My Mother-in-Law could totally beat up YOUR Mother-in-Law

by Kym on July 13, 2009

My mother-in-law (you just KNOW this post is going to be interesting, starting with such a potentially poignant phrase as that), is an interesting dichotomy of a person. At times she is the sweetest, most loving and concerned inlaw you could ever encounter, at others, rather heavy on the advice giving and it’s-YOUR-fault-my-son-is-fat accusations. I love her dearly, even though I often take advantage of opportunities to parade around stories about her. I think the words, “Oh yeah, well if you think YOUR mother-in-law is bad you should hear about mine…” have actually crossed my lips.

Sorry, Linda, but you’re too hilarious not to share.

The best conversations are the ones where she’s tipsy but not yet officially drunk. Those are the ones I tend to look back on with much giggling. Last night was such a conversation.

It began with me ruining her day a bit because she’d been thinking about me ALL day. Portentous feelings of dread and doom and whatnot. I ruined it by telling her I was feeling fabulously. The nerve of me messing with her psychic aura and all that.

Then, the subject of baby names came up and I made the foolish mistake of telling her my favourite girl name at the moment was Clara. She? Ruined it. But she ruined it kindly, hesitatingly, and in a way that still has me laughing like mad a full day later. She pointed out, wanting to give no offense or anything, that Clara was the sort of name people give to cows.

Clara

I laughed and laughed and laughed, because honestly, the name does have a certain amount of the bovine in its history. Just do a google image search for Clara the Cow and see what comes up. Go on.

I still think it’s one of the prettiest names ever, but alas, it’s moving down the ole favourite list at a rather rapid pace.

Sigh.

Mother-in-laws. What’s a girl to do?

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24 comments

~snort~

I love that name too, but I won’t ever be able to use it now.

Eowyn´s last blog post..The Hunt

by Eowyn on July 13, 2009 at 10:32 am. #

Why, oh why, do you have to be so perfect? Seriously. You’re a way better woman than I, Kim. I loves ya.

L.T. Elliot´s last blog post..Praiseworthy

by L.T. Elliot on July 13, 2009 at 10:55 am. #

ha!! ((sigh))

I LOVE the name Clara!!

something so whimsical and oldfashioned about it…I can totally picture your little sweetie being a Clara……go for it!

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by Jenn on July 13, 2009 at 12:17 pm. #

oh…and Willow…our beloved darling who totally suits it get to share her name with this:

http://media.photobucket.com/image/willow%20movie/DreadedChris/willow075.jpg

still…no other name works ;)

Jenn´s last blog post..~? celebrating big, big love ?~

by Jenn on July 13, 2009 at 12:20 pm. #

I love the name Clara! Brent and Melanie Bullock’s little girl’s (who’s not so little anymore…she’s 9!) name is Clara Jane…it’s adorable! However, you’re jinxing yourself for even THINKING about little girl names…I thought you were wanting to add a little man to the Vanderhorst family…I think he’s going to get beat up with a name like Clara! :)

by Nicole on July 13, 2009 at 1:01 pm. #

It sure is hard naming kids, isn’t it? Just about any name can turn into something like Clara Cow. I like how you can be honest about your mother in law.

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by Erin on July 13, 2009 at 1:29 pm. #

Um, this is why I don’t like to tell people my baby names. Everyone has too much of an opinion that is, frankly, none of their business.

My sister did not like the name Clark and told me, “I don’t want a nephew named Clark.” I think I said something snarky like, “well, you don’t have to name your nephew that, but I might still name my child that.” And I did. And I can’t imagine him as anything else. The end.

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by Stephanie on July 13, 2009 at 1:56 pm. #

Haha! My sister in laws, mother’s name is Clara.

I agree with Stephanie, telling people the babies name before it is born always leads to trouble. :)

Summer´s last blog post..A Story – First Chapter

by Summer on July 13, 2009 at 7:07 pm. #

Claire might be an alternative. Try that one out on the MIL and see if she hesitates! Names were always a weird thing for me and my husband. On three of the kids we kind of went down to the wire, but on boy #3 my husband, the Shakespeare professor, asked to do the honors all on his own. I was scared, but it worked out! :)

And I have a cool MIL too. I always feel sorry for women who don’t jive with their MILs.

