Controversial Gift Giving Stories That Made Us Want To Keep The Receipt

From Redditor u/throwawayaccount4990

Some background, my family likes to play pranks with Christmas and birthday gifts it’s nothing new. I (f21) as well as my 5 siblings (from 29 to 37 years old) have all been pranked on our birthdays and on Christmas and usually it’s one or two gifts. This Christmas though, I was the only person to get all joke gifts. For example, I unwrapped a MacBook from my brother, but when I opened it, it was just some chocolate (which I don’t eat so I gave it away) and the MacBook was actually given to my sister inside a bag she wanted. Another “gift” was what I thought was a book I put on my Christmas list was actually just the book cover put on a dictionary. When I asked my mom about the book she told me she gave it to my Sil

This went on with each present my siblings or parents had given me. AirPods was just a charger block? Adapter? gift cards were used and had $0 balance, a card with Monopoly money, and so on totaling to about 12 joke gifts. I realized I went out of my way to get everyone something they wanted or they’d like didn’t get anything. At this point I was bummed so I went to the living room to watch tv with my boyfriend. At dinner they were all talking about how much they loved their gifts and when my dad asked why I hadn’t said anything about mine, I said there wasn’t much to say. Everyone but my boyfriend laughed and my mom said it was no big deal as everyone else also got some joke gifts. I told her every gift I got was a joke gifts and that the ones they got was also followed by the real one. My dad told me I needed to relax as I’m making a big deal about it and I’d have next Christmas to get the stuff on my list.

Not wanting to go back and forth I told my boyfriend I wanted to leave and we can spend the rest of Christmas break with his family then go home. My family got mad and told me not to go and to just stay because it wasn’t serious. I left and put my phone on do not disturb during the drive and by the time we got to bf’s parent’s house, I had several missed calls and texts from them calling me names like ungrateful, sensitive, and childish. They said I ruined Christmas and made my parents upset cause I left. The next day, I exchanged and opened gifts with my boyfriend and his family and one of the gifts I had gotten was the book I wanted (the book my mom pretended to gift me). I posted it on my instagram story and not even 0 minutes after posting it, my sister sent a screenshot of my story to the family group chat and they basically got mad at me for leaving and telling me I ruined Christmas over some presents. They told me I owe everyone, especially my parents, an apology because my mom spent new years sad because of my actions. Now I just want an outside party to tell me if I’m TA here? Am I in the wrong for being upset about the gifts and for leaving? After reading their messages and sitting on this for a few days I’m now feeling like maybe I was upset over nothing and need to apologize to them.

From Redditor u/Ok-Analyst-7297

Every year, my family does Christmas at my mom’s, and she insists that we open all presents together (even gifts between spouses, etc.). It’s normally an ok tradition, but sometimes it can spark jealousy or comparisons between families.

This year, my husband saved up and bought me my dream designer handbag for Christmas. I know some people aren’t into that, but it’s something that I truly love. We’re not well-off, but we’re not doing poorly either, but I knew that the handbag would cause a lot of discussion amongst my siblings and parents. I just didn’t want their opinions and criticisms to ruin a special gift my husband worked hard to get for me.

So this year, my husband got me an extra gift that wasn’t the “real” gift (it was a moderately priced skincare set). Christmas came and went without drama, but I recently posted a picture of my husband and our kids at dinner, and my handbag could be seen hanging off the back of my chair. One of my friends commented underneath about how gorgeous my Christmas gift was as well.

Long story short, word got back to my family and they totally blew up. Some were annoyed that I opened a private gift separately from the family. Others were criticizing the price of the gift. My siblings are now calling me disingenuous for harboring a secret gift, and they said that I did it because I think I’m better than them.

I didn’t open it with them because I didn’t want their opinions, but now I’m starting to feel like an AH for keeping it a secret. I knew either way they’d all criticize me though since it was so much more expensive than all other gifts, so I don’t know whether or not I’m wrong.

From Redditor u/BeginningLeg511

My daughter, Kayla, (17) has been asking for a laptop for awhile. Money’s been tight, so my wife and I saved up to get it for her for Christmas. I couldn’t wait to give it to her.

EDIT: My wife is Kayla’s biological mother, since people keep assuming she’s her step-mom.

