When families come together with the union of two people in love, the goal is for everyone to get along and have their days be filled with endless laughter and rainbows.
Is that too much to ask? Apparently, it is.
Personality clashes are inevitable and further complicated with in-laws having opposing political beliefs and objections to lifestyles.
But in order for there to be civility at family dinners, there must be reconciliations and comporomises.
Curious to hear about the experiences of strangers on the internet, Redditor RealityWanderer asked:
"Mother-In-Laws of Reddit, in the interest of fairness, what are your crazy daughter-in-law stories?"
Different Circumstances
Circumstances can be a factor distancing mothers from their DILs. These mothers had to contend with daughters-in-law who were drug addicts.
One DIL found another hobby, while another DIL committed an unimaginable crime.
Meth Addict
"When I first met her, she was a tweaker, she knew I knew and she hated me. Now she stays home and knits and crafts and I have not seen my grandson in 3 years. She still hates me."
A Tragic End
"We lived on the other side of the country from them so we didn't have many visits -- one or two a year. When we visited, all was well -- the house was clean, the kids were cared for, etc. She was fun to be around."
"However, once we left, life went back to 'normal' for my son and grandkids. She would say she was going to the store and would not come home for 2 to 4 days. She did drugs. She did not clean -- anything. My son traveled for business and when he was gone she had many different men in the house. He would come home to a trashed house, trashed car, trashed everything. She would put the kids to bed, then leave to party. She kept the two oldest kids home from school when he traveled -- she was too busy sleeping from partying all night to take them to school. As he was making plans to leave her and take the kids, she killed the youngest child and is now in jail awaiting trial. all of this came out after she died. I wish they had never met."
An Evil Twist
"My dil decided , after years of manipulating my son , to walk out on him and their two kids. A few hours later she changes her mind and bombards him with all kinds of crap for a week. And then she gains access to the house when he’s out and changes the locks causing him and their two young kids to be homeless. She sucks!"
– mysonisatwat
Personality Clashes
Although the Original Poster (OP) specifically asked for mothers to share stories concerning their daughters-in-law, other family perspectives were shared.
While some in-laws were willing to find common ground to improve strained relationships, these Redditors experienced situations where their in-laws could not be bothered..
Control Freak
"My sister experienced it when she lived with my SIL and brother."
"SIL had a very particular way of doing things. So she told my sister to not do anything because SIL had an order. Dishes? Nope, leave it in the sink. Cleaning? Nope, you're not doing it my way. So as my SIL said, my sister didnt touch any cleaning. Then SIL got upset my sister didnt clean. Made a power point presentation on everything my sister did wrong. These presentations would last a minimum of 20 minutes and up to an hour or so. My sister was confused because when she did help, she was told she was doing it wrong and SIL told her to stop. Now that she stopped, SIL is mad my sister isnt helping."
"My sister isnt dirty by any means, she knows how to clean up. It just wasnt being done the way SIL wanted it to be done. My sister had to sit through multiple presentations when she lived with them."
Like Oil And Water
"My MIL has a very rocky relationship with one of her Daughters in law. There are a few of us. This one time this particular DIL (with a rocky relationship) had started 'being nice' to our MIL by going to lunch with her and giving her advice on how to change annoying aspects of her personality. This lasted for a couple of months."
"Finally the DIL had an absolute rage session and started screaming at the MIL saying how she could no longer be part of this ruse and that all her attempts at being friendly and trying to changing the MIL's personality was pointless because the MIL was too stupid. To this day they don't get along and family gatherings are always super uncomfortable. This of course is from my POV so I can't say for certain what was actually going on in either of their heads, but there you have it."
– SiXleft7
"She Sucks"
"My dil decided , after years of manipulating my son , to walk out on him and their two kids. A few hours later she changes her mind and bombards him with all kinds of crap for a week. And then she gains access to the house when he's out and changes the locks causing him and their two young kids to be homeless. She sucks!"
The Last Straw
"My mother always tried with my ex SIL but she was a nutcase. XSIL and my brother were separated after she abandoned their son at the daycare center to run away and start a new life; my brother ended up with full custody of my nephew."
