What’s a weird thing your In-Laws do?

[FirstFallopians]

I was thinking there about how my BIL maintains that all families are a little bit weird to someone else.

Thought he was being flippant but then I remembered that my in-laws keep their family toothbrushes and toothpaste in a drawer in their bathroom. If you need a bit of floss after Sunday lunch you need to stick your hand into a sticky, damp mass of plastic and bristles.

What slightly weird things do your in-laws do?

Instant coffee made with milk boiled on the hob, usually in a milk saucepan.

Some heathens (my DH) may microwave it

Ffs OCD diagnosed ex mil not old diagnosed

My mil thinks I'm weird because I have lamps everywhere and never put the big light on. I think it's weird to have no lamps and sit under a bright light in the evenings.

FGS, my inlaws do this, too. My husband and I keep our lighting very dim and warm in the evening to create a cozy atmosphere. My inlaws have apparently found the brightest bulbs in the world and have them in all of their overhead lights. You could perform surgery in their lounge it's so bright.

I can’t bear a big light. It’s like living in a supermarket!

I used to go out with someone whose family were very into postcards. If they went somewhere they would be expected to send everyone in the family a postcard. I can see that might be a nice thing to do if you are on holiday for 2+ weeks but they would do it if they were on a day trip.

I remember my boyfriend’s mum ringing him to say that great aunt x had received her postcard but his granny hadn’t and was very upset. He told her that he’d posted them all at the same time and place and he couldn’t help how the US postal service was run. Then she rang the following day to say that granny had now got her postcard. Bonkers.

If you told them you were going somewhere, they would say “Send us a postcard!” and then get sulky when you said you wouldn’t be able to. I once fell out with them when I said that finding a post office in other countries isn’t always an easy thing to do (they didn’t go abroad).

Oh God yes this! My ex PIL's had a 150 watt bulb and no shade, it was horrific! Give me lamps (well one here!!) any time!!! 🤣🤣🤣

With the gravy one, my fil and mil were commenting on how M&S had loads of pots of gravy in the Christmas aisle and couldn’t understand why anyone would spend £4 on gravy!

I host Christmas and said “well sometimes it really is too long winded to make and it can be quite messy, it’s why I do Jamie Oliver’s get ahead gravy or cook the turkey the day before an make it. That way I’m not juggling a massive tray on the hob when I’m already running behind in everything else and need the space. But the one you buy is a great alternative”

They stared at me blankly, said it just needs a small pan and you can make it seconds.

It didn’t click until after they left that they thought it was ready made gravy from granuals being sold for £4 at M&S.

@CruCru my in laws are like this about photos. They always want to see "lots and lots of lovely photos" every time. I hate standing around taking mediocre pictures of places that have far better professional photos available - I prefer to enjoy the moment.

And yes yes yes to the big light stuff - I get migraines, and if I go over with one, I get an offer to switch one tiny side lamp off. Switch the massive overhead monstrosities off, you loons.

My DPs rather than in-laws.

Insanely bright overhead spotlights in every room which they have on at any hint of darkness outside.

Also they are cleaning fanatics, their house is always beyond spotless, iron sheets and socks etc. Yet they keep food in the fridge and pantry long beyond any use by date - mouldy bread, rotting cauliflower, chicken stew sat on the side for days, ancient hard lumps of cheese. I don't get it. They also buy masses of food, so there is a constant ready supply of things to go off that they didn't get around to eating.

I mean there’s narcissism all round but I wouldn’t class that as weird that just started my hatred off now I pick up on all the little differences until they bug the life out of me.

Birthday cards, they’ve been married 55 years but send separate cards to their children. Why?

On the card front, they have to post a card (birthday, Christmas etc) even when we lived 10 minutes away, they had to post it. Almost like they would die of embarrassment to hand it to you directly. They would sometimes post a card, come to our house for planned babysitting the next day and then the card would arrive the following day. Just bring it with you!!

They also post cards just to say ‘Thank You’. Things like thanks for inviting us to your wedding, for a Christmas present, for having them for a meal etc etc but then for a genuine celebration like an anniversary, they don’t bother.

They go really post crazy around births, for our second child we received four parcels in the first 12 days after he was born, one parcel contained just a pair of tiny socks, the postage was more than the socks cost! My DH is very similar about it, he’s just sent a very small box of chocolates down for his Dad’s birthday, the postage and the packaging we had to get for it (next day guaranteed delivery) was over twice the cost of the bloody chocolates!

They buy gifts that are the same for DH and I but don’t want to spend anything similar in price so he got socks (there’s a theme here) at £30 for 4 pairs from some ridiculously overpriced shop in London, I got socks but £3.50 for 5 pairs from Primark. For Easter they would buy chocolate eggs for us (why? Who knows) he would get a huge £40 John Lewis one and I’d get little £4.99 Aldi one (not knocking Aldi, I go every week). It’s just really strange to try and mirror gifts so we receive the same thing but make it clear they aren’t spending that kind of money on me. Don’t get me started on their beliefs around money, I would honestly be here all day…

we also had the postcard thing. I can understand if you go to the same resort for 2 weeks every year there’s not much to do, so postcard shopping/sending fills the time.
DH and I travelled a lot and went on lots of small breaks. We didn’t send postcards, me because I didn’t want to and DH too disorganised.
One of the many reasons they didn’t like me for not ‘doing things properly’.

