I've posted before about my mum, she is in her 80s and lucky as we are to have her hale and hearty and still with us, she can be incredible irritating. She's lost none of her faculties except the ability to filter so sometimes it's hard to make allowances.
Anyway. 2 of my kids did exams this summer, A Levels and GCSEs. Results for both were middling but good enough, they had both gone through a tough year and had done their best. As a family we were very positive and congratulatory and they feel good about themselves.
My oldest child is very bright and hard working and did incredibly well in her exams before the others took theirs. I know my DM deployed full bragging rights at that time, in particular to this old friend of hers, whose offspring my siblings and I were friendly with growing up. DM broke every rule in the parenting book back then not only endlessly comparing us and our achievements to each other but also against her friend's children. The friend was no better and gave as good as she got when her kids and grandchildren achieved high marks because that's all that matters in life.
According to my DM said friend has rung up to enquire about my kids' results and DM has respectively
- lied about one set, said they were higher than they really were
- deferred telling about the second set, pretended she didn't know yet and with a jovial laugh told me she was going to make those up too.
WTAF??! I felt hurt by that, on my kids' behalf as clearly she is disappointed by them, as she was by me (though I did well by most people's standards).
Anyway that's really, I just needed to vent to millions of strangers because I am too embarrassed by her behaviour to talk to anyone about it IRL!!! She makes all the right noises of saying well done etc at the time but has let her true feelings show now.
I know I should have said something but...I'm starting a new job tomorrow and did not feel like engaging with that nonsense.
Thank you, rant over.
