January 21, 2026 at 11:55 am

Mother Bought Her Daughter A Concert Ticket For Christmas, But She Felt Guilty For Not Buying An Extra Ticket After Her Sister-In-Law Hinted Her Niece Should Go Too

by Heather Hall

Mother at her wit's end because her SIL is guilt-tripping her

Pexels/Reddit

What starts as a surprise for your kid can quickly turn into an awkward family obligation.

So what would you do if you bought your own child a concert ticket for Christmas, but a relative started hinting that their child would love to go too?

Would you hurry and buy them a ticket out of guilt? Or would you stick with the original plan?

In the following story, one mother finds herself in this predicament and is unsure what to do.

Here’s what’s going on.

AITA for not buying my niece a concert ticket for Christmas?

In addition to our regular presents, we’ve gotten our daughter a ticket to a concert happening on the 30th. I’m going too, primarily because I need to take her, but also I like that band’s music, and I want to go with her. It’ll be a nice experience.

Today, my sister-in-law (my husband’s sister) called me and asked what we were doing on New Year’s Eve (we’re having a Christmas family dinner as it is).

I said I’m not sure, because I’ll probably be super tired from the drive back (the concert is on the 30th, and so we’re staying there overnight before driving back), and told her we’d gotten our daughter a surprise concert ticket.

She seemed a bit disappointed and said her daughter would have loved to go too.

After the call, she felt guilty.

She asked if tickets were available, and I said I didn’t know. She reiterated that her daughter would have loved to go too.

I hate saying it, and please don’t take this the wrong way, but my husband has his business, and I’m a working professional too, and our daughter is an only child, so I understand the difference in spending constraints.

Anyway, we hung up later, and I felt terrible. I looked it up, and there are still tickets available.

But also, if I get her a ticket for her, with the confirmation wrapped up like I’m doing for my daughter, and give it to her to open at dinner, my husband’s brother’s daughter would then be the one feeling left out.

AITA?

Wow! That’s quite the predicament.

Let’s see how the folks over at Reddit would handle this situation.

This person thinks she should take her daughter and have fun.

Concert 3 Mother Bought Her Daughter A Concert Ticket For Christmas, But She Felt Guilty For Not Buying An Extra Ticket After Her Sister In Law Hinted Her Niece Should Go Too

Good question.

Concert 1 Mother Bought Her Daughter A Concert Ticket For Christmas, But She Felt Guilty For Not Buying An Extra Ticket After Her Sister In Law Hinted Her Niece Should Go Too

According to this comment, it should be about fun with her daughter.

Concert b9c9d3 Mother Bought Her Daughter A Concert Ticket For Christmas, But She Felt Guilty For Not Buying An Extra Ticket After Her Sister In Law Hinted Her Niece Should Go Too

She should not buy any more tickets.

It’s best to keep this between her and her daughter.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check this one out about a man who created a points system for his inheritance, and a family friend ends up getting almost all of it.

Heather Hall | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Heather Hall is a contributing writer for TwistedSifter specializing in internet culture, workplace conflict, and viral customer service stories. With over a decade of editorial experience in digital publishing, Heather excels at curating trending online discussions and providing insightful commentary on the daily dramas that capture the internet's attention.

Since beginning her career in 2011, she has developed deep expertise in SEO-driven digital content, having written for a wide array of publications covering lifestyle, business, and travel. At TwistedSifter, Heather focuses on synthesizing complex social media threads into engaging, highly readable narratives that highlight the human element of viral news.

When she isn’t analyzing the latest internet discourse, Heather is a dedicated mother of three sons who takes family gaming nights entirely too seriously—whether she is dominating in Mario Kart, exploring The Legend of Zelda, or jumping into Roblox.

Connect with Heather on Facebook and LinkedIn.