"The straw that broke the camel's back for my mom was when XSIL tried to kidnap my nephew and steal my brother's car during a visitation period (my mom was there to witness the whole thing) she didn't secure my nephew (2yo) into his seat and she crashed into a light pole in her haste - luckily nobody was hurt. My mother never forgave her for that and had to step in for my brother a few times during law proceedings to make sure that XSIL never got more than visitation rights. XSIL currently has every other weekend visitation and hasn't seen him in 5years but has 4 other children by all different fathers - trying to tie one down."
– skydivingfoxes2
A Different Perspective
After comments reflecting the point of view from mothers, daughter-in-laws weighed in with their experiences.
Unexpected Response
"DIL here. My husband and his mom have had a strained relationship due to politics the last few years, but a little over a year ago I got a DUI. It was a supreme f'k up on my part, and I take full responsibility. I made stupid choices. Hence the throwaway."
"Anyway, my husband gets the call that I'm getting arrested, and he chose in the moment to call his mom to help, versus my mom. My mom is super chill and a good woman in a crisis and was arguably the more pragmatic choice, but I think he just needed his mom, understandably."
"So he calls his mom to come watch our kid while he figures out bail and picking me up and all that. I'll never forget coming home at like 4 am feeling so embarrassed and overwhelmed and she was there, arms wide open to accept and comfort me. This diminutive church going Southern mama grabbed me and held my atheist, f'k up a** for what seemed like an eternity, but in a good way. Like all her natural mom energy was passing through me."
"We may not agree on most things, but I'll never forget how loved she made me feel at my lowest, without judgment or pretense. I hear horror stories about in-laws and I think how lucky I am."
"Edit: thanks everyone for the kind comments and awards! Please please please call an Uber or cab or friend before drinking and driving, even if you think you're ok. Make a plan before you go out. Believe me, you don't want to go through this."
"Surprisingly Supportive"
"My MIL surprised me in a similar way. She's a hardcore Fox News-watching conservative."
"My sister-in-law is married to a trans man, though he hadn't transitioned when they met or started their relationship. They never really officially started dating - just kind of went from friends to more than friends - and my SIL hadn't come out, so there were some vaguely homophobic comments/jokes from both MIL and FIL about their relationship at first, but they died down."
"I was really worried when we found out about brother-in-law's transition because I didn't know how MIL would react, but she was surprisingly supportive. She made an effort to use the right pronouns and name, and while it was a bit shaky at first (I was the only one able to consistently remember correct pronouns and name the first couple times we all got together), it's gone much better than I'd feared."
"Hard Taking Sides"
"For me, a MIL it's kind of a reverse heartbreak because I loved my DIL and we got on very well. She's from a semi-abusive background and at first had issues with drugs but dealt with that and became an excellent mother."
"Now they are separated, at her instigation, Son is devastated, and although I don't believe in taking sides it's hard to go past her decision to break up the family because that she has to 'find herself'. I'm just not coping as we had been a very close extended family."
"Not a matter of abuse, addiction, cheating, or even close."
Feeling "Suffocated"
"I was the sh**ty DIL, we married young and she would try to help a little too much. I would feel suffocated with her and felt like she was judging everything I did. 4-5 years later I realized she was just trying what she thought was best for us and we now have the best relationship."
Not all DIL stories are appalling.
Mischievous MIL
"Have to admit, I have the sweetest DIL. When they bought their new house, it has 5 bedrooms (for 2 people). I said good, now you have a room just for me to visit for an extended time. She was happy and asked when I thought I would get there? My son had to explain to her that I was kidding and would not be making an extended visit to their house."
– traveltoo7
Sweet Relationship
"I’d be the same way, I love my mother in law! She’s really sweet and funny. It makes me happy to see other in law stories like this."
– sinverguenza
Heartwarming Gesture
"My wife is the daughter my mom never had, and at our 3-year wedding anniversary, my mom gave her a trove of jade and gold jewelry that had been passed down from mother to daughter in my mother’s family since well before they left China to come to the West. It was all my wife and I could do to hold it together and not start bawling."
– WaluigiIsTheRealHero
Emotional Recollection
"This is so beautiful to hear. I've always thought I was 'weird' because my MIL got along so well she called me the daughter she never had."
"I LOVED my mil. God rest her soul."
"We only lost her a few months ago to motor neuron disease :( I'd give anything to have her back."
