We were drinking our coffee this morning when DH noticed the porch door open so popped out to see who it was - MIL apparently in a bit of a tizzy, so he asked her what was wrong. She promptly launched into a tirade about the fact that I have borrowed my Dad's car at the moment, am putting petrol in it, haven't a clue about money and have only got it cos I'm too lazy to walk round the corner to work & DD's school.
I obviously stuck my head round the door and said "you can speak to me if you like, instead of having a pop at me behind my back to dh"
And got the reply "Well, you're just crap really"!!!
My housework skills are appalling, I'm a spendthrift who has no clue about money, and I'm a lazy cow who apparently told her when me and DH got married that 'at least I wouldn't have to worry if I got fat now, cos I've already got my man' (which is total bullshit - although I may have said something along those lines tongue in cheek to wind her up if she was being a pita at the time).
I told her if those were issues in our marriage they were between me and DH and absolutely none of her business (she's insistent that they are 
), and that since she was making all these comments based on assumption I was not going to discuss with her.
She's also had an even more vicious slanging match with my mum earlier this year, which my dad witnessed and left him ill for several days (angina).
I have his car at the mo because he was taken ill recently and until he has the results of several neurological tests, he doesn't want to drive. I only use it at the weekend to save DH going out of his way to drop me off when I visit my parents.
I don't like housework, but whilst my house may be untidy (I have a 6yo ffs!) and a bit dusty, it is clean where it matters - kitchens, bathrooms, loos, bedding, carpets etc.
I've had issues with money in the past - largely stemming from going back to college as a mature student in my mid-twenties, and also the fact that I've been pretty unlucky whenever redundancies have come round in previous jobs. However, since going back to work at the end of last year I've made a huge effort with this - have paid off over £1000 of debt, been in the black with current account all year and am putting the child benefit in a savings account every month.
I didn't tell her any of this cos frankly it's none of her f-ing business (or yours - but I know someone will come back and say does she have reason to be such an arse!).
Since DH has a similarly fraught relationship with my olds (they just rub each other up the wrong way for the most part) I'm thinking it's time we said that when things like Christmas come round we will celebrate on our own (me dh and dd), and take dd round to see our respective families individually.
It's a shame as I get on fine with FIL, not fussed either way about older bil and his Mrs, but can see younger one and his partner and kids on my own.
I really can't think of any other solution at the moment.
Does anyone else do this? Does it work and has it had much of an effect on your dc's?
Sorry for the rant - just needed to get it all out of my system.