'AITA? I told my sister-in-law to either get a babysitter or a plastic bubble for her kid.'
"AITA I told my sister-in-law to get a babysitter or a plastic plastic bubble for her kid?"
My SIL f30 has a toddler under 3. A few months ago she decided that the local family should rotate a family dinner one day a month. Locally it's her family my husband and their younger brother and his new wife. SIL hosted first at their home. Little brother picked a restaurant. We can't host at home because nephew is allergic to everything and I have cats.
I mean it when I say this kid is allergic to everything. Milk, wheat, eggs, soy, tree nuts, peanuts, and half a dozen others that I don't remember. Oh, hubs and I don't have or want kids. When it was our turn I suggested 3 restaurants that were middle distance for all 3 families.
One was a pizza place with a brick oven that I said I preferred. SIL goes one by one of why she can't bring her fragile child to any of those places. The pizza place was a no go because of "wheat dust" in the air giving the kid a rash.
I pointed out in the group chat that she always brings baby/toddler food for the kid and they never eat off the menu anyway. I also suggested that she could get a babysitter since she's been trading off babysitting with a mom from her church.
I suggested 3 restaurants total and the babysitter but everything was rejected. That's when I told her to get a babysitter or put the kid in a plastic bubble. (I erased a line that definitely would have made me the AH "the kid is too fragile to survive outside of the womb."
Resolution: Instead of a dinner we're going to a botanical garden to see a Christmas thing. I'm sure we'll discover new things that the kid is allergic to while we are there.
ETA the second restaurant was a Greek place, that was a no because of yogurt the third was a place that does Chinese noodles and dumplings, wheat again. BIL chose a major chain steakhouse.
Here's what top commenters had to say about this one:
Primary-Criticism929 said:
I'm going with YTA, because, let's be real, you sound like a huge one. It's almost as of you don't believe the kid has allergies and that your SIL is making them up for unknown reasons.
The kid has a lot of allergies and I'm sure it's very difficult to find a restaurant to eat with him, but try being his parents who have to advocate for him because of aholes like you or being the kid who has to watch everything he ingests or breathes. Maybe you'll discover the kid is allergic to aholes at the botanical garden. That'll be a win-win for everybody involved.
ravenofmyheart said:
I'm going with YTA and here's why: your disdain for the child is completely evident and I'm 99% sure very obvious to your SIL. I get it, dealing with kids sucks and that's fine if you don't want them! But then bow out of going and the rotation if you're going to be such a nasty person about it.
indyjones_89 said:
Don’t forget the line about not being able to exist outside the womb. But at least she didn’t tell that to her SIL just a bunch of strangers on the internet because I have a feeling she’s proud of that line and thinks she’s clever. YTA.
EmphasisNo2201 said:
YTA. I have severe, life-threatening allergies, and cross contamination between people is something I have to really watch out for. You know what my family does when we have family dinners, whether at home or out in restaurants?
They make sure I’m safe wherever we are, and no one eats foods with nuts in them (they’re my most severe allergy) to avoid cross contamination. And they have never once complained because they love me and care about my wellbeing. Your tone also makes it sound like you don’t even like your SIL and/or nephew to begin with.
DustOne7437 said:
YTA. Do you want this kid to end up hospitalized or worse? Because it sure sounds like you don’t care.
Tinycupcakees said:
YTA—her kid has serious allergies, not a bubble boy syndrome, and mocking a parent for protecting their child is just cruel.