When a man gets married, there are certain things that he does not look forward to that come with the fact that he and his fiancée have just tied the knot. There is the fact that, “he is now tied to one woman,” the truth that, “the intimacy diminishes…”

…and, of course – there is the Mother-In-Law.

After meeting her parents in September of 2007, and knowing them for close to a year-and-a-half now – I can say with no exaggeration or lie – that I love them.

While I of course know that the first two things I mentioned will never happen to Julie and I because we love each other very much, I am very happy to say that her parents are really great people. They are kind, generous, hospitable and actually fun to be around. Whenever we travel to Maryland to see them – I have a great time hanging out with them. I never get annoyed that we are seeing them, bored when I am there – and argumentative when we have conversations. There is a line from a parody Christmas song I heard when I was a teenager that goes, “On Christmas, I hug and I kiss my wife’s mother – and the rest of the year – we don’t speak to each other.” My relationship with Julie’s parents is quite the contrary. I call them as much as she does, we had them over two weekends ago and I enjoyed their company – and I even have lengthily conversations with them when we go to visit even if Julie is asleep or not there.

Carol is Julie’s mother. She is a great conversationalist, an amazing cook – and a good person to ask advice from. Whenever I go there, she always gives me advice about new dinners to cook. She has offered me recipes, showed me more efficient ways to cook things – and educated me the power of Old Bay seasoning – which is a Maryland favorite. I feel that when we visit – she treats me like I am her own son – and that is something I really appreciate.

Lew is Julie’s father – and he is the man. He is so helpful when I need computer advice – and even brought me a desktop computer when they recently visited for me to keep – even though I did not ask for it. He set it up, transferred my files to the new tower – and even networked our computers. He also always selflessly drives us anywhere we need to go. Whenever I thank him or ask him if he minds – his signature answer is, “no biggie.” I lost my father 28 years ago – and although no one can replace him – Lew comes closer than anyone else ever has.

Cindy is Julie’s sister. She is a ball of fire and someone who is never afraid to speak her mind – a quality that I admire. She is not afraid to live her life the way she wants, whether people like it or not. And, according to Julie – I am the first boyfriend of Julie’s that Cindy has ever liked. I am appreciative of that and enjoy her company as much as Julie’s parents. For Christmas last year – she got me a Superman hat which was really cool and one of my favorite hats. This year, we will go to Balticon again with her – and I can’t wait.

As far as generosity, Julie’s parents went overboard on Christmas, have helped with wedding expenses – and even drove us all the way back to New Jersey when we left Christmas weekend because they got us so much stuff. While I am very lucky to be marrying Julie – I am just as lucky to be inheriting in-laws that are great. Thank God that I do not have to “tolerate” my in-laws…

…but rather – enjoy them.

Thanks for everything Carol Lew and Cindy – especially for welcoming me into your family.