Dear Margo, Every time we go to visit my mother-in-law's house she complains about how much groceries for my family of 6 costs. She rations out the food and I get yelled it if I eat too much. I am afraid to eat anything in her house and am often hungry. The frustrating part is she is really not struggling for money. They recently retired, but they also just bought an expensive second home by the ocean, travel all over the world, buy expensive things, gets way more retirement money every month than we earn, and they also inherited a lot of money. We are a family that struggles every month to put food on our table. It frustrates me when she complains, and I think it is rude. We recently started bringing food with us, yet she still complains about money. I feel like I am going to lose it. How do I handle this tactfully and at the same time get her to stop complaining? - Money matters
Hi! It's Margo here. I'd love to know what you think of the letters -- and the answers!
Also, any additional thoughts you might have. Thanks!
Marina's Comment
Perhaps the mother-in-law is just a poor hostess. It is tasteless to discuss money while entertaining. I think the best way to handle this is to stop the visits. Also, where is your husband, your son,in all of this? Shouldn't he be speaking to his mother to set her straight?
Reader Comment
your family of 6 is certainly going to require a LOT more food than her family of 2, Just because she can afford it won't stop her from deciding what is appropriate for people to eat. Since you struggle to put food on the table, maybe you should not travel to see her. You chose to have a family that size, you should not complain about putting enough food on the table.
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