Maybe you could perform surgery on your ILs 😂
I suppose I had better say that I am joking…

I actually had to leave a job once because the woman I shared an office with had to know the exact route you’d taken anywhere, except I’d just moved to the area and I kept saying to her “I don’t know, I just followed the sat nav” but she wouldn’t give up and she’d start with did you go past x shop?, did you go past x street? and after about 6 months I just couldn’t take it anymore.

I still don't really find that weird. Loads of people are huge fans of Heinz Tomato Soup for example.

My MIL sends a birthday card to my husband in the post. Then when we visit later that week gives him a second birthday card along with his presents.

She buys her dog a Christmas present... and wraps it up.

After Christmas dinner serves cold leftover meat with hot veg. It's not the craziest thing but it winds me up because I hate cold food.

Honestly my husband would have more strange habits from my family! Contrary to previous posts, I despise living room side lights because the dimness gives me a headache. My parents absolutely refuse to use the single big light, instead turning on four smaller, duller lights. I cannot visit them after dark.

Also, as soon as the sun nears the horizon the blinds in every room MUST be lowered. The reason being it would be terrible if (gasp) the neighbours could look in and see them sitting on the sofa.

As previous posters, tea and coffee time is sacred and always must be adhered to.

They also cut boxes down to size as things get used. So a nearly empty box of waffles is sliced in half to save freezer space.

NO ONE is able to load the dishwasher except my mother. If you attempt it, she will come in after you and rearrange it. Also, there must be not a shred of wasted space in the dishwasher - every square centimetre must be filled with something dirty - before she can contemplate turning it on. And she cuts the dishwasher tablets in half because that's all you need.

Dad gets changed every time he goes out to his "going out trousers", then back into his "at home" trousers upon return. Tbf my husband also does this, so I guess it's a man thing?

My grandparents will whisk dishes away and wash them up, even if you're not finished. Once I was using my knife to help my son cut his food (think he was very young at this point) and I set it down for a second. Went to pick it up again and it was gone.

And I have to tell on myself as well. I have a thing about my glasses: only I can move it. Husband learned very soon in our relationship to not carry my glass over to me. Once he touches it, I can no longer use it and half to get a fresh one. The other night he moved the table my glass was resting on and it did not go down well, but his defense was he didn't touch the glass. Mugs are absolutely fine to transport. (yes, he is a very longsuffering husband!)

And I have to tell on myself as well. I have a thing about my glasses: only I can move it. Husband learned very soon in our relationship to not carry my glass over to me. Once he touches it, I can no longer use it and half to get a fresh one. The other night he moved the table my glass was resting on and it did not go down well, but his defense was he didn't touch the glass. Mugs are absolutely fine to transport. (yes, he is a very longsuffering husband!)

Wow. That's nuts. 🙃

This thread has reminded me of a friends house that I was in a few times. Admittedly each time was a weekend when we were out drinking so it may be a weekend thing. There were 6 siblings, 3 boys and 3 girls. They had a girls room, a boys room and a tiny box room for one that was on some sort of rotation system.

When someone went to bed they would just chose a bed in any room and whoever went to bed last got last call. There were often discussions about which bed was more comfortable or near the toilet or quieter etc. I just couldn't fathom tip toeing around trying to find an empty bed! Then in the morning everyone wandering around getting clothes etc. It was totally normal for them.

I'm glad there's one other person who likes the big light on. I need to be able to see properly and only use lamps in the bedroom or in addition to the main light. I wonder if it's an eye sight thing. I'm short sighted and really struggle in dim lighting. I find dusk quite hard.

Ex DP's Dad used to leave used paper hankies in the utility room.

This was so they could dry out to be used again!

What a money-saving tip!

He also halved Brillo pads, not so bad!

I know. And very inconvenient for me, but I literally cannot change 😅

Might not be weird to you because you had it growing up. But it is weird to me because I have never come across it.

Therefore I posted....it is weird.

My eyesight it quite poor, so yes I think it is! I blame my vision in reading in bed with a torch as a child: when I stopped doing that, my eyesight stopped worsening. But I can't bear sitting in a dimly lit room. Buying new bulbs is an ordeal because "warm white" isn't white enough and gives me headaches.

Or have a separate toilet and bathroom.

Only have certain vegetables with particular roast meats:
Cabbage with Beef
Carrots and peas with lamb
Sweet corn fritters with chicken
All roasts have roast potatoes but I just find it weird that they always have the same vegetables with a certain meat. Why can't they mix it up? Just weird!