My father-in-law won't let anyone else pay for family dinners.
By @quinnlol · Family
He always makes a big show of grabbing the check, but then for weeks he'll make little 'jokes' about how we ordered expensive things. My wife says I'm overreacting and that it's just his way.
The full story
My father-in-law absolutely insists on paying every time we go out for a family meal. My wife says it's his love language, his way of providing, and I should let it go. But it comes with strings. For weeks after, he'll make comments about the bill—little 'jokes' about how much the kids ate or how I must have been thirsty. It's never a huge fight, just this constant, low-grade annoyance. It makes me feel like we're kids at his table, not adults with our own money. I'd rather just pay our own way to avoid the commentary.
How people voted
- Bad Move — 32% (46 votes)
- Needs Context — 41% (58 votes)
- Reasonable — 27% (39 votes)
Readers are split: “Needs Context” leads with 41% — 143 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@karalol — Has your wife ever told him his 'jokes' actually hurt her feelings?
@mae — This isn’t a love language, it's a power move to keep you feeling like a kid.
@yikesyeah — Is it possible you ARE ordering things that are way more expensive than what he and your wife get?
@miloactually — Start ordering the most expensive thing on the menu. Every single time. Make the jokes worth it.
@ivyyk — That sounds incredibly frustrating. You're being very patient with a dynamic that would drive me up the wall.
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