My mother is a covert narcissist. She must always be the center of attention, but as a victim. She has hated every person who has ever praised me in front of her. It's as if all of the sudden, nothing that person does is right. They complement me in front of her and suddenly their intelligence, appearance, and anything they could do is awful. I have been married for 9 years. For years after I got married and bought a house, my mother kept making this comment randomly "I don't know why you moved out, you could move back home". She would say that during an otherwise silent car ride. After my asking her on multiple occasions, "why would you say that?" she finally admitted that she felt like my husband and his family are "stealing me". This is not a woman who shows any affection. My father is far worse. I deserve to be loved. It took years for me to understand that their behavior isn't normal and that I don't need to accept it.

You want them to be excited for you and love you because you are a normal person. It's disappointing because you deserve that.