My grandmother was a piece of work. One year myself and my two cousins were at her house for Christmas morning. All the family was there and there was a big, gorgeous pile of presents wrapped in the corner. We (me and my cousins) were promptly told that those gifts were for the other grandchildren.
When we gave our grandma the blank stare of confused children, she hurried back into her room, threw an old ziplock bag down at the ground between us (full of half-used nail polish and broken jewelry) and told us Merry Christmas.
itisSUNNYinhere
Ex GF gave me book on the history of gunpowder. I admit I enjoyed it as it was an interesting read. Problem was, I had already read it two months prior, because she had already given me a copy as my birthday gift.
Maldibus
It was the first Christmas my father and current stepmother had together. My step-siblings each got a new laptop computer, I got a $20 gift card to McDonald’s.
Mystic_Waffles
Book about how to take criticism, gifted by my mother-in-law.
PM_ME_POW
When I was 15, I really wanted a dog. My mom knew this.
Cue Christmas morning. After we had opened any other presents, my mom came back with one last one…it was a wrapped box with holes in the sides, bouncing/moving some, and puppy barks of cuteness.
I got sooooo excited to open it and meet my new best friend. When I opened it, it had a stuffed animal puppy (not taxidermized…), a bumble ball toy, and a small tape recorder with puppy barks.
My heart sank and I just sat there and cried.
AlwaysForgetsMyName
I was 16. I was doing my Art GCSE and I kept taking the scissors from the kitchen because it involved a lot of cutting and sticking. My mum got super annoyed with me.
I have 2 older brothers. One had recently moved into uni so he got some sheets with a world map in it, something he was very interested in at the time and an expensive rucksack for his uni work. The other brother had just recently landed a new job, so he got some posh shoes and some merino wool jumpers. In total, their presents probably cost about £100-£200 each and all of them were beautifully wrapped.
Me?
I got handed a plastic bag, inside was a pair of £3 scissors. I received nothing else that Christmas.
ConfidenceIsLow
I am going to answer for my sister. When I was about five (making her nine) our uncle/aunt/cousin family asked me what my sister liked. I had no idea. All I knew was she liked to yell at me. So I dumbly replied she like hair ties. For Christmas that year my sister received an assortment of an insanely high number, like two hundred different high ties, scrunches, ect. She didn’t let me live that down for a looong time.
chubbybunnybean
When I was in sixth grade in 1995 my parents got me a CD case.
I didn’t have any CDs.
AlrightJohnnyImSorry
We had a Secret Santa with the whole family and everyone usually goes a bit overboard even though it’s supposed to be a relaxed thing. One year my uncle from California was able to make it and we included them. His wife wanted all her kids to be added as well so they would revive something. One of her kids ended up drawing my name for it and when she gave me my gift on behalf of them. She bought me a 5 dollar lead pencil and pen and another of her kids drew my mom’s name and then she said “oops I didn’t get you anything yet I thought it was supposed to be done on New year’s Eve.”
While her kids got giant dollhouses and trikes
FAssassin7
Toothpaste. Apparently it wasn’t even that my breath stank, we were just out of toothpaste.
llerell
My non-favorite grandparents once gave me a Peter Parker doll when I was like 17. I mean a doll too. I could undress him if I so pleased. He didn’t come with a Spidey costume either haha
anonymous
When I still lived with my parents they got me a Cards Against Humanity deck. Right after I opened it they told me I’m not allowed to play it until I turned 18. I was 15 at the time.
neon1876
My mom took me to her boyfriend’s family Christmas party in rural Michigan once. Someone gave me The Year in Clemson Football: 1993.
rake2204
My (divorced) parents pooled their money to buy me a Gameboy color. The problem was they’d already got me a Gameboy color, but I guess they didn’t understand that it was the same one and thought it was new.
They both looked so excited as I opened it I didn’t have the heart to tell them. So I just kept playing my one game on my new game boy color.
MilkyLikeCereal
I got an empty box of a toy I really wanted. I was 9.
spoonie_tatoonie
A set of salt and pepper shakers… the gifts were donated to us and I don’t know how they forgot my parents had 4 kids
Rainnv7
I grew up really poor and received some batteries for an old toy car I already had lol. Looking back at it it’s kind of funny but I remember crying when that happened. I was 7
neon_giraffe9
We’re not friends anymore and haven’t been for more than ten years now. However, we were very very close from ages 12 to 25. One Christmas when we were 18 her present to me was a wrapped up VHS taped I had loaned her years before and she had forgotten it was actually my tape of Wayne’s World I was now getting back as she tried to pass it off as an actual gift.
chubbybunnybean
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When I unwrapped it, my brothers – even my dad – went silent.
Grandma: “Do you like it? All of the boys by me have them.”
My brother: “They must be some strange boys…”
Dad: (to my brother) “Shaddap! (To me) “You OK?”
He could see my eyes tearing-up.
I was probably 11 or 12…..and I’m thinking:
“Why is she giving me a large, woman’s handbag??? I’m a boy!!”
She was annoyed/insulted, but she took it and promised to exchange it for something else.
Decades later and I’m still ‘WTF???’