"Now I'm crying ;'("
– Banditkoala_2point0
Final Thought
It was found that mothers-in-law seemed to view the daughter-in-law more positively than vice versa.
Geoffrey Greif – a professor at the University of Maryland School of Social Work and co-author of In-law Relationships: Mothers, Daughters, Fathers, and Sons – told Today the mothers perspecitve was based on wishful thinking.
"You go into this relationship assuming the best and not assuming the worst — that's a form of wishful thinking," he said.
"I think that's a really good and positive thing. Mothers-in-law really want to make this work."
However, tensions arise when mothers interfere with parenting, as more than half of daughters-in-law did not share the same parental philosphies with their mothers-in-law.
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Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
For many childhood memories are overrun by living nightmares.
Yes, children are resilient, but that doesn't mean that the things we see as babes don't follow us forever.
The horrors of the world are no stranger to the young.
Redditor -2sweetcaramel- wanted to see who was willing to share about the worst things we've seen as kids, so they asked:
"What’s the creepiest thing you saw as a kid?"
Serious Danger
"Me and my best friend would explore the drainage tunnels under the Vegas area where we grew up. These were miles long and it was always really cool down there so it was a good way to escape the heat of our scorching hot summers. We went into this one that goes under the Fiesta casino and found a camp with a bunch of homeless people."
"Mind you we are like 11 years old lol. And we just kept going like it was nothing. It wasn’t scary then but when I look back at it we could have been in some serious danger. Our parents had no idea we did this or where we were and we had no cellphones. We could have been kidnapped and never have been found."
oofboof2020
Waiting for Food
"I was at a portillos once when I was 12 and I was waiting with my little brother at a booth while my parents got our food. This guy was standing with his tray kind of watching me then after a couple of minutes he started to walk over really fast not breaking eye contact with me."
"He was 2 feet from the table and my dad came out of nowhere and scared the s**t out of him. He looked so surprised and just said he wanted to see if I’d get scared or not. He left his tray full of food near the door and left. My folks reported him but we never went to that location again since we found a better one closer to home."
nowhereboy1964
Captain Hobo to the Rescue
"When I was a pretty young teen, my friends and I were horsing around in San Francisco and started hanging out to smoke with some homeless guys. Another homeless dude came up and began aggressively trying to shake us down for anything (money, smokes, a ride, drugs- all of it) and wouldn’t take no for an answer."
"We got in over our heads and could tell this guy was now riling the other 2 guys up and they were acting like they wanted to jump us. Some grandfather-looking old homeless man appeared out of nowhere and yelled at us to get the f**k out of here- nice kids like us don’t belong down here at this hour!!"
"Captain Hobo saved our lives that night. My parents sincerely thought we were at a mall all day lol."
FartAttack911
Survival
tsunami GIF
Giphy
"I was 7 and survived the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. Witnessed the wave rise way above the already massive palm trees (approx. 40ft?) and my family and I watched/heard the wave crash into the ground from a rooftop."
faithfulpoo
These Tsunami stories are just tragic.
On the Sand
Scared The Launch GIF by CTV
Giphy
"We were a group of kids who went to swim in a local lake. And there was a dead body on the beach with their hands raised and their legs bent unnaturally that local police just took out of the same lake. I've never put my foot in these waters again."
oyloff
Be Clever
"I was walking to school and I was about 5 or 6 years old and some guy pulled up beside me in his car and asked if I would get in. He also offered me sweets to do so. I said no. The creepy bit was when he calmly said ‘clever boy’ to me, then drove off. I’ve never even told my parents or anyone else about this as it would most likely freak them out."
OstneyPiz
Bad Jokes
"Dad's side of the family pranked me by burying a fake body on our back property and had me dig it up to find valuables. Was only allowed to use a lantern for light. They stuffed old clothes with chicken bones. Sheetrock mud where the head was... Random fake jewelry as the treasures... I was like maybe 10 or 11.. I remember digging up the boot first and started gagging because it became real at that point."
Alegan239
YOU
Who Are You Reaction GIF by MOODMAN
Giphy
"Woke up to find my little brother staring at me in the dark, asking, Are you really you?"
PrettyLola2004
Siblings can really be a bunch of creepers.
