Am I the “Bad Guy” for Spending Less on a Gift for My One Child?

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Recently a woman posted online about something troubling her. Let’s call her Ellen. Ellen lives at home with her husband and three kids.

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She has three children: Rose, the child she had with her current spouse; Alex, her stepson; and Mara, her daughter from a prior relationship.

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The Backstory

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Mara’s father has a lot of money so there are some things Mara gets from her dad that Ellen and her husband can’t buy because they aren’t wealthy. Usually, they have to put money aside to afford decent gifts for their children.

Once, Ellen and her husband decided to buy gifts for all three of them for the new year. They had saved money for Rose’s much-needed laptop and a new phone for Alex.

After purchasing the phone and laptop, they discovered they had spent all their available funds and could not get a gift for Mara.

So they decided to get Mara some nail polish instead of nothing. Ellen figured it was fine as Mara had everything she could desire or need. Besides, Mara loves to paint her nails.

When Mara saw hers, she was on the floor. She called to complain to her father, walked out of the room, and refused to speak to her mom. Ellen wonders if she did wrong or if her action passes as favoritism.

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