MIL Visit -This too Shall Pass

Just a quick vent here -my MIL is driving me crazy! I didn't know it was possible for a grown person to be more needy than a newborn, but that is the reality. I just can't meet her needs as well as my baby's right now.

She arrived from Toronto on Wednesday and hasn't really lifted a finger since she arrived. This does not come as a surprise because this has never been the case when she has visited in the past. Right from the outset it was clear that she was coming to see the baby and not to "help out". Originally she wanted to come in December, but we stayed firm that we needed 2 weeks to bond and get to know our baby before having any out of town visitors. My sweet parents, who have been truly helpful offered to let her stay at their house because they have the extra space and guest bed that we no longer have. She's here during the day, but we get a break at night. I'm sure it's this that has prevented me from completely going off the deep end.

My MIL arrived during one of our infrequent snow storms which has since reverted to a winter rain/ wind storm. She is constantly complaining that she is cold no matter how much we turn up the heat in the house or get her extra layers of clothing. The other day we had to go out, and she made a comment that it was probably warmer outside than in. I actually showed her the thermostat that read 20 C (68 F) because she didn't believe me. Honestly, Toronto has much colder winter weather than Vancouver Island, so it's not like she is having to acclimatize from the tropics.

 She constantly wants to hold the baby, and makes comments about how much she has missed her or how her baby holding time is so limited to try to make me feel guilty for hogging the baby when she needs to feed. My MIL is not able to calm Anika so is really only able to hold her if someone else puts her to sleep first. Otherwise she just gets more worked up because my MIL overstimulates her.

When I do get settled nursing Anika my MIL decides that she wants me to make her tea, get her a snack, or get her the phone so she can make calls. Isn't this what she is supposed to be doing for a new mom? I've now sort of perfected nursing while walking around and doing things with the other hand. The other night I made dinner with a fussy Anika tucked under one arm. My MIL sat by the fireplace doing a Sudoku puzzle. As I was taking everything out of the oven to serve it, my MIL decided that she wanted something else because what I made might be too spicy (it had no spice actually). I managed to scrounge something else together for her, but by then DH and I had to eat ate lukewarm lasagna.

We still have one whole week to go. I hope I can manage not to completely lose it on her. I think we'll try to plan some outings.