I have a 'complicated' relationship with MIL. I like her but I will never measure up to DH's first wife as far as she is concerned (strange that ex W and I are actually really good friends but hey ho). DH and I been together 10 years now and I have tried so hard with her and over the last couple of years I've felt that we've been getting somewhere.
Anyway, Boxing Day. I asked PIL and BIL/SIL and their two children over for the day including lunch. I asked them to come for 12 and we would eat about 1ish. I baked, roasted, blanched, peeled, stuffed etc etc on Christmas night and all morning yesterday. DH doesn't have the best relationship with his mum or his brother so I really wanted to make an effort and I wanted them to see I made an effort, for them. I wanted to make a fucking effort for them. (I am aware this has gone ranty by the way).
So anyway, phone rings yesterday morning at half 10 and MIL says that if it's OK they will be here at around 1, not 12. I say OK, no problem, we'll eat a little later instread. So they arrive at about 1.30 pm amidst all the cooking and DH gets drinks and SIL is looking extremely uncomfortable.
I go back into kitchen and shout through 'lunch will be ready in about 15 minutes folks'. To which there is a silence and SIL looks like she's going to cry. MIL shouts back 'oh don't worry about us, we went out to lunch before we came. THEY WENT OUT FOR FUCKING LUNCH BEFORE THEY CAME. Poor SIL is mortified beyond words as she clearly had no idea I was preparing lunch. I come back through and say 'what do you mean, you know I was making lunch for us' to which she replies 'No, dear there was no mention of lunch, we just popped in to give the DC's their presents, you go ahead and have yours'. I was fucking speechless, DH flipped, BIL flipped (for once on my side, he said MIL insisted they eat out), SIL cried, FIL didn't have a clue what the hell was going on and the children were going nuts. Awesome day.