Far worse than a cash bar

As Thanksgiving approaches, countless family members across the country are clenching their jaws and growing more and more tense about the logistical and social pressures of impending family gatherings. Here, we have a 38-year-old woman who has been hosting Thanksgiving dinner for her 20-person extended family every year for the majority of the last decade. She used to enjoy these hosting responsibilities, but as time went on, she became resentful of the complete lack of support she received fr…

"When asked for it, we asked how we could pay it back, and they said just show us a fun time when we come to visit."

Sure, kids make mistakes, but some kids know exactly what they're doing. This 16-year-old, Sean , had a habit of playing innocent pranks on his stepfather, which were mostly allowed as long as they were minor and playful. At one point, he splashed cold water on his stepdad while he was sleeping, which only really became a problem when he posted footage of the prank on social media. His stepdad forced Sean to take down the video, and Sean never really got over it. That's when he decided to play…

The group chat tea is piping hot, gather 'round! Group chats are a convenient way to relay a message to a bunch of people at once, without having to sit down and message each person individually. From broadcasting a message to organizing an event, it's really got endless utility. However, you've got to be cautious with what you say in these group chats ! There are a ton of eyes on your messages, so any mistake can be quickly screenshotted and saved for posterity. Some GC mistakes turn into hila…

Parents should be careful when lecturing their kids. Teenagers , in particular, are likely to twist their words and expose the parenting flaws at play, and honestly, who can blame them? Especially in this instance where we have a young 13-year-old whose mother couldn't stand the fact that her kid was constantly on her phone… as so many kids are in this day and age. It goes beyond the technology dependence, though. The entitled mom was infuriated that her daughter wouldn't clean the house and ba…

Money between family and friends is a tricky thing, but giving money to help out can be a huge blessing when times are tough. Still, it's often said in these situations that you should never lend money that you expect to see back, essentially considering it to be a gift. When that money comes from the loss of not one but two close and important family members, it really shouldn't be treated like a bonus that needs to be burned, and it's not an “easy come, easy go” type of situation. That money…

The funny thing about surprise inheritance money is it has the potential to cause more drama than joy. Here, we have a younger sibling who was cut off by his older sister when he was 18 years old right after the loss of their parents. He ended up having to fend for himself and wound up working multiple jobs to put himself through college. Now, ten years have passed, and the younger sibling learned that he was going to receive a substantial amount of money from their maternal grandfather. This w…

Family is… family—something that sort of just happens. Springing naturally through strong connections by blood, intentions, reciprocal care, or shared experiences. (Insert any of a number of quotes from Don Toretto about not turning your back on family and/or something about family being the most important thing here.) It's not something you can just force into existence, hoping that by sheer willpower, you'll convince the other members of the family you're trying to build that they should also…

Any potential step-parent knows that it can be difficult to gain the approval of your partner's kids. This is especially true if those kids are in the midst of their teenage years. This Redditor may need to learn the important lesson of not taking this treatment too personally, as her boyfriend's daughter probably would not be satisfied with anyone for her dad. The original poster (OP), of course, was trying to get her approval when she got the 13-year-old a necklace, a gift the teenager almost…

Siblings… Really, what is there that isn't to be said? They can be your best friends, your fiercest competitors, or just the most awful people you've ever had the displeasure of being acquainted with. This 25-year-old woman moved in with her 23-year-old sister, giving up her perfectly good apartment just to move in with her sister when her sister relocated to the city for work. Difficulties began to rise, and trouble brewed when her sister began performing “harmless” pranks. They started small…

Because of his repeated jokes about her being a “gold digger” she declined you might hope that people would be a little more mature.

They say you should never mix family and business, and this story might just be the perfect example of why. After his son struggled to find work due to a legal incident 15 years ago, a retired father stepped in to help. He hired his son at the family business, hoping to set him up for success. The father, now 74 and mostly retired, still enjoys working occasionally and earns a commission for his efforts. But things have taken a turn. The son, now running the business, has started withholding hi…

There's not much a deadbeat dad can do that'll make his children think less of him–except crawling out of the woodwork years after announcing he had a secret family only to ask them to share their college fund with his love child.

Weddings have a way of bringing out the strain in families, and the pressure of executing a single greatest day of the bride and groom's life really ups the ante. Meanwhile, you're trying to keep all your unpredictable extended family in line and making sure everything goes according to plan, leaving plenty of opportunity for something to go wrong. Of course, it can also bring out festering underlying dynamics between siblings too… This 16-year-old was meant to be a bridesmaid at her older sist…

When this mother's 28-year-old daughter, Jessica, moved back in with them after a breakup, she asked her mother to partake in a “rewatch” of the popular 00's TV show “Gilmore Girls” with her. The mother didn't know much about the show outside of the fact that she was not a fan regarding the titular characters as being “very entitled” and remarking that the show relies on the viewer finding their “yelling matches” to be “endearing.” Keep reading to see her account of events as she shared with th…