He’s an Over-Controlling Gnome
My husband’s stepfather, who I usually refer to as “Garden Gnome,” is a complete and utter jerk. I haven’t liked him from the very moment I first met him. So some background, Garden Gnome (GG) has been married to my mother-in-law since my husband was around six or seven years old.
GG has always been emotionally harmful to my husband. Very over-controlling and wanting to know every little detail—and I mean every gruesome detail. GG even asked my mother-in-law if she knew whether or not my husband and I were having unprotected intercourse.
Why do you need or want to know what your stepson and his wife do in bed?! He has also often forced my mother-in-law to wear matching outfits with him every day.
He threw a fit at Christmas dinner over the fact that my mother-in-law didn’t set out the “right” clothes for him that morning, because he had wanted to match. They have a sweet little curly-haired dog.
My mother-in-law went on a trip without GG about a week after my husband and I got married, and had us pet sit the dog because she was scared he’d hurt the dog if she wasn’t there to stop him.
The dog was so matted that it looked like he was covered in dreadlocks. GG wouldn’t allow my mother-in-law to get the dog groomed because it was “too expensive,” yet he had no problem buying an RV that they never use. So we ended up getting him groomed on our own dime.
They had to completely shave the dog because the mats were so bad. My mother-in-law can’t eat gluten due to a medical issue. GG gets very angry that she needs to buy a gluten-free pizza whenever they get pizza, because it’s “too expensive.” So every time we see them, I always bake her gluten-free treats.
GG has also expressed anger over the fact that my husband doesn’t call him Dad. Umm, excuse me? My husband’s father is very involved in my husband’s life and is a wonderful person. He already has a dad, so I don’t know why GG thinks that he should be more important than my husband’s actual dad.
Their house is three hours away, so at least I haven’t had to see them very often, not that this makes the situation any better. Anyway, there is an unexpected bright side—and it’s going to ruin my “father”-in-law’s life. My mother-in-law recently decided that she is leaving the Gnome!
She applied for apartments in the area, she talked to a lawyer, and she made an exit strategy! My husband and I were at his grandparents’ place last weekend and his grandpa told me that GG is always on his best behavior around me because he’s scared of me.
For reference, I’m 5’3” tall and 140 pounds, so I’m not exactly physically intimidating. I just don’t hide my resentment for GG and have called him out on his ignorant nonsense before.
So, one weekend, my mother-in-law and GG visited. GG proceeded to mansplain my mother-in-law’s job and how her favorite chair that she sleeps in works. Bruh, you’ve never even sat in the chair!
My mother-in-law called my husband and me the following night and she asked us to come up on the day when she was going to tell GG that she’s filing for divorce, so that there’s a witness if he gets aggressive. We offered to help her move and do anything else she needs.
The apartment that she’s looking at is gorgeous and I’m so excited for her! That weekend was quite the experience. We drove the three hours to my mother-in-law’s house to be with her when she told GG that she was leaving him after 15 years of mental and emotional mistreatment from him.
He took it better than we expected, which isn’t saying much considering that we were expecting him to pretty much ransack the place and attack us.
But at least he didn’t get physically aggressive. He started complaining about their finances and how they’re in debt. Again, they’re in debt mainly because of his purchase of an RV that HE wanted and the house that HE intimidated her into getting.
He’s retired and my mother-in-law is the breadwinner of the family by quite a bit. They only have a joint bank account. Luckily, my mother-in-law created a secret account that she’s been putting money in for a few months. With this account, she’s been able to get an apartment in the area.
He got VERY angry that they’re going to be selling the house and kept trying to find out where my mother-in-law was moving to. But then, it seemed to settle down for a bit. That is, until the next morning…
This man has 12 grandkids and he is so uninvolved in their lives that he doesn’t know the names of the youngest six! One is literally only a few months old. Even I know her name, and I’ve never even seen the kid!
GG texted my mother-in-law the next morning to ask what the kids’ names were. We’re trying to convince my mother-in-law to get a restraining order against GG because he has now accused her of mental and emotional mistreatment over leaving him “destitute in his later years.”
He’s not that old and doesn’t have any medical issues—but it gets even worse. My mother-in-law is a religious leader and Garden Gnome actually called her boss to try and get her fired.
But luckily, my mother-in-law is doing a lot better now that she’s not living with him anymore and is in the process of getting divorce papers drawn up to move the process along. Story credit: Reddit / theburgerofdisaster