Mother of 2 tells mother-in-law to 'back off' after she ridicules her perfectly balanced homemade school lunches: 'It’s never enough’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Jun 28, 2025 8:00 PM EDT

As a mom, you want to give your kids the best relationship with food that they can have. Usually, this involves not policing their dietary choices too much. Sure, eating healthy and getting all the good protein and natural sugars is important. Snacking, however, is just as important! Telling your kid they can't eat a bag of chips once in a while because it's too unhealthy sets a precedent that has the potential to be dangerous in the future. Disordered eating has always been an issue in humans, especially ones who grow up with major restrictions that are placed on them with the intention of preventing weight gain.

The mother in this next story is practicing giving her children healthy, balanced meals without sacrificing the fun that comes along with eating food. Everything in moderation is usually the motto here, but her mother-in-law begs to differ. Since her MIL's criticism began, she has been increasingly more upset with the unwarranted comments surrounding her choices for her kids' lunches. She soon snaps. Scroll below to read the full story. What does a healthy lunch mean to you?

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  • "AITAH for telling my mother in law to back off about my kids’ school lunches?"

    i swear, i don't even know where to start with this. every day it feels like i'm walking on eggshells in a house that's not even mine.
    via AnaRicha321
  • so here's the deal: i'm 25, married to my husband (29), and we live in a small suburb outside Houston with his mom. yeah. already a bad setup. it's her
    via AnaRicha321
  • house, her rules fine. but my husband and i pay the bills. groceries? us. electric? us. school supplies, clothes, gas? us.
    via AnaRicha321
  • she's not broke she just expects to be taken care of. and i've been trying so hard not to snap. but the thing that really set me off?
    via AnaRicha321
  • the lunch thing. every. single. morning. she's hovering over me in the kitchen like i'm some teenager doing it wrong. and i'm just trying to pack my kids' lunch.
    via AnaRicha321
  • they're 6 and 8 picky eaters, both of them. i know what they'll actually eat at school. but nope. apparently, that's not "balanced"
    via AnaRicha321
  • enough for her. "Where are the vegetables?" "Why are you giving them that juice?" "That's too many carbs." "This isn't healthy."
    via AnaRicha321
  • Cheezburger Image 10520833280
    via S'well for Unsplash

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • "This is why they're always sick." like... what?? i'm literally up at 5am to prep everything. i cut the crusts off. i give them options. i
    via AnaRicha321
  • even started adding notes in the lunchboxes just to make them smile. but it's never enough. and it's not even like she's offering to
    via AnaRicha321
  • help. she just criticizes and leaves. anyway. the other day, i was already having a crappy morning one kid spilled milk, the
    via AnaRicha321
  • other was crying about gym class and she walks in and immediately starts with the whole "that's not enough protein" thing.
    via AnaRicha321
  • i lost it. not screaming or anything, but i turned around and said, "can you just let me pack their lunch the way i want to?
    via AnaRicha321
  • please?" she looked stunned. like I disrespected her in her own kitchen. and now my husband's acting weird. he didn't say much,
    via AnaRicha321
  • just, "maybe don't talk to her like that." like i didn't try to hold it in for months. like i wasn't the one getting nitpicked every day.
    via AnaRicha321
  • now the house is tense. she won't even look at me. and part of me feels guilty. like maybe i should've just let it go. but
    via AnaRicha321
  • another part of me is like why is no one standing up for me? why am i the bad guy for finally setting one tiny boundary? so now i'm wondering... Aita?
    via AnaRicha321
  • Inevitable_Speed_710 Husband makes lunches now.
    via Inevitable_Speed_710
  • Dave1957a NTA, but you really need to get somewhere of your own, away from her nagging. And your husband needs a nice shiny spine to back you up
    via Dave1957a

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family dynamics family drama entitled parents entitlement reddit story family feud parenting entitled family reddit thread parent Reddit Parenting Fail parents entitled people Parenting FAILS
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