New aunt wonders how often to see kiddos
Dear Amy: My husband and I are in our 20s. We have been married for two years.
My husband has three siblings. Each sibling has one child under the age of two.
I caught wind from my mother-in-law that one of my sisters-in-law isn't too happy with us because we don't see the kids often enough and don't reach out often enough.
My husband's family all live relatively close by, but they aren't in daily contact.
I am an only child and have never had nieces and nephews before. My husband and I are expecting our first child soon and we own a business, so we are very busy during the week, and our weekends are consumed with remodeling the house to get ready for the baby. I just don't think they realize that I'm not a stay-at-home mom, and we can't take days off.
How often should we be reaching out to my sisters-in-law to either just check in or to make plans to see our nieces/nephews?
How do we make them understand that we're not being mean, but we're just busy?
-- Confused Only Child
Dear Confused: I'd like to offer a shout-out regarding the special and endearing experience of being an aunt (or uncle). This relationship offers so many opportunities for ancillary parenting: for enjoying, mentoring and loving children who are tangentially your own.
When you are a parent, you will very likely want other family members to develop a close relationship with your child. You should demonstrate toward these other parents and children the level of attention that you might like your child to receive.
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