The other day, I come home from work and find Kayla upset, my wife in a mood and our son, Martin, (15) looking pleased. I asked my wife in private what was going on. She started venting to me that Kayla is an ungrateful brat, we should return her gift, etc. She then explained that she and our son decided to pull a small prank our daughter.

Martin told Kayla that my wife had told him that instead of the laptop, she Kayla was getting the amount it’d cost in gift cards to various stores (clothing, food, etc, not places you could buy a laptop), because she felt she wasn’t ready for one. Kayla got very upset and asked my wife if this was true. My wife said yes and added “maybe next year”. Kayla got upset and said this wasn’t fair, she had only asked for one thing. Clearly money wasn’t an issue. My wife admits she started laughing, which made Kayla even more upset and she told my wife she was a jerk.

My wife feels how Kayla reacted to the prank “showed her true colors” and “what if we couldn’t afford it”. I pointed out that we had told Kayla in the past that we couldn’t afford it and she took it well. It seems that the issue was knowing we had the money and could’ve bought it, but allegedly didn’t. I asked her what she expected to come from this little prank and called her childish for roping Martin into it. I said I’m not returning the laptop. My wife is mad at me and says Kayla needs to be punished.

I also made my wife tell Kayla it was all a prank. Kayla apologized for calling my wife a jerk but said the prank was super hurtful. My wife refused to apologize and doubled down that she doesn’t feel Kayla deserves it. Martin did apologize for his role.

AITA?

From a former Redditor

My husband (28) and I (27F) have birthdays during the same week. I am big on birthdays so for my husbands I often go all out, and he also does a great job with my birthday most of the time. I do not expect the same level as I give because I know I do a lot.

For my husband’s birthday this year I threw a big party for him. People flew in from other states and I got it catered and it was so fun. I also spent a LOT of money and time on it. I was planning it for months. I also got him a very nice gift that is something he will definitely use. He showed everyone at the party because it really was perfect lol.

So my birthday comes. I wake up and he’s golfing. Then he gets home and tells me the plan for my birthday is to go to a bakery and a bookstore. I was starving so we got brunch first. Then we go the bookstore and I left my credit card at work so I had no money and asked if he’d get a book for me for my birthday and he originally said no, but eventually he relented. Then we go to the bakery and I got a coffee and a few treats. It was kind of a serve yourself type place, and every time I picked up an item he got annoyed about the cost and made a comment. It was NOT an expensive bakery. The average item cost $2-3 and I got 3 items lol. We also got a slice of cake to share. I went to the bathroom and got back and he had eaten most of the cake. The day was very nice but I was kinda sad about the lack of effort and then the constant complaining about the cost of things. (now is a good time to mention we don’t struggle with money in the slightest).

So then he mentions my birthday present. I was very clear on what I wanted for my birthday — tickets to my fav artist. And no, not Taylor Swift. I told him like 5 times. You could get very good seats for about $60-70 per person. So he tells me I’ll get my gift on Friday and its an event and he wants to keep it a surprise. And Friday is the day of the concert so I got super excited expecting tickets.

Well long story short, I find out my gift is attending a baseball game. I was immediately annoyed because I HATE baseball (sorry baseball fans). Everyone knows I hate baseball. And he also hates it! I would rather just not get a gift at all then pretend to enjoy sitting through a whole baseball game…

So WITBA if I told him I don’t want my “gift”?

From Redditor u/safarijane22

My daughter, Jenny, (13) has a best friend, Morgan (nearly 13). The two of them spend a lot of time together at our place. I do not know Morgan’s mother very well as Jenny doesn’t often go to their house. This is mainly because Morgan’s house is a little chaotic. She has 4 siblings. Jenny is an only child and Morgan has said she likes the quiet.

Morgan has done a lot of stuff with us. I occasionally enter radio/online competitions and will win tickets to certain local events. When I won 4 tickets to a concert last year, Jenny and I brought Morgan along with one other friend. We all had a blast.

Recently, I won another pair of tickets to a concert that I planned to attend with Jenny. A few days after, I was told about a work trip that I have to take that falls that weekend. Jenny usually comes with me. So, Jenny suggested we give the tickets to Morgan for her birthday. She could either go with another friend or her mom. I checked with Morgan’s mom before we mentioned this to Morgan and she said that was fine.

