Because I'm about to go insane.
Mods... sorry if this is in the wrong place, I just have no idea where to put it.
When I was pregnant, without asking, GMIL took it upon herself to essentially move in before the birth, to "help" with DS1. While I know that was her intention, something about her personality turns DS1 into the Spawn of Satan, and he hits, kicks, screams, whines, whines, whines, cries, etc... you get the picture. He does NOT do this when it's just me here (or, me and the baby and him, even!). Just HER. I have no idea what it is but it just stresses me 100x more when she's here.Also, for some reason, he has trouble sleeping for her, so we all end up staying up insanely late waiting for DS1 to fall asleep. Anyway, she was GOING to just stay with us for a week or two post-birth and clean (even though she CAN'T clean, DS1 won't LET her),...
...but then she sold her house. I mean it literally sold 2 days after she put the sign up, and since the buyers were also selling and rushed out of theirs, suddenly she had to be out. In a week.
Now... let me preface my complaining by saying that I'm a horrible ingrate, and I deserve to burn in hell... We lived with her for nearly a year (at her offering... well, insistence really) rent-free. We paid a small share of the bills, but she helped us a ton financially when we were in a rut.
Anyway.... so she moved in the day after the baby was born. He's 9 days old now and my house is a total wreck. When we moved in w/ her, we brought our clothes and put everything else into storage b/c we KNEW it was a small place. Well, our place is small too... but she's brought an entire HOUSE-full of stuff!! What used to be a nice "open floor plan" has become basically just a huge room of clutter. Her bedroom isn't even walk-in-able. I don't understand it... she brought a chandelier! Where are we going to put a chandelier? Or another TV? Or four huge BOXES worth of cleaning supplies?
And God bless her heart, but I've spent a lot of effort on making my home safe. I clean 99.9% of everything w/ a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water. Why? It works better, and it's safe. Nonetheless, I keep that AND all other cleaning things (dishwasher tablets, etc) above my stove. Because that's 100% unreachable, even by ME sometimes. No worries about DS1 taking off the "child proof" locks. But now all of a sudden, I have two huge boxes worth of bleach (which me and DS1 are allergic to), shout, greased lightening, and all kinds of other cleaners that I've actively been AVOIDING the entire 9 months we've lived in this home (successfully!!). And since I obviously can't fit even half of them above my stove, they are all under my counter with a child safety lock... not cool! It does NOT take a rocket scientist to open those things!! (OK, OK, *I* can't open them, but my 3yo brother can!!).
She also takes about 35,000 medications (which sucks for her, really it does). Which would be fine if I could find a place high enough for her to safely store them all. But today I was nursing in the living room and DS1 was playing in the kitchen (as usual, I TYPICALLY have the kitchen setup so that it's virtually impossible for him to get to knives/harmful things, obviously). Well, I hear rattling. And I walk into the kitchen, and he's got a bottle of freaking HYDROCODONE. And it does NOT have a childproof lid!! : : :
That's the big thing. The other little thing is the food thing... we eat a lot organically, and we eat whole grains, fresh fruits & veggies, and not junk food. Suddenly, because junk food IS her diet, we have an entire pantry full of oreos, cookies, chocolate, pop-tarts, canned fruit in syrup, canned veggies (more salt, less nutrition), etc... not that those are BAD, it's just not what WE eat... but ofc since she's taken over "care" of DS1, he's come to expect cookies and candy regularly. And tea. And coke. And whoa, that is just not cool at ALL with me. Even though I've told her so, he cries, and she just can't bear to hear him cry... holy cow, my son LOVES fresh, healthy foods! But now he whines because dammit, he wants OREOS!! WITH TEA!!
Half my house smells like stale cigarette smoke, even though I've put much effort into making sure it doesn't. When she gave us her old furniture (so she could buy all new stuff) I spent DAYS getting the smell out with febreeze, odo-ban, and several SEVERAL sessions with our shampooer/steam cleaner. Now she's brought all this STUFF into our house (like, more furniture, and of course all of her belongings, curtains, bed sheets, and other miscellaneous stuff that probably SHOULD be in storage) and it just all smells... musky...
So, if you made it this far you deserve a cookie. I'm going insane. My house is cluttered and a total mess. I feel like I'm absolutely losing my mind. I've started looking forward to the day that our lease expires (End of October!!!) so we can move out. I've actually started looking for places to live already because my home doesn't feel like my home anymore... and well, we were half-planning on moving to Chattanooga (4 hrs away) and TBH, I think we need to get away from everyone.
Okay, that's it. I'm done. Just totally had to get that all out before I totally lose it. FWIW, she's newly retired, 67 years old, and has no hobbies. After tomorrow (closing on her house) she will be here. With me and DS1. 24 hours a day. And I know that it's time for us to repay the favor, I'm just very, very, very, very stressed out about it, especially being newly postpartum and super-emotional and crying at freaking everything. FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, STOP MAKING MY BED! I HATE A MADE BED!!!
: crying
Tell me to shut up and be grateful, PLEASE.
Mods... sorry if this is in the wrong place, I just have no idea where to put it.
