Man 'living in sin' calls parents out for 'premature' first child at Christmas dinner.

Most people know the aphorism 'you mess with the bull, you get the horns.' But far too many people don't let the meaning of it truly sink in. Eventually, if you keep psychologically poking at someone against their wishes, they're going to snap and retaliate. And what better time for that to happen than the holidays?

In a popular post on the AITA subreddit, a man asked if he was wrong for bringing up his brother's 'premature' birth after his parents hassled him for living in sin.

He wrote:

AITA for bringing up my brother's 'premature' birth at Christmas dinner to get my parents to shut up?

I'm a nurse practitioner and I'm the primary care provider for a lot of low-risk maternity cases at the practice where I work. I also work hand in hand with the doctors and midwives to create a healthy maternity, birth, and postpartum situation.

My fiancee is completing her residency. We live together and have for a few years now. We aren't in any hurry to get married. We originally had plans to do so a couple of years ago but then we got really busy for two years.

It is driving my very religious parents crazy that their youngest son is living in sin. I don't really care. I'm an adult and I do what I want. We are getting married in June. So we are visiting my parents for Christmas.

The way it came together this year everyone is at my parents' house. So that's my folks, my three siblings, myself and fiancee, and seven grandchildren. So seventeen people.

At dinner, my mom starts going on about how she is so glad that we are finally getting married and she won't be embarrassed at church anymore.

And my dad says how proud he is of his three older kids who all either waited to get married before moving in together or got married right away after moving in together.

My fiancee was embarrassed and I was getting mad over this stupid argument we have had too many times. And a family dinner was the last straw. I have asked them repeatedly to just accept that they cannot control how I live my life.

I refuse to stay with them when I visit even if I come alone. Hotels are just easier. So I started talking about a premature baby I had been reading about. It was almost three months premature and weighed about 1.6 pounds.

It was super strong and healthy for being born so little and the NICU had high hopes for the baby doing well. My mom and dad both got deer in the headlights looks on their faces. Too bad.

Should not have f**@ed around with my fiancee's feelings. So I asked about my oldest brother. He was born almost four months premature.

Is there a chance that we could check out the family album where we keep all the records of family births and stuff? I already know my brother was over 9 pounds and almost 23' long when he was born.

My grandmother told me all about it the first time my parents tried to shame me. The subject gets changed very fast. After supper, my parents told me that I should not try to embarrass them with private things that are not my concern.

I told them that if I heard anything about my living arrangements ever again for the rest of my life I would make sure to keep bringing up the FACT that my mom was in her second trimester when they got married.

My parents are mad at me for telling them how to behave in their own home. But my fiancee is happy that they seem to be off the subject for good. AITA?

The internet was quick to applaud him for his deft comeback.

SecretJealous4342 wrote:

NTA. That was beautifully handled. You didn't call them out and embarrass them. But you stood your ground. I did laugh out loud when you said where you got your blackmail information.

LingonberryPrior6896 wrote:

Grandma had that in her pocket for a long time I'm guessing. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. Merry Christmas and I hope you have a great New Year.

A 9lb baby born at 20 weeks? That's one for the record books! That's how I would bring it up...LOL! I love sanctimonious 'Christians'. Mom was embarrassed at church. She should be.

ScammerC wrote:

NTA. My Grammy used to say, 'The first baby (after marriage) can come anytime, the second one always takes 9 months.' Next time they give you guys grief, discuss how comfortable the back seat of your dad's old car was.

TheQueenOfDisco wrote:

NTA. I absolutely love this! My own judgy grandmother pretended to be oh so 'moral' (in the old-fashioned sense). My father accidentally revealed that she was pregnant when she got married to my grandfather.

That was incorrect, she wasn't pregnant at all. My oldest uncle was about 7 months old when they got married, lmao. And why they couldn't get married sooner? My grandfather had to get divorced from his first wife first...

It's often the people with the most things to hide who enjoy judging others for things that are none of their business.

Top-Put2038 wrote:

I was absolutely lost when you said his size and weight at four months premature Then I had a ding, ding, ding, shining light on the road to Damascus moment and very much laughed as I realized what you'd done. Well played, well played indeed. NTA.

mobyhead1 wrote:

I do hope you give your grandmother a big hug on a regular basis, if she’s still with us. Because that is comedy gold. NTA. If your parents keep f**king around (heh), lift off and nuke the site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.

When it comes to this post, it's less a question of whether OP is TA, and more a lesson in how to expertly clap back.