After Marrying Into an Amish Family, Woman Breaks Down Unlikely Ways She Bonded with Her Strict Mother-In-Law

After Marrying Into an Amish Family, Woman Shares How She Bonded With Her Strict Mother-In-Law

When Lexi Lauren Mast and her now-husband Ammon began dating in 2021, he quickly formed a natural connection with her toddler daughter. Lexi often found the two spending time together, laughing and genuinely enjoying each other’s company.

One memorable afternoon, they all watched Finding Nemo at their home in Western Michigan. Lexi’s daughter was giggling at the antics of the clownfish, Dory, and Bruce the shark—and to Lexi’s surprise, Ammon joined in with equal delight.

“Have you ever watched Finding Nemo?” Lexi asked him.

“No,” he replied. This was Ammon’s first time seeing what Lexi considered a childhood classic, something she expected anyone in their twenties would know.

“From that moment on, it clicked,” the professional photographer tells PEOPLE. “This dude did not experience anything I did as a child.”

Ammon, now 26, grew up without exposure to cartoons, movie theaters, or most modern technology. At 18, he left his Amish family to start life in the broader “English” world, as the Amish call it.

His upbringing was unusual even by Amish standards. His father had left the community when Ammon and his siblings were young, leaving their mother to raise the children alone. From age three, Ammon grew up in a household virtually unheard of in Amish circles: a single mother raising three children with a largely absent husband.

“Once a year, once every few years, he would come around to say hi and check on the kids,” Lexi recalls of Ammon’s father. “It was always a really big problem for the community… His grandparents, his mom, they did not speak highly of his dad.”

After leaving, Ammon forged a close relationship with his father, uncles, and cousins who had also left the Amish community. Unlike many ex-Amish stories, he left before officially joining the church, so he was never formally shunned. His mother and sister remain Amish but welcome him back, along with Lexi and their children: her daughter from a previous relationship and two they share together.

Visiting Ammon’s family was initially intimidating for Lexi. She worried her nose ring, tattoo, and clothing would draw disapproval. But Ammon reassured her: “We’re not asking them to be English. You’re not Amish. Why are you worried about it?”

She quickly realized his family was welcoming in their own way. “We get to do the buggy rides, the food, all of that fun stuff,” she says. “We see a lot of people, because Amish people are very much community people. They just show up at people’s houses all weekend.”

Their children—ages 5, 2, and 1—have plenty of playmates among Ammon’s nieces and nephews. Even with language differences, Lexi observes, “Our kids just all interact and have so much fun, and they can’t even speak the same language together.”

Beyond the children, Lexi has formed meaningful connections with her mother- and sister-in-law. She shares advice, workouts, and personal conversations that the women value privately. “They would probably never admit it to the community, but they absolutely do,” Lexi says.

Her relationship with her mother-in-law is particularly poignant. Lexi notes, “This poor woman is stuck forever, just alone in my eyes, even though she doesn’t feel alone because she has her church.” Yet they have built mutual trust, supporting each other through challenges. “I can talk to her and vent about anything in my life or my relationship,” Lexi explains. “She’s like, ‘Call me when you need to.’ And I’ve had a time where I’ve needed to call her, and I did. And she helped me through things.”

Like any blended family, there are occasional bumps, but Lexi finds humor in her mother-in-law’s sometimes backhanded remarks—and she shares those moments with her TikTok audience. She began posting about her life with an ex-Amish husband in 2024, quickly gaining viral attention for her candid and humorous takes on the cultural divide.

In one viral video, Lexi recounted a moment when Ammon’s mother commented on his never joining the church: “Well, it’s not like you found anything better than the church with your life.” Lexi looked at the camera with wide eyes. “His mom is really sweet and we get along really well, but that one hurt a lot!”

Ammon’s family remains Old Order Amish, with strict rules and limited technology, meaning they are unaware of Lexi’s online content. Ammon, however, is supportive, open to sharing his background and experiences with Lexi’s followers.

“The first holiday we were together, my aunt and cousins just kept him up until 1 in the morning, asking him questions,” Lexi recalls. “Everyone was just so fascinated by it.”

Even years into their relationship, Lexi continues to witness Ammon encountering aspects of modern life for the first time. “There are so many things that he’d just never heard of, so many interesting things. I feel like every day I could ask a new question, like, ‘Did you eat cereal?’ I don’t know!” she laughs. “I had to explain what the Olympics were!”

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