Ellen is ecstatic when her daughter, Lisa, accepts Ric’s marriage proposal. Things swiftly deteriorate as Ric’s parents become a source of contention. Will there be wedding bells? I was overjoyed when I learned that my daughter Lisa accepted her boyfriend’s proposal! Ric had always made her feel safe and cherished, so I couldn’t wait for them to marry and begin living together.

My husband David and I gave Lisa a house as a graduation present. Even if it wasn’t fancy, she chose to live there and establish roots. David agreed with me that our firstborn child earned it via Lisa’s hard work and dedication in medical school. Lisa contacted me one night while preparing dinner a few months after moving in.

“Mom,” she called. “Okay, Rick will be moving in with me. I believe it is the appropriate decision because we have been together for a long time.” Naturally, I was pleased for her. I always felt Lisa was smarter than David, but David thought it was too early to make such a large promise. A rodent smelt awful to her from a mile away. Finally, David and I assisted Ric with settling in.

I wasn’t sure what to think about what he brought in. He appeared to be dead intent on making this move. Prepare for the worst family dinner ever. Everything started with bliss. Lisa prepared a party for Ric, our future in-laws, and us because she wanted us to get to know each other before we started planning the wedding. I didn’t mind because I didn’t think I knew much about Ric’s family at the time.

Lisa requested that her father handle the grill, so everything happened outside. David and our younger daughter went inside to collect the chicken and sausages for the fire, while I relaxed on one of the outside seats. David and Leah then came outside and sneered at me. They were startled as if they’d encountered a ghost. “Ellen,” David said, as I remember. “Let’s go home.”

That was all. Only one word. But I didn’t want to go any farther because David wouldn’t lie about anything. That is, if anything astonished him, it most likely made sense. We left after informing Lisa that Leah was not feeling well. David and Leah told me what happened in the car after that. They overheard Lisa and her in-laws discussing how they wouldn’t invite us to the wedding, but that this dinner was intended to get us to pay for the entire affair while they were in the kitchen getting supplies.

I couldn’t say anything, so I thanked God that David was driving instead of me. I would have lost control and smashed the car. David avoided talking about it after that. I knew it was because I persuaded him to let Ric move in with Lisa. So, was it entirely my fault? The next morning, I skipped class and asked my TA to take my place. I walked straight to Lisa’s house and noticed her husband’s car in the driveway.

They wouldn’t let me in after I knocked for a while! However, I could see them in the living room through the window. They appeared to own the property. Lisa seems to have given them the kingdom’s keys. I knocked till I realized it was bothering them. Then Ric’s mother arrived to the door and opened it slightly. She said no one would invite us to our child’s wedding because we were having too much of an impact on Lisa.

It appeared that she was controlling Lisa like a toy. She went further after that. Ric’s mother commented, “Your family is just too different for us.” “Now Lisa resembles us. Let us take over. We will mail you your wedding bill, however.” Lisa had requested them to stay with her, and they had moved in, she informed me before closing the door. It was now the family’s home.

I returned home right away. Dealing with Ric’s mother gave me a headache. Lisa took the house from me, but I assured her over the phone that it was still in my name. She needed to make a decision within the next ten days. I believed ten days was plenty time to pack and leave. The really amazing thing is that David and I sold our house. In an instant, the house that Ric’s family thought they owned vanished.

I recently taught our prospective in-laws how to set limitations. Lisa, on the other hand, needed the change. She appears to have learned her lesson. Ric still loves her, but she lives in a little apartment near the hospital where she works. It is up to you to tell me where Ric’s family went, but I do know that the way they behaved allowed David and me to utilize the proceeds from the house sale to purchase a car for Leah.