Hey Twinkle, you know how your MIL thinks that her daughter is the be-all-end-all of perfection? We should really introduce her to my sister, who appears to be under the impression that her child is the Second Coming. I actually had a pretty nice telephone chat with Sis the other day. But when I hung up the phone, there were a few things that stuck with me.
(1) Sis is not going to our cousin's wedding this Saturday, because she doesn't want to upset Baby's routine. They took Baby to a dinner party on Memorial Day weekend, and dinner wasn't served until 8 pm, so Baby didn't get to bed at his usual time, and she could just tell that he was not himself - for the next TWO WEEKS. It was so upsetting for Baby, she just doesn't want to put them all through that again.
Perhaps you are thinking (as I was thinking) that Sis could leave Baby at home with his daddy and attend the wedding with moi. But no ... Baby is still nursing, and she can't leave him for five or six hours to drive to Harrodsburg and attend the wedding. Let us recall that Baby is eight months old. She has not spent more than three hours out of his presence since his birth. "You know, it's the first year, right? I mean, that's just how it goes, we have to make sacrifices." I realize that she is nursing, but you know, most people would just pump. Nope, Baby goes straight to the source. Why? "I just don't like to give him bottles."
(2) Sis -- a public school teacher, when gainfully employed -- can totally see now that she is a parent why people get so upset about their children's school. "You know, you just want the best for them!" Thank heavens she has five years before she has to make a decision with Baby, because she just can't imagine sending Baby to school ... with, you know, other kids. "You just want them home, you know? Even [Her Friends] who send their kids to a great school were so relieved when it was summertime and they could have the kids away from all those other influences."
And as for school assignment, well, she just thinks that we need to go back to a system of neighborhood schools so kids who live in the good neighborhoods get the good schools and if you can't afford to live in a good neighborhood, too bad for your kids. The lack of self-awareness was remarkable, given that this statement was coming from a woman whose mother subsidizes her mortgage.
(3) The phone conversation ended when it was time for her to begin Baby's nighttime routine. At 6:45 pm. She suggested that I could stop by to see Baby sometime, in the hours that he receives visitors ... probably a weekend will be best. Not too early in the morning, or during the midday while he is napping, and again, 6:45 is when his evening routine kicks in. So let's see, that's ... a Saturday or Sunday between 9:30 and 11, or from 5-6:30. Because those are totally convenient times for people who have other things to do on the weekend.
I'm not sure this post does it justice - it was really amazing. Sis has always been a solipsist. Evidently her perspective has now shifted, and instead of seeing the entire world as a function of how it suits herself, she now sees it all revolving around her and Baby.
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