Seriously, having a mother-in-law you can avow you love is such a flex. Especially when desi pop culture has hammered the idea of twisted MILs into our heads to a point where it wouldn’t be hard to imagine them as blood-sucking vampires.
Thankfully, some women have broken through the clutter of dealing with nefarious MILs and shared some wholesome experiences that help us to not view marriage as a spooky affair.
1. “My MIL is fucking awesome. She’s the type that is extra supportive but from afar. She knows how to give my husband and I space, and she lets us come to her about things instead of intervening. Naturally, that makes me just want to involve her in as much as possible because she’s so humble and chill, unlike my own mother.”
2. “She always makes me my favourite foods and lemon tart and tells her son to go away when he complains she didn’t make her favourites.”
3. “My MIL is so super duper proud and enthusiastic about my university studies that she includes me when she’s mum-bragging to her friends.”
– ToastytheScarecrow
4. “My MIL and I are both mega nerds and she has the same twisted sense of humor I do. I am 37 weeks pregnant and she helped throw a baby shower for us. Not only was everything perfect, but she surprised me with a Harry Potter-themed cake from Charm City Cakes.”
5. “My Mother-in-Law loves me unconditionally. I was raised by my single Dad and never had much of a relationship with my own mother. I had my tonsils out in 2004. She came down from the high desert and braved LA traffic just to be there when I woke up. She stroked my forehead and told me I did good and that she loved me. Then she turned around and drove home.”
6. “My mother-in-law is great with a few just no moments. She makes these amazing pecans. She knows that I love the spicy ones so each time she makes more she basically pushes them in my direction and I borderline melt.”
7. “My MIL is one of my favorite people. She has treated me like one of her own since I first started dating my husband. She’s supportive and helps me talk through a problem rather than trying to parent.”
– mehunno
8. “I think the closest point of bonding we have is that we share the challenges of being married to deeply introverted men – she told me ‘now you know what it is like being married to a [husband’s last name]!’ I’m a lot closer to her these days than my husband is – I have more interests in common with her and he still has residual teenage angst knocking around in his system.”
9. “5 months pregnant with my first and at lunch with my MIL the other day, she told me to please make sure I speak up if she’s ever doing or saying anything with the the baby that bothers me. And she meant it!”
10. “My mil before my surgery came over at some point and cleaned my entire apartment. While some people don’t like that I did because I’m disabled due to an injury. She came back after my surgery to help my husband take care of me and is now paying for the ambulance bill when my pain got out of control.”
11. “I’m about to give birth and my MIL and FIL are going to drive 3 hours to come and take care of our toddler while we’re in the hospital.”
12. “My MIL is a seasoned pediatrician. Let me tell you, it’s FANTASTIC to have a doctor literally on call when your infant is doing something worrisome!”
13. “My MIL is the best ever. I really don’t have a relationship with my own mother, but DH’s mom rocks. She’s my mother as well as a confidant. DH sometimes gets a little jealous of the relationship we have, but he does love how close we are.”
14. “MIL spent her Mother’s Day taking photos of me and SO for maternity memories. She also bought me a diamond bracelet that says “mom” even though I haven’t given birth yet.”
15. “So, I’m pregnant with our first baby and she surprised me this morning with the breast pump I’ve been looking at since I found out I was pregnant. It wasn’t something I asked for and she said she saw it and was thinking of me and wanted to make things easier for us.”
Defying the clichéd saas-bahu narrative and how!