Dad Confronts In-Laws Over Feeding Newborn ‘People’ Food

A man turns to the Reddit community for advice after a tense family dinner left him questioning whether he overreacted. The conflict begins during a Labor Day gathering with his wife’s extended family at Texas Roadhouse.

The new father explains that his 3-month-old baby is the star of the evening. “So my wife starts passing him around so everyone gets a chance to hold him and cuddle with him and get their picture taken with him. Normal older people with a new baby stuff,” he writes.

But the mood shifts when he and his wife walk over to check on their son. “Her cousin is giving him this butter on her finger (which gross by the way, I know she didn’t wash her hands and was smoking before she walked in the restaurant),” he recalls.

The butter, which has honey in it, raises a serious concern. “Children under a certain age can’t process honey the way adults can. Honey can contain Clostridium botulinum spores, which can cause infant botulism. A pretty nasty illness,” he shares.

Horrified, he immediately intervenes. “I say, ‘What the Hell are you doing? Are you giving my son food? He is 3 months old. Just what the hell.’ My son is only able to drink formula and nothing else.”

After taking his baby back to the table, the father makes his frustration clear. “I take him back to our table and say loud enough for them to hear, ‘I don’t want them touching him when they are around “people” food.’ ”

The comment doesn’t sit well with his wife’s aunt, who responds with a joke. “Her aunt then says back to us ‘Well we don’t have cat food here.’ ”

For the father, the remark feels dismissive of a serious issue. “I look at my wife and say ‘I don’t want her to touch him ever.’ She was making a joke out of my serious concern for the well-being of my son,” he explains.

The tension lingers throughout the meal, leaving the family divided. “Well the rest of the dinner was ‘ruined’ because I blew up on her family, said my Mother in Law,” he writes.

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Now he is left wondering if his protective instincts went too far. “So, Ladies and Gentlemen, am I an A—— for exploding on grown adults giving my 3 month old son food not meant for newborns?” he asks.

Many commenters quickly come to his defense, pointing out that his outrage is justified. One person writes, “A 3 month old’s digestive system can’t suddenly handle adult food. Your son’s health was seriously put at risk.”

Others echo the same sentiment, stressing that his anger is more than understandable. Another commenter says, “NTA. A 3 month old should be having formula or breast milk only, not real food yet. And putting it on her fingers and in your babies mouth is disgusting. I’d be [upset], too.”