tue 14-Jan-14 17:04:30

Just a remark made in excitement

Elegran Tue 14-Jan-14 17:08:11

She would need lots of extra hormones to do it! Probably just a bit of an exaggeration of how much she wants to bond with the babe.

thatbags Tue 14-Jan-14 17:09:05

Who is Vanessa Feltz?

Agus Tue 14-Jan-14 17:25:44

I completely agree with Jingle's first two posts. Get your own place and then come to an arrangement with Granny when she can be part of her grandaughter's life. Granny is as besotted with your DD as you are.. I know from experience the first time I held my DGD, she completely captured my heart and DD did not have an easy time as I initially offered all sorts of advice, mainly to make things easier for DD but I eventually realised DD was learning and nurturing her own baby as I wanted to do when she was born. It's a new role for everyone. Good luck.

JessM Tue 14-Jan-14 17:29:43

celeb bags

merlotgran Tue 14-Jan-14 17:37:35

Dunno about wanting to breastfeed my first grandson but he was so gorgeous I wanted to eat him. grin

veexox Tue 14-Jan-14 17:46:09

It is realistic OH has 20 thousand in savings and we pay the family 400 a month they don't have a mortgage and both MIL & FIL work. I moved out when I was 16 and I have been in care so I fully well know how to look after myself without having someone doing everything for me. I dont feel included in her family MIL tells everyone that my daughter looks like her dad & her nothing like me but she has my skintone but her's will be better whatever that means she asked me in front of the whole family "why are your stretchmarks so bad?" I've caught her telling my daughter that she's lucky she looks like her and daddy not mummy and that grandma should look after her all the time. She's just not a nice woman I've tried talking to her, I think I'm just going to be civil well OH had a job interview for a job paying 15k more and 2 hours drive from MIL I think I will be telling him to take it!!

Soutra Tue 14-Jan-14 17:57:09

I don't know where you live and amn not going to pry but as jessM says have you done your sums? £400 a month should cover rent for a small flat but if you are buying in the SE you will need all of that 2OK! Given how bad you feel about it all I am surprised you are still there!

JessM Tue 14-Jan-14 17:57:45

Sounds like a safe(r) distance to me.

TriciaF Tue 14-Jan-14 18:20:13

re older women breastfeeding - I think I've written before about our 2nd son and his wife living in India and adopting because she can't have children.
She managed, in late 40s, to breast feed the last baby they adopted. I was there and saw it.
She followed advice on the internet about stimulation of the milk-producing glands.

BerylBee Tue 14-Jan-14 18:22:18

I think you need to be more assertive, veexox

As I understand it, when you talk to your MIL you are saying two things.
Namely
1. I'm so pleased my dd has a loving grandmother.
2. Could you butt out a bit day to day.
The problem is that all of us tend to only hear what we want to.
Your MIL hears the first and ignores, downgrades, minimises, the second.
We all do this - conversations are complex and nuanced, but we like to take away a simple message, and if possible a message that pleases us !

I feel that unless you start being more direct and blunt in both your words and actions, she will never change.
I don't think this is being unkind. If she doesn't change then further down the line, it's possible you will just crack and go no contact with her.
And then, she will be aghast and hurt and will genuinely say
what did I do wrong
All because she didn't hear the second part of your message. . .

jinglbellsfrocks Tue 14-Jan-14 18:26:54

TriciaF that sounds great. smile

Soutra Tue 14-Jan-14 19:02:58

I think I was being optimistic about £400 covering rent for a month so ignore that - senior moment., I imagine double would be nearer the truth. The distance sounds fine, but how would that impact your university studies?

Mishap Tue 14-Jan-14 21:48:04

Two hours away sounds about right - hope he gets the job. You will then reduce the contact with grandmother to an amount that feels a bit healthier for all concerned.