Strongly Worded

Meeting Mom

OK, so after days of conversation about women and families, here's an update on an actual woman with a family--My Guy's mom.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have done the mom debut! My Guy's parents are in town this week, and I had dinner with his mother. Meeting a love interest's family is always fascinating-- regardless of whether the parents are lovely or not, and whether it "goes well." Even if a boyfriend's family is truly horrible, meeting his parents is an opportunity to learn how and why he is the way he is. The boyfriend's own behavior is telling, too; I didn't realize how spoiled one of my boyfriends was until I saw him with his family.
My Guy has given his mom mixed reviews. Like everyone's mom, she has done some damage to his psyche. But he was sure we would "get along famously", and he was absolutely right.
First of all, she is adorable, and tiny, probably under five feet tall. And he has her nose (It's always so cool to see features transposed over generations!). Secondly, she discussed at length the truly unacceptable state of my Guy's "decor." She actually used the term "living in squalor" which is exactly how I put it weeks ago. Together, we persuaded him that he really does need all new bedding, all new furniture, and to get rid of his mismatched, beat-up bookshelves. In fact, she insisted that my Guy buy a couch, because even if he likes watching TV while sitting in an office chair, such an arrangement is not cozy if I'm there. She's advocating on my behalf! Every time she said something along those lines, I'd say "I love this woman" in the rapturous tone used by the guy in that diamond commercial (the really compelling one in which the guy screams his love for his wife in the middle of the European plaza--and all the doves fly around-- and then he gives her a diamond anniversary ring for their "past, present, and future.") And she said the same thing, in the same tone, every time I said something that struck a chord with her.
The whole encounter was lovely because I felt we were all on the same team somehow, and that my Guy really felt his mom and girlfriend were bonding, and that the encounter wasn't just some obligatory dinner. When we were all leaving, he held my hand and kissed me goodbye in front of his mom, and afterwards he wrote me a sweet email, in which he confirmed that she found me "enchanting."

Posted by Dori at 11:28 AM