I know it seems obvious, but seriously... set some hard fuckin' boundaries ASAP. Treat every early interaction like a chance to set a precedent - but not a chance for confrontation. Seriously, if yours is like mine, she has the best intentions and it'll help big time if you're on the same page. I kinda came into this…

That's exactly it - I bear nothing but goodwill toward my MIL, but I wish she had better sense in that department. Especially since we're in touch about everything - she could easily ask me "hey, would Big/Little appreciate Gift?" about anything.

Oddly... I'm the "upper" and he's the "lower," and I'm like 80% more expressive. Their hardship didn't translate to closeness.

THIS X1000. I love my MIL and she's awesome. But I hate it when she buys shit for the kids because she goes overboard or she gets them things I openly don't approve of - like when she bought cheap-ass sparkly, sticky play makeup for my grade schooler. Ugh. No.

So, I come from a family of doctors and attorneys and such. Not stupid rich, but definitely on the more comfortable side.

LOL OK, that's what it looked like but I didn't want to be an ass about you not getting a stupid movie reference :D

It was a Mean Girls reference... (if you got that, I'm sorry I didnt' get that you got that, i'm still asleep in my head)

LOL exactly! "I know you're not sure where we are right now, but you put my blue socks somewhere and I kind of need those..."

Why does it matter if the person they're poking fun at is someone's friend? (I legit don't know, I don't watch the show...) Are they not allowed to make fun of people they're friendly with?

See, I'd like to be all "aww, my husband and me could totally be that couple when we're old <3 <3," but my husband is such a baby when he's sick that my (hypothetical) demented ass would still be the one taking care of him and making sure he's okay :P

Still making more money than I am, and I definitely work more than 50 days/year.

Samoas and Tagalongs (in that order) are my favorite, with Samoas far, far ahead. I don't care for thin mints, and I only get trefoils for my dad - they're "meh" to me. Not bad, but not my thing.

I feel like I'm seeing the same thing. Women my age seem more interested in getting married and settling down than having careers. It's totally anecdata, on my part, but that's what I feel like I'm seeing. I see more ladies wishing they could quit their jobs and be SAHMs than talking about their ambitions in the…

If I hadn't pushed to see a doctor the day my daughter was born, I would have wound up giving birth to a very premature baby at home. My doctor apparently couldn't recognize a woman in the early stages of labor, after 20-some years of experience. So I definitely agree that you've gotta push, sometimes, to be taken…

So much love for Sigourney Weaver.

Alright, so I'm a big believer in leaving other moms the hell alone when it comes to how they want to raise their kids. Want to let your son grow his hair out like Rapunzel? Want to put your daughter in flannels and shave her head? Whatever - as long as your kid is healthy and happy, it's really none of my business. I…

I'm with you here... I don't think it's particularly funny or cute. It just seems like a waste of resources, especially since I often hear that bad things sometimes happen because the police don't have the resources to help.

I always wonder if you can trust those "this is what I use!" makeup lists because... I guess I'm just being cynical? I just figure that kind of article is a fantastic opportunity to get some good publicity/advertising... and it'd be a wasted opportunity if a makeup company didn't prod a celebrity into talking up their…

Did they? I have one for my kids and I hate the damn thing. It's nothing like the one I dreamed about (and never got - long story short, my mom would point at our oven and tell me to bake the "right" way). It sucks. Everything it produces is garbage.

Good for you, and best of luck!! I do have short stories, but I don't feel ready to put anything out there. It's definitely hard to write when you've got 'real life' knocking on your door, and I'm really glad you commented because I feel less alone!