What Would You Do W/a Relative Showing Favoritism?

Maybe she's not so much "favoring" the girl, but trying to step in and replace the mother figure for that child.

For example, she may have thought that you would have helped your son to make something for his dad for Father's Day and just wanted to make sure that the daughter also had a handmade gift for dad.

I don't think she's favoring, I think she's just trying to fill in for the absent mother. She knows that you're a good mom and that she doesn't need to fill those shoes for your husband's son.

If your son is really young, it may be that she doesn't think he'd be able to participate and is just "not thinking". Talk to her and ask her to not forget him when she's helping the daughter with special projects like that.

Say something to her. Why beat around the bush?

Ask what her motivations were in making the gift from daughter only. it may be as innocuous as thinking that the son doesn't know the difference therefore it was unnecessary.

Ask that she make a point of including both children in her efforts. Explain that it is important to you, and important to the daughter's relationship with her half brother that they be seen to be treated similarly.

Ultimately, you can't force love or good behavior.

Good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

I have this, at first it bothered me, then I got blamed for it, then we all talked about it, nothing changed, Im over it, and its their loss, not mine, I get to see my kids beautiful faces everyday.

I try to focus on what we/I do have and that far outweighs whats missing. :)

Cheryl B. said what I was thinking. I have a friend who is very well off, she and her husband had one child. She has two sisters who are not well off, and her mother will travel to town to see those children and take them to baseball games and such, but rarely goes out of her way for my friend's son. The grandmother remembers all holidays for all of the children, and my friend's son would go to her house for weekends and such. My friend asked her mom about the favoritism and the grandmother said she was trying to "even the playing field" for the kids and do things with the others that my friend could already afford for her own kid.
It sounds like your husband's aunt is doing something similar. Also, the other child is a girl, you have a boy. She may simply have more in common with her niece than with her nephew. Just ask her about it if it is bothering you, but don't sound accusatory when you do it.

My MIL show total favoritism to my son. We see her rarely which is good but she surprised us with a week long visit this fall and it was awful. I bit my tongue the whole time because my daughter didn't seem to really notice or care. The MIL kept refering to herself as Gram and by the end of the week my daughter was calling her Miss Gerrie like any other adult she sort of knows. She's missing out and my husband has agreed to talk to her if she ever comes back out to visit. Only 1st visit in 12 years so we sort of let it pass. Good luck