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by Kazzy on July 13, 2009 at 8:15 pm. #

This post is too funny. Oh my. I almost got named Clara, and would have had something like five middle names. Clara was my great aunt’s name, and the other names all belonged to other women in my family. Guess they wanted to be fair and not offend anyone. Fortunately, my parents had mercy on me and gave me two names that weren’t connected to our family. After all, it would be terrible to be named after a cow. Even if I do feel like one these days. =)

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by Inkling on July 13, 2009 at 9:15 pm. #

I’ve just read all the posts you wrote while I was away. And I want to hug you. You are a delight.

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by Becca on July 14, 2009 at 6:13 am. #

Hey, I like the name Clara! I’m not pregnant, but for the potential, hypothetical future girl, it’s one of my top names! I’ve decided that you can’t look at any other meaning of names, or uses of names. I’ve also told Avram that for our next kid, we won’t tell people the name until we’ve decided, not while we’re deliberating. Just so we don’t get people (specifically parents) telling us their unsolicited opinions on names. His mom ruined more than one name for me that way.

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by Thora on July 14, 2009 at 7:03 am. #

Also, I capitalized everything, and now my comment is all uncapitalized. I’m too anal for this free flowingness. Just mentally know that I capitalized in all the appropriate places. Thank You.

Thora´s last blog post..Utah – This Is the Place!

by Thora on July 14, 2009 at 7:05 am. #

I like the name Clara. I have a niece named Clara and I admit to thinking the cow thing before she was born, but it never crosses my mind now that she’s here.

Melanie J´s last blog post..If you have a date in Constantinople, she’ll be waiting in Instanbul

by Melanie J on July 14, 2009 at 7:07 am. #

My mother-in-law named my SIL Clarissa, and she goes by Claire. I love Claire the most, so how’s that for a sub?

Jen´s last blog post..Letter from the Baby

by Jen on July 14, 2009 at 12:27 pm. #

Oh, my friend. She sounds a bit of an ogre, but I promise you: in a cage fight, MY MIL would kick all others from here to kingdom come.

I love the name Clara. What about Claire?

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by Luisa Perkins on July 14, 2009 at 3:20 pm. #

I dig “Clara.” And I’m CERTAIN your MIL could kick my MIL’s keester. My MIL is the sweetest, kindest, awesomest thing that ever happened to me. Now my HUSBAND’S MIL, well, she might be a different story. Hahahaha.

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by Brillig on July 14, 2009 at 6:33 pm. #

Clara is beautiful. And if you do use, you will soon get over the cow image :) !! (After all, with my third, I have gotten over the dragon image :) !!)

An Ordinary Mom´s last blog post..My Baby Is One

by An Ordinary Mom on July 14, 2009 at 8:07 pm. #

I’ll never forget the comment my mil made after I told her that I was pregnant. We were sitting together in the backseat of a car going somewhere and the sun was shining. She noticed that when the sun hots my hair it has really red highlists. She said “Oh I HOPE you have a red headed baby”. GASP BITE YOUR TONGUE WOMAN. No offense to anyone with red hair, I just pictured a red haired freckled kid that would no way fit with my dair hair/darker skinned family and his blond haired/blue eyed family.
Alas I loved my mil and miss her greatly.

Shery´s last blog post..wowzer

by Shery on July 15, 2009 at 4:08 pm. #

Haha, she sounds pretty cool. Once read, I started thinking about Claribel the Disney cow (she has an ice cream parlour in Toon Town at Disneyland.)

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by Jaina on July 16, 2009 at 3:17 pm. #

How about Claire instead? Very pretty. They say you should never tell anyone the name you are going to use until you introduce the new baby as such-and-such. What can they then say? (Good advice that I never myself used .. .)

Heidi Ashworth´s last blog post..(One Of) The Best Place(s) To Seek God Is In A Garden

by Heidi Ashworth on July 16, 2009 at 7:37 pm. #

Now that’s funny..LOL

At least you found out now before you used the name. But it is a really pretty name.

Thankfully I have a great mother-in-law but yours does sound very entertaining.

by Tonya on July 17, 2009 at 7:18 am. #

I agree with Heidi. Claire is a wonderful name. Jeff and I followed a strict policy of never revealing the names we were considering to ANYONE because everyone has an opinion. But when it comes to baby names, the only one that counts is yours. We would make up hilarious fake names we were considering like Maynard and Ermintrude and leave it at that. (Hopefully those aren’t on your list.)

And I would put my mother-in-law up against your mother-in-law any day! Becuase she is perfect! :)

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by charrette on July 17, 2009 at 8:46 am. #