Last night, Morgan was at our house and she seemed upset. When I asked why, she said her mom was taking her brother to the concert because “her brother has never been to a concert before”. I asked if Morgan’s brother even liked the band and Morgan said no, it was just the principle of the matter. Morgan and her other 3 siblings have been to concerts. He hasn’t and since they can’t afford stuff like this, he gets to go.

I found this unfair and honestly a waste of tickets. I called Morgan’s mom to double check this story and she confirmed it all, including her 11 year old son barely knowing anything about the band. I said I’m sorry, but I don’t feel right giving these as a birthday gift anymore as these were for Morgan. I said we’d give them to Jenny and Morgan’s other friend who I know likes the band, and we’ll get Morgan something else for her birthday. Morgan is fine with this.

Morgan’s mom is pi**ed and says I’m trying to tell her how to parent. I don’t think I am because if a different friend gave Morgan the tickets and it was the same result, as shitty as I’d find her mom doing this, I wouldn’t say anything as that’s not my business. As I am giving the tickets, I want them to go to Morgan. I’d also maybe feel different if the brother loved the band too but as he doesn’t, I don’t want to give them.

So here I am left wondering if I’m being an a** here?

From Redditor u/Still_Local_8472

For our wedding anniversary, I bought my husband a $200 rangefinder. The store was running a promotion where you’d get a $50 gift card with the purchase. My husband knew about the deal, so when I gave him the gift, he asked where the gift card was. Since you couldn’t use the gift card on the original purchase, I used it to buy him a Christmas gift that he won’t get until December.

He said it left an “icky taste in his mouth” because when questioned about the amount spent I told him I spent $215, but he thinks it only counts as $165 because of the gift card. For context, my card was charged $214.99 for the rangefinder. I explained that I used the gift card toward a separate $215 Christmas gift, so technically, I’ve only spent $165 on Christmas so far.

Here’s where I’m confused: When I asked him for additional gift ideas, he told me I had spent enough. But later, he said he was expecting to get the $50 gift card with the rangefinder, and that’s why he originally said I didn’t need to get him anything else.

For our anniversary, he got me a necklace (on sale for $190) and a Lululemon bag for $40.

Now I’m feeling like crap, and I don’t know if I did something wrong or if I’m overthinking it. AITA?

From Redditor u/throwawaygifting1

For Christmas, my (30f) husband (30m) and I are hosting my parents, my brother Chris (34m), his wife Amy (33f), their two sons (6&4), my sister Lucia (27m), and her boyfriend Alex (30m).

The background to all this is that Amy complains about every gift she is given by any of us. Every Christmas she makes faces and snide remarks about the things she’s gifted. For example, last year we (me and my husband) gifted Amy and Chris a joint present of an expensive coffee maker, which is the same one we have at home that Chris loved when they visited. Amy’s only remark – not even a thank you – was “oh well this isn’t really for me is it”, and then to make a great show of being annoyed that she didn’t get a separate gift.

A few days ago, Amy included the whole family on a group email with a Christmas list for her and the kids, saying that she would only accept gifts from this list. On her list was expensive perfumes, links to expensive clothing items, and designer handbags. I was livid. My parents were offended as well but didn’t want to say anything to Amy but I wasn’t going to hold back in the face of what I felt was grossly entitled behaviour.

I replied to Amy’s email saying I wouldn’t be purchasing anything on that list and that if she wanted to shop for a Louis Vuitton wallet I was happy to put her in touch with my saleswoman. I also said that if she didn’t like what she received for Christmas she was welcome to just leave it at my house.

Chris blew up at me saying Amy was just trying to make everything easier for everyone by giving suggestions. I disagree and told him I think Amy was just trying to find a sneaky way to get a few things she normally can’t afford for free, which in my opinion is not in the spirit of Christmas and I think she’s being extremely childish.

My parents think I shouldn’t have said anything but Lucia says I absolutely should have because she wasn’t going to be spending hundreds on Amy’s Christmas list either.

Was I the AH for not going along with it?

