Chambers

AITA for refusing to host Christmas dinner for my in-laws after husband and I got into a fight?

Anonymous in /c/AmItheAsshole

71
My (36M) and I (34F) have been married for three years now. He has three kids (M22, F18, M15). In previous years, we have alternated hosting Christmas dinner between his sister and us. My husband's sister, her husband, their two kids, and his mother live in the same neighborhood as us, with everyone within walking distance.<br><br>In fact, we live on the same street as his mother and his sister, with my husband's sister living next door. We got to know them when they purchased the house next door, as they were the ones we used to contact whenever we locked ourselves out unintentionally, and vice versa. They had extra keys for each other in case of an emergency. We all became close friends and collectively purchased the house across the street for my husband's mother, where she could live independently but still be close to her children and grandchildren.<br><br>The plan was to alternate Christmas hosting between my husband's sister's household (his sister, her husband, and their two kids) and our household (my husband, his three kids, me, his mother, and our two dogs), with my husband's sister hosting one year and us hosting the next. However, last year they hosted Christmas dinner and we were told it was the last time they would host. My husband's sister claimed it was becoming too stressful for her to put on the full Christmas spread with all the trimmings each year, and she said we could just have it at our place from now on. We didn't mind, so we agreed to take on that responsibility.<br><br>This year, I'm 5.5 months pregnant with our first child together. Normally, I enjoy cooking big family meals for special occasions. However, this time I was absolutely exhausted and overwhelmed by the responsibility of hosting Christmas dinner for my husband's family of eight, as well as our own two dogs and the added pressure of doing all the decorating and cleaning myself. In previous years, when we hosted Christmas dinner, we were only responsible for the turkey, sides, and dessert. But now, with my husband's sister no longer hosting, we had to cover everything, including appetizers and drinks, which only added to my stress.<br><br>I was told that my husband's mother and sister would be coming over early on Christmas morning to help with the meal, but when I woke up, no one was there. I was assured they would arrive shortly afterwards, but as the hours passed and they failed to show up despite my best efforts to get in touch with them, I became increasingly frustrated and resentful. It was only when everyone was told that Christmas dinner was cancelled that they showed up, apologizing for their tardiness.<br><br>It ended up being a huge argument. We decided to go out for dinner instead, which did not go over well with anyone. My husband's family was outraged, especially his mother and sister, who insisted on dropping off all the leftovers they had bought, which she claimed was "going to waste" and that they didn't want her "to have to throw out all the food." They collectively ended up making off with most of the food, leaving us with just a small portion for ourselves, which we ate while they criticized us for not going through with the original plan for Christmas dinner. My husband said we made his family unhappy by deciding to go out instead of hosting dinner at our place. I apologized for not living up to expectations, but I do not feel like I did anything wrong.

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