Dear Queenie,
I’ve heard a lot of mother-in-law jokes and read a lot of letters in advice columns complaining about mothers-in-law – and now my daughter is expecting her boyfriend to ask her to marry him.
Queenie, do you have any advice how I can avoid becoming the butt of another joke or letter to you?—Girlfriend’s mother
Dear Mother,
First and foremost, when (if) the happy couple tell you their good news, do not ask your daughter if she is pregnant.
Do not let the thought that your daughter might have done better cross your mind, let alone saying it out loud.
When you are making preparations for the wedding, do not squabble with the groom’s family over details.
And, when grandmotherhood time arrives, remember how much you hated outside advice on how to raise your children and do not offer your daughter and her husband any advice unless they ask for it – and even then keep it low-key (a suggestion, not “do what I tell you”).
