Mom sparks backlash after not telling father-in-law he drank breast milk
A woman has questioned whether she was wrong not to reveal to her father-in-law that he accidentally drank her breast milk.
In a recent Reddit post shared to the popular “Am I The A**hole?” subreddit, the woman explained that her 15-month-old son is still nursing. This means that for most of the food she makes for him that requires milk, she normally just uses breast milk the same way a non-dairy person would use almond milk or oat milk.
At the time, her in-laws were staying with her and she fed her son cereal that had breast milk in it. “My FIL was in the kitchen so I left to go wake up my oldest. Anyway, I bring her down and find my FIL finishing my son’s cereal. I laughed a little but went along with my morning,” the post read.
Eventually, the entire family then sat down together when the mother’s father-in-law made a comment about the milk in the cereal tasting weird, which is when he was told the truth. “I then told him that he had breastmilk in his, our milk isn’t off,” she wrote.
“I swear he looked like he was going to keel over and vomit. He was angry and asked why I’d watch him drink it and not tell him. My MIL stepped in and agreed, I know he ‘finishes’ everyone’s meals and I should have told him beforehand.”
She agreed that she should have told him as soon as she noticed, but also thought her father-in-law had seen her make the cereal with breast milk.
“My husband is on damage control and has agreed with all of us. He understands all the povs etc,” the post concluded before asking commenters on whether or not she was wrong to wait to tell her in-law.
Many commenters admitted that they were conflicted because they didn’t think the father-in-law should have eaten the cereal, but felt the mother should have also told him.
“You’re not the AH for feeding your child but you are the AH because you saw FIL eating it and LAUGHED instead of saying something... you thought it was amusing,” one commenter wrote.
Another commenter agreed, writing: “You should have told him immediately when you saw him eating your son’s meal that he had breastmilk in the cereal.”
“But also, what full grown adult just helps them to any and all food they just see lying around, especially a baby’s??”
Some commenters thought the mother deserved the full blame for not saying anything.
“If he is known to finish meals, and he was in the kitchen, don’t assume he saw what you used. Let the man know. Especially if you knew he would probably finish the food,” one comment began. “Then to giggle and not tell him??? Are you serious? Nah, I feel you knew what you were doing all along.”
“You aren’t the a**hole for not warning FIL ahead of time,” another commenter agreed. “You are an a**hole for watching him do it and not saying anything. You had to guess that this was something he’d want to know. I’m not buying your ‘thought he saw’ me excuse.”