Thoughtful Sister Goes Against Mom's Rules To Buy Her Neurodivergent Sister Gift She Wants

She thinks her daughter's interest in insects, fossils, and bones is disgusting

Chelsi

• Published in Christmas
• November 20, 2023

Thoughtful gifts show how much you know and adore the person who receives the present. Following this gift-giving philosophy wasn't easy for a 16-year-old because of the rules her mom imposed.

OP's older sister, Allie, is neurodivergent. Despite their differences, OP and Allie have a close sibling relationship.

Allie is always ready to listen to OP and even helps her with schoolwork. OP also enjoys listening to her sister speak about her niche interests and all the new information she learns.

One of Allie's interests is her collection of pinned insects, fossils, and bones. She keeps her collection on dedicated shelves at their mom's and dad's houses.

Their mom didn't see the appeal of Allie's collections. Their mom's rule is for Allie's collection to be strictly contained on that shelf in her room.

Allie isn't banned from speaking about her hobby. Their mom, however, makes snide remarks about how weird she found Allie's hobby whenever the topic was brought up.

Allie hasn't said anything about how their mom perceived her collection. OP's heart went out to her sister — she could only imagine how awful her sister must feel every time their mom looked down on her hobby.

OP planned to gift her sister a framed bat skeleton for Christmas. Their mom didn't approve of OP's gift and explicitly prohibited her from buying it.

Their mom said OP had to get her sister something else because she didn't want the bat skeleton anywhere in her house. She told OP it was weird and creepy.

OP bought the framed bat skeleton anyway. Their mom got upset over OP's present.

Before she could ruin the moment, OP told Allie the skeleton would look great next to her poster at their dad's house.

Allie agreed. She said she planned on displaying it there because most of her bat collection was at their dad's house.

Their mom pulled OP aside before the siblings left for their dad's house. She scolded OP for going around her rules.

OP said she technically didn't break any rule. Their mom said OP was grounded when she returned from her father's place. OP's dad didn't see anything wrong with the gift but told OP she knew what she was doing when she bought the present.

OP's mom needs to take a step back and see how her disgust at Allie's hobbies could affect her daughter's sense of self.

OP is doing a great job showing her older sister that their mom is wrong for treating her and her hobbies as less-than.

OP and Allie's solidarity is something to be admired.

OP said she and Allie get each other two gifts at Christmas: one to open at each parent's house. It's probably best if OP saves the mummified/fossilized creatures for their father's Christmas mornings from now on.

It sucks that OP was grounded for getting Allie such a wonderful gift, but it's a price worth paying for, for her sister's happiness.

Allie deserves to know that there are people who don't see her and her hobbies as something disgusting or weird.

Redditors voted that OP wasn't the a**hole for buying her sister a framed bat skeleton.

The rule that their mom enforced was unfair to Allie and OP. Her constant demeaning of Allie's hobbies will eventually affect their relationship and how Allie sees herself.

OP has nothing to feel bad about. Her thoughtful gift to her sister showed Allie how valued she and her hobbies are in their family.

Chelsi