You can’t deny that nearly all grandparents go out of their way (and, sometimes, mind) to be the best they can be to their grandchildren. There is a reason why there’s a stereotype of grandmothers being aggressively hospitable and making sure their grandson or granddaughter eats 6 times their actual weight.
But did you notice how I said nearly all? Yep, there are grandparents who can be buzzkills. They’re rare, but they do exist, and when they do exist, everyone seems to immediately know about it. Because their actions find their way to Reddit, just like today’s story did.
A new Redditor by the nickname of u/theantigrinch has recently shared a petty revenge story that lives up to his name, and that is a story of how he got a bunch of gifts for his daughter, but grandma thought he was overdoing it to a degree where she had to backpedal on her gift so as to not cause any spoilage issues.
More Info: Reddit
It's not every year a kid can get 6 gifts for Christmas, so the parents might as well seize the opportunity
Image credits: Quinn Dombrowski (not the actual photo)
So, OP recently got a job that pays quite well. To celebrate, he figured he could share his joy and newfound financial freedom by splurging on gifts for everyone. One of the benefactors for the said splurge was his 9-year-old daughter because she deserved it:
“She has been pushing herself in school, helping around in the house without being asked, and always being the kindest soul you’ll ever meet,” elaborated OP.
However, his mother-in-law had a different opinion. Early in the morning of (presumably) Christmas, she comes around and sees a mountain of gifts. Well, OK, not a mountain—a half a dozen. But still, all for the same kid. There were 3 big gifts and 3 smaller ones. None of them seemed to amuse the MIL.
Unless the mother-in-law has something to say about it, which would mean your kid will still get 6 gifts, but we wouldn't want to spoil grandma, now would we?
Image credits: theantigrinch
Image credits: Nicole Michalou (not the actual photo)
She confronted (word for word, was “outraged”) OP about this, saying that he is straight up spoiling his daughter. And in light of this, she decided to not give her the gift she actually promised to get her, which was a doll that the daughter was very much looking forward to. This, in her mind, would’ve helped with not spoiling.
OP thought it was unfair to promise a gift and then not deliver on that promise, but MIL insisted that it’ll teach her granddaughter that she can’t get all the things she asks for in life. In OP’s eyes, it’s not like he does it every day, and, besides, it’s Christmas, his wife told him to let it go as this was the MIL’s decision and he should accept it.
After grandma decided against gifting her granddaughter a doll, like she promised, as dad's 6 gifts would be enough, the dad had something else in mind
Image credits: theantigrinch
Well, he figured he’d accept it but he’d still turn the tables by following this very same rule. He was going to get a $600 designer bag for his MIL that she really wanted, but, you know what, he got her a $40 robe instead. So as to not spoil her.
Much to her surprise, when she opened the gift, she was disappointed, and had hoped there was more—everyone else got lavish gifts, after all. But nope, that was all, and OP apologized if it disappointed her—after all, “we can’t always get the gifts we hoped for.”
This is one of those endings where no matter the repercussions, it seems like it was worth it. Sure, both MIL and the Mrs were furious with him, but it was all for a good cause of not spoiling the mother-in-law. Job well done, sir!
The dad instead opted for some petty revenge and also didn't spoil the MIL by downsizing her gift from $600 to just $40. And folks online loved it
Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
And folks in the comment section felt the same way. People were quick to point out just how entitled and stuck up the mother-in-law was based on her actions, and the wife wasn’t helping by caring more about the mom than her kids in this situation. Others were surprised to see grandma acting more like a parent than a grandparent.
Across the board, people agreed that OP did nothing wrong—he was, in fact, making a Christmas his daughter will not soon forget, not only because of her 6 presents, but also because he stood up for her, all the while still getting a gift for the MIL.
The only way this could’ve been better, as pointed out by this commenter, was if grandma had known she was getting a bag, but then OP had been upfront and told her he didn’t want to spoil her and then backpedaled, doing what he wanted with the gift because it was his gift. Settle down, Satan, but entertaining nonetheless.
You can check out the story in context here. But before you do that, would you spare a few moments to share your thoughts and stories in the comment section below? If so, you can also hit that upvote button!
Want to make sense of complicated human dynamics? Visit our Family Dynamics Hub for expert-backed guides on toxic behavior, setting boundaries, and emotional healing.