Really wound up about this the last few days. Have real issues with my sister in law (my wife's sister). The definition of a leech.
We invited my wife's mother to dinner but like anything the 41 year old sister and her son come as a package (her son is a lovely lad mainly due to the sponger sister in law pawning him off on her own mother most of the time).
Anyway I laid some ground rules with my wife, I specifically asked that she doesn't try to mirror her sister when it comes to lavishing presents on our son this year. It's not a financial thing, rather it's a values thing. Her sister despite never working a day in her life must have 50-60 presents bought for her 5 year old. It's not even about him, it's more her own compulsion. My wife's agrees most of the time.
As I am the one driving them cross country collecting them and my car only fits so much, but she overstepped the mark the first time by having the guts of 20 large packages posted down here for her lad in late November. My wife told her the ground rules, we are less lavish, our lad wants for nothing, is 3 years old.
Anyway, everything soon went out the window and it's business as usual, my sister in law is practicing some pretty ridiculous "traditions" Which included one specific one I specifically asked my wife to mention it's not happening here. Involves wrapping our sitting room door from top to bottom so the sittings room contents are revealed like a present. Real magical wonderland stuff. It's crass, excessive (considering my wife's mother is skint- we wanted to give her a financially less stressful Christmas because it's usually her funding this circus every year). My sister in law actually tried to stop her mother coming down as it meant her own meal ticket was going to be occupied so compromise was reached in which she had to come aswell.
Long story short, I sat back and watched all this last night, the sister in law directing traffic, berating other nieces and nephews into wrapping her kids presents whilst she played interior designer, all promises to reign it in went out the window.
She mentioned the door being wrapped, and I bit and sai "we're not doing that here" In a jovial tone, she responded that it was her tradition and her son and mine would find it magical. I said, it's not tradition here. Anyway, my wife (who agreed with my assertions pre Christmas) completely took me to task for saying the above to her sister. My wife will always talk like this about her sisters fondness of excess when she's not around, but is meek as a kitten in her presence, in fact I'm the only one who will challenge her, it's constant take, take and take.
The point of the story is, I don't want my son seeing this **** for Christmas. Buying every gift in the Smythe catalogue because it makes her feel less empty inside. I want my kid to have an appreciation of value, and not be expecting 40 or 50 things to open. My wife agreed but everything went out the window.
Im not a miser, I spent the guts of €500(not that amount matters but just for context) this christmas, our kid has everything, but it's a crazy show of excess, all for Facebook photos etc... But more and more just kept getting bought, I think our values are so different.
I adore Christmas, just not this kind of Christmas, where everything has to be magical and story book like. And you find yourself having to top it the following year.
Am I being unreasonable?
Mod - Edited child's age, from 50 to 5.
