My mother comes here to visit a couple of times a year. She always stays with my brother even though I always invite her to stay with me. Only once she stayed with me because my brother and his wife were off-island.
When I asked her if there was something she doesn’t like about my house she said it wasn’t that, it was because my brother has kids and she wanted to spend as much time as possible with her grandchildren.
Queenie, am I wrong to feel left out because she spends more time with my brother than with me?—Jealous sister
Dear Jealous sister,
I can understand how you feel, but I also can understand how your mother feels. She wants to spend as much time as possible with her grandchildren and the best way to do that is to stay in their (your brother’s) home.
Surely she does not ignore you completely when she visits the island. Perhaps you could arrange to spend time with your brother and his family when your mother is staying with them – a family get-together.
And if you want some one-on-one time with your mother, try inviting her to your house during the day when the children are in school, or for an evening on a school night when the children should go to bed early.
