My MIL is trying to 'Single White Female' me...with my kids

"It’s super weird...I could smell this sh*t coming from a mile away."

This new generation of grandmothers has moved from the conventional 'nanny' and 'granny' to more palatable monikers, like 'lovey' or 'glam-ma'. But this grandmother's nickname goes a bit too far, according to her daughter-in-law.

She took to rage typing in an online parenting group after her mother-in-law repeatedly called herself 'mummy' to her three-month-old baby. 

Want to join the family? Sign up to our Kidspot newsletter for more stories like this.

"She wanted to be called LaLa"

The woman wrote: "Occasionally, my MIL watches my baby when I have things to do or need a break. Lately, she has been calling herself ‘Mummy’ when talking to my daughter.

"She does it in front of me and my husband, and she always brushes it off like ‘whoopsie doodles, I’m so used to being Mummy, so I called myself that, haha’. But today, she gave me reason to doubt that."

The new mum gave some context: "During my pregnancy, my MIL decided that she wanted to be called ‘LaLa’ by the baby. I asked her to pick a different name because it felt too similar to ‘Mama’. Honestly, I could smell this sh*t coming from a mile away. Ultimately, she chose Grammy."

But on Grammy's most recent visit, the mum's concerns escalated. She asked her MIL to watch her baby while she worked on their house. 

“I took a shower when I went downstairs to grab some fresh clothing from the dryer. I heard my MIL talking to my baby in the other room.”

Image: iStock

RELATED: ‘My mum babysits my kids but leaves my house in a state’

"Do you want Mummy to play with you?"

Note to all daughters-in-laws, brace yourselves!

“She called herself Mummy four times in a three-minute conversation. ‘Do you want Mummy to play with you?’ ‘Are you having fun with Mummy?’ ‘Are you being a good girl for Mummy?’ And ‘Mummy loves you, yes I do!’

"She didn’t know I was there, and she didn’t even try to correct herself."

That's when she decided to involve her husband—to gut-check the Single White Female (iconic stalker/copycat movie) vibes. 

“I asked my husband to help me navigate this situation because it’s super weird and frankly, I think unhealthy for my MIL to be playing out this fantasy delusion. He said to me, ‘If it really bothers you that much, we can say something next time we hear her do it.’”

“Which makes me wonder if I’m making a bigger deal out of this than it should be, but it feels like a big f**king deal,” she ends her post.

Introducing our new podcast: Mum Club! Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts so you never miss an episode.

RELATED: My MIL is jealous of my mum and says she sees my daughter too much

"It’s weird and disturbing behaviour"

Mama bears everywhere formed a united front and demanded that the granny back off; 'mummy' was not her title to take! 

“Under-reacting,” one person wrote. "You heard her. It needs to be dealt with now. There is no Oopsie moment here. It's intentional.”

“Not overreacting. She’s doing this on purpose. It’s weird and disturbing behaviour,” another person chimed in.

“Why on earth would a woman with grown children STILL be used to being called/referring to herself as ‘Mummy?’ It seems particularly invasive for your MIL to use as HER signifier to YOUR daughter,” another wrote. 

“You are under-reacting, and you have a husband problem,” another said succinctly.

Another highlighted why her husband needs to step in: "Your husband would HATE it if your male relative started calling himself “Daddy” to the baby. Maybe you need to point that out for him to understand why this is so wildly inappropriate and weird, finally."

Originally published as My MIL is trying to 'Single White Female' me...with my kids