Many sisters or sisters-in-law would be delighted to find their pregnancies aligning, imagining their children growing up together as cousins of the same age.
However, this sadly just isn't the case for everyone, as one mum-of-three knows all too well.
The 28-year-old mother found herself becoming pregnant not once but twice the same time as her sister-in-law, who isn't amused.
This around, she appeared to be even more infuriated, informing her that it was her "fault", as she "could have given her this pregnancy and didn’t need to be pregnant at the same time again."
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Taking to Reddit, the unnamed woman explained that she and her 30-year-old husband had their first child relatively young, and so wanted to wait a good few years before expanding their brood.
At around the time they were trying to conceive, her sister-in-law invited them over and excitedly informed them that she was expecting a baby.
She admits this "stung" a bit at the time, as it seemed to happen so comparatively quickly for her. She and her partner had only been dating for a few short months, plus she had expressed "multiple times" before that she wasn’t planning on having children.
Despite their own private struggles, she and her husband were still very excited to hear her surprise news, and wouldn't have thought to be resentful.
However, everything changed the following month when they had happy news to share. They were expecting their second child, who would be due shortly after their cousin, Her reaction was decidedly less than joyous.
The poster wrote: "She and her now-fiancé started trying to conceive and ended up conceiving in June.
"While I wanted to wait longer, I had to have my birth control removed for health reasons that September, and so our third daughter snuck up on us in November.
"My sister-in-law was not happy and they - my husband's parents followed along - were the least interested in this pregnancy and, to be honest, my one-year-old currently.
"Recently she said it was my fault because I could have given her this pregnancy and didn’t need to be pregnant at the same time again".
She's now wondering whether she should have "stopped trying when she announced being pregnant the first time", and is starting to feel that she should have waited.
However, her fellow Reddit users have been quick to reassure her this just isn't the case at all.
One person wrote: "You aren’t obligated to put your family planning and pregnancies on hold just because your sister-in-law is also pregnant. She’s being ridiculous - shame on her and anyone who goes along with her ridiculous bull****."
Another joked: "There's no pregnancy wand that must be wielded by the current chosen vessel. If nature cared that much, women in a family would be like gorgons sharing a uterus to use in turn.
"There's only so much you can do about trying to conceive. But next time, try to match due dates and watch her spontaneously combust".
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