Woman Spends ‘Months’ Getting Kids on Bedtime Schedule, but Is ‘Back to Square One’ After Mother-in-Law’s Disastrous Visit

A woman shared on Reddit how her mother-in-law’s unexpected week-long visit completely disrupted her children’s sleep routine — a setback that could take months to fix.

She explained that her mother-in-law arrived suddenly and stayed in their living room during her vacation. “MIL bragged about wanting to take care of the kids 24/7 the entire week,” the woman wrote. “That lasted about an hour until she got tired of playing. Which. Fine. They’re my kids but don’t promise something you can’t keep.”

The woman was very clear about her kids’ bedtime routine: “6pm is dinner time, 6:30 is wind down time and 7 is bath, pajamas and book time then 8 is when they’re in bed for the night.”

But her mother-in-law “wasn’t okay” with this schedule and kept the kids awake until 4 a.m., refusing to quiet down. “From that day forward she refused to let the kids go to bed at their bedtime. Stayed loud during quiet hours,” the mom shared.

“It took me months to get this routine to work. And now it’s back to square one,” she added. “And she doesn’t care. She’s never cared about anyone but herself.”

When the woman told her fiancé she didn’t want his mom visiting anymore, the mother-in-law had “nowhere else to go,” which led to a heated argument between the mother and son, increasing tension in the household.

“Thankfully she leaves tonight to go back home but the damage will be lasting. My 5-year-old won’t be as hard but my almost 3-year-old (turns 3 in less than 2 days) is going to be a nightmare. She’s the reason I started taking bedtime so seriously because she won’t sleep. Ever,” the mom added.

Other parents weighed in with advice, including one who said, “After the first night of her disrupting your kids routine, I honestly would have said to her that this visit isn’t working out and she can either pay to stay in a hotel for the remainder of the week or she can go home. It’s up to her but those are her choices.”