I am married to Helen’s daughter. This kind woman decided to visit us whenever she pleased. Our son is one year old, and he follows a strict schedule, as otherwise, he becomes cranky.
If he doesn’t go to sleep at 9:00 PM, we have to deal with his tantrums. Late in the evening, my mother-in-law gives herself the liberty to come and play with her grandson. She claims she couldn’t come earlier due to work. She enjoys entertaining the child for about twenty minutes before leaving, and then I have to try to calm the baby, who is upset for the rest of the night.
I had long thought about how to talk to her about this situation. That evening, while trying to put my son to sleep, I was dreaming of going to the movies with my wife. Unexpectedly, my mother-in-law’s call interrupted my thoughts. My emotions were too strong to put into words. In addition to my son having a stomach ache, he was quite irritable. I tried to compose myself and played the situation coolly, acting a bit stern. “Oh, it’s very considerate of you to come,” I noted. “I need to urgently see the dentist because I have a toothache. Please, put the grandson to bed after you play with him.”
During this time, my wife looked at me with wide eyes. When we left the house, my wife asked, “Which tooth? Why didn’t you say anything?” “Come on. Let’s go to the club with me. Just turn off your phone.”
We returned around midnight to let my mother-in-law catch the last bus. Both the child and the grandmother were asleep. The entire apartment was covered in spilled juice and soiled diapers. She was sleeping, sitting on a chair. There was a dark stain on her business suit. When she noticed us, she rushed out of the apartment. Since then, she only appeared when invited.