5 ways to avoid pressure from in-laws
Most times, when starting out with challenging in-laws, the post-honeymoon portion of the show results in a dramatic climax with cameo appearances by an often unsuspecting cast of characters. I’ve dipped my big toe into this risky topic pool once before, and am now ready to take the full plunge. Here are five coping mechanisms I’ve developed, which I’m still laboriously practicing and pledging in writing to continue to rehearse: 1. Stay off hot-button topics. One of my favorite things about my mother-in-law is her ability to express herself without compunction and her commensurate ability to agree to disagree. She respects that, like her, I’m outspoken and have strong feelings about most (okay, all) topics. We’ve had our share of arguments and may not always see eye-to-eye, but I’ve learned to avoid topics that will result in a problem. In the past, those topics included me working full-time, part-time, and being a stay-at-home mom. We also no longer discuss whether it’s appropriat...