Wife’s romantic plans derailed by mother-in-law, who confuses Valentine’s with Mother’s Day, believing it’s for her, tries to force her way into their home, and breaks in when they’re celebrating: ‘When we got back, we noticed the front door was open’

Author image for Etai Eshet
Etai Eshet • Editor
May 23, 2025 3:00 PM EDT

I'd love to have a laugh on Betty's back, but this mother-in-law is clearly not a hundred percent hinged. You could correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't know anyone who, in their right mind, would be determined to be the third wheel on their child's romantic getaway, preferably by breaking and entering. Cupid's got nothing on a mother-in-law who thinks February 14th is less about hearts and more about moms.

Turning the couple's romantic day into a complete disaster, complete with accusations, door-banging, and enough made-up stories to qualify for a creative writing award. This is the kind of mother-in-law who shows their "love" by showing up unannounced, after convincing herself her son is in immediate danger, and threatening to call the cops because you won't let her storm the castle.

But the true magic of this Valentine's Day fever dream comes after the getaway, when our unlucky couple returns home to find the door wide open and, surprise, only the wife's belongings tampered with, signature break-in courtesy of Betty.

Apparently, when Betty isn't busy rewriting reality, she moonlights as a one-woman SWAT team with a search-and-seize warrant for anything vaguely threatening to her maternal supremacy.

The law can't do much without proof, and hubby's masterful conflict resolution involves more rug sweeping than the cleaning staff at Buckingham Palace. Betty escapes justice with her favorite prize: plausible deniability, a wounded ego, and ongoing tries for Mother of the Year.

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  • For a brief summary of things just to catch you up, my MIL has a creepy, borederline in ous obsession with my husband. She has always hated me, seeing me as competition rather than a
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  • "My MIL thinks Valentine's Day is for her and she broke into my house"

    Cheezburger Image 10506985472
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  • daughter in law. She uses manipulation and crying as her methods to get my husband to do her bidding and while he understands and accepts she
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  • needs help, he hasn't pushed her toward getting into therapy and rug sweeping has become normalized in our dynamic in dealing with her. Mind you all of these stories take place in order
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  • over the course of the past 11 years since my husband and I got married. So far the advice and comments I have received on reddit have opened my eyes to the possibility that I am partially to blame for allowing it to go on as long as it has and if I want to
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  • save my marriage and my sanity, sh needs to change. Anyway, sorry for the little rant. Onto the next chapter of my MIL saga who I refer to as Batshit Betty or BB for short.
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  • In February of 2017, my husband and I were talking about spending a weekend in Vegas for Valentine's Day. We still weren't 21 yet so we couldn't go to the
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  • casinos but we loved the vibe and there was still plenty for the not- so-legal-aged people to do. We decided to fly out Friday evening and come back Sunday morning.
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  • Thursday: I was in the middle of packing my bag when there was loud banging on the door. Husband was at work that day and not due back for another 3
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  • hours. I had just gotten home from my morning shift and wanted to get my bag packed so I didn't worry about it later.
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  • I went to the door and checked the peep hole. It was BB. I really didn't want to deal with her as I was still ped about what happened at Christmas. I tried to
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  • pretend I wasn't home but the banging and her shouting only continued, so I threw open the door. Not verbatim, but this is the jist of the conversation.
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  • Me: "Hello, BB. I am a little busy right now. DH is at work. What do you need?" BB: "Where is he? I know you're keeping him in there!"
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  • Me: "What are you talking about? He's at work right now. If you want to talk to him you'll have to come back when he's home. I'm busy right now." BB: "What are you doing?"
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  • Me: "Packing?" BB: "For what?" Me: "DH and I are going to Vegas for the weekend. I'm just packing my bag today and we're flying out tomorrow."
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  • BB: "What do you mean? DH said he was spending the weekend with me." Me: "I doubt that..."
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  • BB has a talent. She can lie without thinking about it and what makes this talent even better, she believes it herself.
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  • BB: "Ask him. You'll see. Now where is he? I know you're keeping him in there." Me: "BB, I am not keeping your son hostage in my house. We are married. I have already told you he is at work."
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  • She tried to push past me but I held my stance, blocking her from getting inside. This set her off and she began screeching at me that she was going to call the cops because I was assaulting her. I told her to go ahead and that she wasn't welcome in my house.
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  • She stepped off the porch and took out her phone. I took the opportunity and closed the door and deadbolted it. Haha, b I went into the kitchen and I could hear her screaming into the phone at whoever was unfortunate enough to answer it. Whoever it was, they deserved a raise for dealing with that woman.
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  • After a few minutes she was back at my door, poundng on it. I guess the police told her she couldn't use them to break into someone else's house. (They never showed up by the way) I called my husband at work and told him his crazy mother is at our door, banging on it like a psycho. He sighed and hung up without saying anything.
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  • I then heard her phone ringing and she answered it. The switch was instantaneous. She went from screaming banshee to purring kitten in a matter of seconds. I couldn't hear what she was saying but the progression of her mood going from joyful to sad was comical.
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  • She looked like she had just gotten her feelings put into a choke hold. She ran off the porch and got into her car and sped out of there. I thought that was the end of it but it didn't end there.
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  • I told him it wasn't true and that she made all of that up. I told him what she said about him agreeing to spending the weekend with her instead of me, her belief that I am essentially holding him hostage in our house, like I keep him chained up in the basement or something and the threat of calling the cops because I stopped her from breaking into our house.
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  • He got even more ped and called her. When confronted, she started wailing. I could hear her through the phone she was that loud. DH tried to tell her off but her wailing only got louder. He hung up and apologized to me.
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  • We spent the evening ignoring her calls. We went to Vegas the next day and enjoyed the weekend. When we got back, we noticed the front door was open. In a panic, my husband ran in to check on his computer. He is an avid gamer and he shelled out big bucks for his system. He had a ps3, an xbox360, even old vintage systems like the super nintendo and a sega. He is quite the collector and he has expanded it since then.
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  • Thankfully we lived in a decent neighborhood. Nothing was taken. Of his anyway. We called the police and they walked us around the house, checking on everything to see what was taken. Upon checking in our bedroom, my pendulum was missing. My drawers had been rifled through, my side of the closet most of my clothes were thrown on the floor in my side table drawer, my (keeping this pg) rocket was missing.
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  • I knew only one person could be responsible so I told them it had to have been BB. They said unless there was proof they couldn't do much. I could only imagine what BB would want with a used rocket. I gag to think of the possibilities.
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  • DH called her. She flat out denied it and she was never arrested for it. She did go on a time out because of it but of course DH let her off the hook by suggesting it could have been someone else. I confronted him with the fact that only my stuff had been taken, not his. He did agree it seemed suspicious but he didn't want to believe his mother would do such a thing.
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  • Days later when DH was visiting her she started asking him questions about our s life. Questions a parent should not be asking their children about. He got uncomfortable and asked to change the subject. She let it go after that. Yeah...
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family drama inheritance brother mother tradition siblings family feud favoritism wedding aunt in laws mother in law sister fiancé grandmother Father
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