Christmas can be a bit of a nightmare if you have a large extended family to buy presents for.
If you have children, the likelihood is you’ll want to spend your money on getting them toys – rather than stuff for the grown ups.
So one mum says she’s at her wits end with her demanding sister-in-law who expects fancy gifts each year, even though isn’t particularly generous herself.
Writing on Mumsnet, she said: "My [sister-in-law] is in her late 40s, is single no [children] and earns a very good salary.
"Every Christmas she expects an expensive present from us.
"She will say what she wants and expects us to get it for her. It is usually around £60, although before we had [children] it was more than this.
"She buys my 2 [children] presents and sometimes remembers their birthdays but she is by no means generous with them in any way.
"Aside from parents, [she] is now the last adult we have to buy for… I am getting sick of this
The mum said that a few years ago, she got her something less expensive but she opened it and "looked upset and annoyed" before her mother-in-law said something sarcastic about it.
She continued: "I have cut back on Christmas quite a lot and made it more about tradition and good times," adding that even she and her partner don’t even get each other gifts anymore – but she fears backlash from her mother-in-law if she cuts back further.
The mum reckons she feels owed for getting her kids presents but says she’d rather "call it quits" as she "begrudges" spending the money on someone she "barely has a relationship with".
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The mum added that she’d be happy to buy her a nice bottle of wine and some chocolates, but doesn’t want to "enable her massive sense of entitlement which at nearly 50, is really childish."
"Am I ever going to get out of this or am I stuck with buying for her into her 80’s?"
Some Mumsnet users slammed the sister-in-law for her behaviour, calling her "rude" and "a bit sad".
A few people "feel sorry" for her, as this may be one of the few gifts she receives.
Others had helpful suggestions, with one person writing: "Send an email to the effect of ‘now the children are getting older and more difficult to buy for we feel it simpler to stop buying family gifts altogether’".
Another said: "It’s not about what [your mother-in-law] would like, it’s about what suits your family."
Do you have to get expensive presents for family members you’re not close with? Comment below.
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