Easter is a time when many families across the country get together to spend time together and often enjoy special meals. Of course, family gatherings don't always go to plan and some can lead to arguments.
Hosting family members and friends isn't always as stress-free as we would like. One woman has shared her experience and detailed how not everything went to plan at Easter.
She spent ages shopping, cleaning the house and preparing to make it a special occasion for all of those attending. But she said she was left feeling "undermined" and "disrespected" when her mother-in-law then turned up with her own pudding. It was made worse when all of the guests chose to eat her mother-in-law's pudding instead of the one she had made. The woman claims the rest of the guests didn't want the mother-in-law to be offended.
She said her husband thinks she is overreacting but to her it felt like the meal had been "ruined". Writing on Mumsnet, the wife asked people who was in the wrong - her husband, her guests or her.
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Her post read: "Spent ages shopping, cleaning, preparing, and cooking for Easter lunch yesterday for extended family. Spent ages making a really nice dessert.
"Mother-in-law rocks up with a dessert, not even a nice one, and then everyone says they will have hers as they don't want to offend her. She seems upset that I have made one.
"I tell husband that I am not happy. I used to make Sunday roasts and she would turn up with veg and a chicken and insist on having it on the table alongside whatever else we had made.
"I just feel it is undermining, and no one has the bottle to go against her. I am sick of it. There were other things that happened, and collectively they make me feel like I'm someone they have to put up with and I feel disrespected in my own home."
In the comments, people were divided over who was right and who was wrong. One person wrote: "Next time message beforehand and say "please don't feel that you need to contribute a dessert or anything I've got a lovely sweet treat planned. I'd be upset too - I love cooking and baking. If she wanted to make the food she'd need to invite me to hers."
Another said: "Let her host the next family lunch, sit back and enjoy the break. Sometimes you just need to pick your battles."
While another said: "Next time either ask her not to bring anything or ask her to bring something specific. Some people don’t like turning up empty handed so communication in advance should help." And another said: "I think her bringing dessert is a nice gesture. People could have had smaller portions of both."
And another added: "Message everybody beforehand and say dinner is all sorted out, and if anyone wants to bring something a good bottle of wine or some flowers would be appreciated. Make it the latter or choose if you think she'd bring some godawful plonk and insist on having it consumed then and there"
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