A woman turned to the Reddit community seeking advice after a difficult fallout with her mother-in-law over repeated boundary violations involving her newborn daughter.
In a heartfelt post titled “AITA for not allowing my MIL to babysit anymore?”, she detailed how the situation left her feeling disrespected and ignored.
“From the moment my baby was born, I made my boundaries clear,” the new mom shared. Her requests were straightforward: no kissing the baby, wash hands before touching her, and always ask before taking the baby from her arms.
She and her husband had been living with his mother shortly after their daughter’s birth, hoping for support. But instead of feeling helped, she said her boundaries were crossed “within the first week.”
Despite explaining her expectations, her mother-in-law responded with, “I’m the grandma and grandmas can do what they want,” the mom revealed. This dismissive attitude persisted.
The couple addressed the issue multiple times with the mother-in-law, emphasizing the importance of their rules. However, the behavior didn’t improve; the MIL “completely disregarded our rules and continued to ignore them.”
Beyond boundary issues, the mother-in-law began calling the baby “her child” and demanding, “Give me my child,” which made the new mom very uncomfortable.
Every time the couple confronted her, it led to defensiveness and escalating arguments.
Feeling overwhelmed, the family relocated after the baby turned two months old due to the husband’s military assignment.
But distance didn’t ease the tension. Soon after the move, the mother-in-law planned to visit and babysit, prompting the mom to set firm limits.
“I told her and my husband I don’t feel comfortable with her babysitting anymore,” she said. “Until she respects the rules and respects me as a mother, I don’t want her in my home.”
The Reddit post concluded with her asking the community, “So, AITA for saying these things?” Support flooded in.
One commenter warned, “This is just a sign of much worse to come,” urging her not to let her mother-in-law steal precious memories. “Don’t let her rob you of what’s supposed to be happy times that you’ll never get back.”
Another praised her for standing her ground: “Not overreacting. It’s good you’re setting these boundaries now.”
