Robotmom

The way you have framed this question is that you are deciding whether to put up with your in-laws disrespecting your parenting wishes in order to 1) get free child care and 2) protect your relationship with them. But there is a third – and I would argue more important – thing at stake here: if you say “never again”, it is not just your relationship with your in-laws that you will be harming, but also your child’s relationship with their grandparent.

What does your kid say? Do they like being with grandparents? Do they feel safe with them, and cared for? How does he seem when he comes home? If your kid has a positive relationship with their grandparent, then perhaps you should be considering this as the main loss if you say “never again”.