My moms side of the family is notorious for giving you a gift then expecting it back if they find out you are done with it, or expecting the money you get for returning/selling the gift if you don't like it.
Talk about "Indian Givers" -- now I know that term is probably not PC anymore, but get over it.. I said it my entire childhood.
If I was given clothes by my grandma or aunts and they found out I returned them, because they were hideous, they would say that I should have given the money from the returns to them. In their mind.. I didn't keep the gift so it should have gone straight back to them, even though as soon as it was handed over to me it was mine, therefor no longer theirs to lay claim over. So that is when I started getting things like sock, underwear, and crap like that.
Boogers first Christmas with my aunt in Arizona my aunt got him a bunch of shirts and books. He was 5 at the time, how many 5 year old want 90% of their presents to be books and shirts? So, being the unfiltered 5 year old he was when he opened a present he would say "I don't like that." So, of course, my aunt would respond with "fine give it back and I will give it to someone else." Before Booger could agree I would say, this is his now and he can return them and get something he likes. Which pissed her off, in turn, making it more enjoyable for me because it would really piss her off. I'm sorry, the tag had his name, not yours, that in turn makes it HIS to do with as he pleases.
When me and Booger were moving home my mom bought him a DS Lite so he would have his own and something to play with on the plane. The following Christmas Santa got him a DSi, so we traded in the DS Lite and he got games to play for the new one. My mom found out about this and said "well, I would have liked it if he was done with it. I was the one that bought it for him." Ok, and? It was his, he got a new one, so he traded it in for games. Just because he was done with it does not automatically make it yours again.
This past Christmas my mom bought him n easy bake oven because he had been asking one. He hasn't played with it because he wants to play with it when his sister is over, which hasn't been often.. but.. again my mom found out he wasn't using it and called me asking if she could have it back to take to the consignment shop for some pocket change. Um, no. It is his, therefor anything that would come from it is also his.
I don't remember exactly what was given to me and by which family member, but I was given something for my birthday a while back and came upon some hard times. I sold the item and used the money. The family member found out about it and spent an hour chewing me out because that money belonged to them. They gave me said item, so when I no longer felt the need to keep it it should have gone back to them or any money acquired from the item.
The concept of a gift just completely goes over their heads. It is a gift until they see you no longer want it, then it was no longer a gift but a loan. I am sorry, but that is not what a gift is. Please look up gift in the dictionary and if you can't handle that then stop giving them out. Thank you ever so kindly.
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