Tag Archives: in-laws

The First Year of Marriage

As I listen to people talk I find a lot of couples seem to have unrealistic ideas about marriage. Of course, I suspect many of these are perpetuated by romance novels, songs, and movies. One couple I know found the first twelve months or so of marriage very difficult. Every little thing seemed to aggravate the other person. This was largely because they were living in a small flat and she was not used to not having a space that was not completely her own. Another woman found it strange sharing a bed with another person. Personally I like waking … Continue reading →

My Mother-in-Law

The other day Dale wrote an article entitled “Are You the Exception to the Rule?”. It was about relationships with mother-in-laws, in particular ones that are very amicable. As I commented on Dale’s blog, I have a bit of an unconventional relationship with my mother-in-law. Wayne’s Mom As many of you regular readers know, Wayne and I have been together for over 20 years. (This past May, we celebrated 22 years together. And in a little over a week, we’ll celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary.) I knew Wayne’s dad very well. I met him right at the beginning of our … Continue reading →

Do You Ever Dream About Your Spouse’s Family?

The other night I had a really tender dream about Wayne’s dad. He passed away several years ago rather unexpectedly. He was still young too. Only 60 and as feisty as ever. As you might expect, it was a huge blow to Wayne. He was really close to his dad and was shocked by the sudden loss. However, only six days prior we had spent a wonderful week with him. Tom (Wayne’s dad), Grandma Pryor (Tom’s mom), Keith (Wayne’s brother), Peach (Wayne’s aunt), and Kevin and Jerry Jr. (Wayne’s cousins) had all flown out to Florida so we could go … Continue reading →

Complaining to Your Spouse about In-Laws

Several different articles so far have addressed in-laws. We have discussed holiday dinners with difficult in-laws, living with in-laws, and other in-law scenarios. It is no doubt that in-laws have gathered a bad stereotype when it comes to marriage. In many cases it is thought that in-laws are not supposed to get along. Once married, women are thought to have to tiptoe around their husbands’ mothers and men are thought to be afraid of their wives’ fathers. Yet this does not always hold true, there are many in-law relationships out there that are perfectly great. However, even if you have … Continue reading →

Holiday Meals with Your Mother-in-Law

Not everyone is lucky enough to have married into the perfect family. Some people are not even lucky enough to have married into a decent family. However, once married the family is yours too. For some couples, the holidays can be very stressful. Not due to last minute shopping or picking out the perfect gift but due to holiday meals with the in-laws. In my opinion, in-laws are much harder for women than for men. Women tend to take things more personally and strive to please their in laws more than men do. Most men are what they are take … Continue reading →

Living Too Close to Your Parents or In Laws

Deciding where you will live after you are married is a big decision. In a previous article, I discussed some of the hardships that can come from living with your parents or in-laws. However, living too close to your parents or in-laws can also be a problem. Whether or not you should move in next door to your parents or your spouse’s parents, depends a lot on the type of parents that each of you have. As Debra found out in Everybody Loves Raymond, living too close may not always be the best idea. She constantly has her in-laws checking … Continue reading →

When Your Parents Don’t Like Your Partner

Taking your partner to meet your parents for the first time can be a tense event for all parties. Expectations, interests, personalities, histories and how well someone is feeling at that particular moment can all play a part as you bring together the people you love in one place. Your partner’s nervousness is understandably that of someone who wants to be approved of and your parents’ nervousness stems from wanting to like this person you found important enough to bring to see them. But what if the best laid plans of mice and men go awry and while your partner … Continue reading →

The Husband-in-Law

My parents divorced when I was twelve. That was more than thirty years ago. It wasn’t amicable, and there were some problems. But they resolved them a long time ago, and both remarried. My father’s second wife left him, and he never felt the need to marry again. My mom and my stepfather, Fred, have been married for thirty years now. I consider my stepfather my “dad”. A few years ago, my father (Bill) moved in with us. By and large, it’s been a wonderfully positive experience. Recently, my other parents moved to the area. That was initially a little … Continue reading →

Do Your Parents Resent Your In-Laws?

Here’s an odd conundrum or maybe it’s not so odd, but I’ve had more than one note from a couple encountering this particular issue and whether it’s the bride’s parents or the groom’s – how do you cope with it when your parents don’t like your in-laws? For Christa in North Carolina, she describes it as walking a tightrope while juggling especially around the holidays. She and her husband have three children and instead of having one large holiday with the whole family together they spend one part of the holidays with one set of grandparents and the other part … Continue reading →

Blending Holiday Traditions

Most families have at least a few traditions that they enjoy throughout the holidays. This can make things hectic for the couple that wants to spend times with both families, especially if plans are rigid. The best way to keep the peace and ensure that everyone enjoys the holidays is to find way to adjust, rework, and sometimes blend family traditions. Suppose his folks have always hosted Thanksgiving dinner but your Mom also has it at her house. Are you going to eat with his family then yours and then have turkey with all the trimmings at home? Doing so … Continue reading →