When I was pregnant, without asking, GMIL took it upon herself to essentially move in before the birth, to "help" with DS1. While I know that was her intention, something about her personality turns DS1 into the Spawn of Satan, and he hits, kicks, screams, whines, whines, whines, cries, etc... you get the picture. He does NOT do this when it's just me here (or, me and the baby and him, even!). Just HER. I have no idea what it is but it just stresses me 100x more when she's here.Also, for some reason, he has trouble sleeping for her, so we all end up staying up insanely late waiting for DS1 to fall asleep. Anyway, she was GOING to just stay with us for a week or two post-birth and clean (even though she CAN'T clean, DS1 won't LET her),...
...but then she sold her house. I mean it literally sold 2 days after she put the sign up, and since the buyers were also selling and rushed out of theirs, suddenly she had to be out. In a week.
Now... let me preface my complaining by saying that I'm a horrible ingrate, and I deserve to burn in hell... We lived with her for nearly a year (at her offering... well, insistence really) rent-free. We paid a small share of the bills, but she helped us a ton financially when we were in a rut.
Anyway.... so she moved in the day after the baby was born. He's 9 days old now and my house is a total wreck. When we moved in w/ her, we brought our clothes and put everything else into storage b/c we KNEW it was a small place. Well, our place is small too... but she's brought an entire HOUSE-full of stuff!! What used to be a nice "open floor plan" has become basically just a huge room of clutter. Her bedroom isn't even walk-in-able. I don't understand it... she brought a chandelier! Where are we going to put a chandelier? Or another TV? Or four huge BOXES worth of cleaning supplies?
And God bless her heart, but I've spent a lot of effort on making my home safe. I clean 99.9% of everything w/ a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water. Why? It works better, and it's safe. Nonetheless, I keep that AND all other cleaning things (dishwasher tablets, etc) above my stove. Because that's 100% unreachable, even by ME sometimes. No worries about DS1 taking off the "child proof" locks. But now all of a sudden, I have two huge boxes worth of bleach (which me and DS1 are allergic to), shout, greased lightening, and all kinds of other cleaners that I've actively been AVOIDING the entire 9 months we've lived in this home (successfully!!). And since I obviously can't fit even half of them above my stove, they are all under my counter with a child safety lock... not cool! It does NOT take a rocket scientist to open those things!! (OK, OK, *I* can't open them, but my 3yo brother can!!).
She also takes about 35,000 medications (which sucks for her, really it does). Which would be fine if I could find a place high enough for her to safely store them all. But today I was nursing in the living room and DS1 was playing in the kitchen (as usual, I TYPICALLY have the kitchen setup so that it's virtually impossible for him to get to knives/harmful things, obviously). Well, I hear rattling. And I walk into the kitchen, and he's got a bottle of freaking HYDROCODONE. And it does NOT have a childproof lid!! : : :
That's the big thing. The other little thing is the food thing... we eat a lot organically, and we eat whole grains, fresh fruits & veggies, and not junk food. Suddenly, because junk food IS her diet, we have an entire pantry full of oreos, cookies, chocolate, pop-tarts, canned fruit in syrup, canned veggies (more salt, less nutrition), etc... not that those are BAD, it's just not what WE eat... but ofc since she's taken over "care" of DS1, he's come to expect cookies and candy regularly. And tea. And coke. And whoa, that is just not cool at ALL with me. Even though I've told her so, he cries, and she just can't bear to hear him cry... holy cow, my son LOVES fresh, healthy foods! But now he whines because dammit, he wants OREOS!! WITH TEA!!
Half my house smells like stale cigarette smoke, even though I've put much effort into making sure it doesn't. When she gave us her old furniture (so she could buy all new stuff) I spent DAYS getting the smell out with febreeze, odo-ban, and several SEVERAL sessions with our shampooer/steam cleaner. Now she's brought all this STUFF into our house (like, more furniture, and of course all of her belongings, curtains, bed sheets, and other miscellaneous stuff that probably SHOULD be in storage) and it just all smells... musky...
So, if you made it this far you deserve a cookie. I'm going insane. My house is cluttered and a total mess. I feel like I'm absolutely losing my mind. I've started looking forward to the day that our lease expires (End of October!!!) so we can move out. I've actually started looking for places to live already because my home doesn't feel like my home anymore... and well, we were half-planning on moving to Chattanooga (4 hrs away) and TBH, I think we need to get away from everyone.
Okay, that's it. I'm done. Just totally had to get that all out before I totally lose it. FWIW, she's newly retired, 67 years old, and has no hobbies. After tomorrow (closing on her house) she will be here. With me and DS1. 24 hours a day. And I know that it's time for us to repay the favor, I'm just very, very, very, very stressed out about it, especially being newly postpartum and super-emotional and crying at freaking everything. FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, STOP MAKING MY BED! I HATE A MADE BED!!!
: crying
Tell me to shut up and be grateful, PLEASE.
You are right to be grateful for her past help, and right to be pissed at what she is doing to you and your family now. Keep us posted. 
I can't imagine that kind of chaos when you're already dealing w/ such an emotional time w/ a new baby. 