From Redditor u/Sensitive-Table-928

Hi Reddit, I turned 18 (female) yesterday, but it seems to caused a bit of drama in my family so I’m asking for honest, objective opinions on whether I’m wrong. I’m using a throwaway account because this situation is obviously very humiliating for me

For reference, my weight has always been made fun of in my family. My aunt specifically has always been very unkind and fat shamed me, even when I was younger and struggling with my body image. She used to tell me that my clothes looked so small on me, and that even her clothes are probably small for me. She used to remind me to go on diets constantly. I’m currently 320lbs if it adds contexts too

I hadn’t seen my aunt in a while and for the most part I was really glad to see her for my birthday. I was slightly dreading if she would say anything to me because I’m aware I have gained a lot of weight since I last saw her, but she just made a few comments so I thought it was the end of it.

I was opening a birthday card she gave me a few hours later and it had money in it, with a note that said “money for weight watchers, make some real change for once”. This was humiliating and I asked her about it and she said that she could tell I was miserable and that I probably look really good underneath the fat. She said this in front of my parents, and it was very embarrassing. I told her I’m not accepting the gift and she’s making me look stupid, but she said that she was just worried for me and my health. I don’t believe this, she’s made fun of my weight for years even before I was a teenager. But my parents think I was overreacting and I should’ve just accepted it. My aunt has a notoriously big mouth and my parents think she’s going to tell our whole family so they’re getting kind of worried about what I’ve done. AITA?

From Redditor u/Indigoicequeen

My 30 F husband 32 M has always been a great gift-giver, but in the past few years he has not nearly put in as much effort. We’ve been together 10 years. One birthday he gave me custom engraved necklaces of our dogs and I loved it. This year for my birthday he asked what I wanted (which I hate) but I ended up picking out my own bag and ordered it myself.

Now on to the part that makes me upset… at his job he works with all women, and he is their boss. They are doing secret Santa for Christmas and he got matched with a girl who loves to read and is into fantasy genres like dragons and magic. He bought her probably 7 different dragon themed little gifts and trinkets (tapestry, glass dragon egg, a little journal, etc….). none of them were super expensive, so if that was all it was I wouldn’t have thought twice about it but he also crafted a hand made a mosaic of a bunch of diffent dragons that he stenciled on from images he found online.

It looks great and he’s super talented with things like that, but I can’t help but be jealous and think “why can’t he do something like that for me?” He spent hours on it and worked on it every night for a week. One of the gifts arrived in the mail yesterday and I said “is this another gift for her?” he said yes so I said “I feel like you’re going over the top and its a little unfair I had to pick my own gift for my birthday when you did all this for her.” He replied saying everyone goes over the top for the gift exchanges and it’s not that deep… and that was the end of it.

Also, I think part of it is he feels like it’s a competition on who gives the best gift, because at previous exchanges there has been a clear “winner” who gave the best gift. He seems standoffish and short with me ever since we’ve had the conversation. Am I the a**hole for brining it up?

From Redditor u/Okoak_23

I have two toddler sons. They’re just like any other toddler and are pretty self absorbed.

Currently, one adores cars and the other loves the color red. Toddler 1 won’t play with anything but cars and toddler 2 will only play with red toys.

My mom hosted a party the other night and one of my aunts came. She bought a bunch of gifts for all the kids. The older kids were respectful and accepted their gifts, but my sons simply glanced at the toys, noticed they weren’t cars or red, and moved onto something else. I thanked her for the toys and made a joke about how unpredictable toddlers are after realizing that she looked upset but she rolled her eyes and said “that was rude.” I told her that they’re toddlers and she said “so? My kids knew how to say thank you by the time they were 3.“

I told her that they can say please and thank you, but they’re still learning.

She made a noise and said “learning to be rude.” I told her she was being a little sensitive and that they’re literally babies. They don’t even understand the concepts of being “rude” or “ungrateful.” She got annoyed and said fine then, don’t expect any more presents after today and that she hates entitled parents like me who are blinded by their children and think they can do no wrong. I said whatever, and told her she could keep the gifts she bought for today since my kids couldn’t care less about them. She got all red in the face and said now she knows why the boys are so rude but I just grabbed the kids and my husband and left.

I was extremely angry at the moment but now I’m just in disbelief. Who gets offended by a toddler? My mom says my aunt is very upset with me and is threatening to uninvite us from her Christmas dinner (aunt is hosting this year) unless I apologize and promise to raise my kids better. My mom thinks we’re being ridiculous and I should just say sorry but I said no. AITA? I just can’t wrap my head around why she’s so angry?