No one should talk to others in the dark though.
Not all pet owners have the same relationship with their pets.
While anyone who decides to become a pet owner, or pet parent as some say, love their pets equally, some never ever let them leave their side.
Taking their pet with them to work, running errands, even on vacations.
Many pet parents even allow their pets to share their bed with them when going to sleep.
For others though, this is where a line is finally drawn.
Redditor Piggythelavasurfer was curious to hear whether pet owners allowed their pets to share their bed with them, as well as the reasons why they do/don't, leading them to ask:
"Do you let your pet sleep in your bed? Why/why not?"
The Tiny Issue Of Water...
"Absolutely not."
"I have fish."- Senior-Meal3649
Everyone Gets Lonely Eventually...
"I adopted an eleven year old cat the day before Halloween."
"She has mostly lived in my closet since I got her, and she hasn’t been too interested in coming out."
"Last night, she came out of my closet and jumped up on my bed, and crawled under my covers and curled up by my feet to sleep."
"I was so happy!"- YellowBeastJeep
The Comforting Reminder That You're Not Alone...
"I recently lost my Greyhound but I used to let him sleep on my bed with me."
"The company was nice and he was no trouble to have on my bed."- HoodedMenace3
Hungry Cookie GIF by De Graafschap Dierenartsen
Giphy
What Do You Mean Allow?
"I have no choice."
"She is a cat, cats do whatever they want."- Small_cat1412
"He lets me sleep in my bed."- Poorly-Drawn-Beagle
Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way
"I carry my old boy upstairs to bed every night."- worst_in_show
Hug GIF by The BarkPost
Giphy
Who Needs An Alarm Clock?
"I let my two cats sleep with me."
"They're so full of love and just want cuddles all the time."
"And so do I."
"We've all developed a lil routine."
"Get to bed, oldest sleeps on my feet to keep them warm, youngest lies in my arm while I lie on my side (she the little spoon), then when I snooze my alarm for work in the morning the youngest paws at my face and meeps loudly to wake me up."- GhostofaFlea_
Whose Bed Is It Anyway?
"Yes."
"They're also kind enough to let me squeeze into whatever space they've left for me."
"Although I do get a few dirty looks off them."- Therealkaylor
"I found this tiny kitten screaming her head off under a car."
"Would not come out."
"Got some food and some water in dishes."
"I stood by the tire so she couldn't see my feet."
"She got curious about the food and water and started gobbling it down."
"I thought she would bolt when I squatted down."
"She was too busy eating."
"I grabbed her by the nape of the neck and all four legs went straight out and she tried to scratch me to death."
"I got her in the door and tossed her toward the couch."
"She ricocheted off the couch as if she was a ping pong off a table and I lost sight of her."
"I put out food and water and a sandbox and did not see that kitten for three days."
"On the third day, I came home and she was on my bed pillow."
"I thought she would bolt when I came near, but she didn't."
"I wanted to sleep so I tried to scoot her little butt off my pillow."
"She would not go."
"I put my head down to sleep and that is the way it was from then on."
"She ran the roost."- Logical_Cherry_7588
sleepy kitten GIF
Giphy
Sleeping Is A Prerequisite...
"No, he's a cat and he cannot keep still during the night."
"He walks across the headboard, opens the closet doors, jumps into the windows and rustles the blinds, etc."
"If he would sleep he could stay, but alas, he's a ramblin' man."- Spong_Durnflungle
Saying No Just Isn't An Option...
"'Let'."
"Lol."
"It's a cat's world and I'm happy to be on her good side."- milaren
Felines Only!
"The cat does, the dog doesn't and the horse certainly does not either."- Xcrowzz
Angry Tom And Jerry GIF by Boomerang Official
Giphy
Is That My Hair On That Pillow?
"My dog is perfect."
"She comes up, cuddles til we start to fall asleep, then gets down to sleep on her bed so she doesn't get too hot."
"Jumps back up in the early morning for wake up cuddles."
"The hair everywhere is the only downside but she is so cozy, what can you do."- HoodieWinchester
It is easy to understand how some people are able to fall asleep more easily knowing their friend and protector is there, in bed, with them.
Though we can't blame others who don't want to run the risk of being scratched or bitten in the middle of the night either...