AIBU to expect my SIL NOT to open a parcel addressed to my nephew?

[alison222]

I sent a birthday present to my nephew and had a message today to say it had arrived safely and that she approved of my choice of wrapping paper. This means she opened the parcel addressed to him. I had marked it with sender on it so she knew it was from me and she told me what he would like so she knows what it is. He will be 9. Part of the pleasure of getting a parcel is to be able to open it yourself surely?

I can't believe so many people would object to seeing brown paper in a pile of presents, what a load of crap. but then I wrap all presents in brown paper and decorate with stickers/drawings etc...I had no idea I would be offending so many people.

I agree with you, she should have let him open the parcel himself when it arrived, then left the gift unopened until the day.

Hey, it wasn't me that mentioned sex!

inthenightkitchen I agree with the op but your post made me

I had a hippy friend who one Christmas decided to wrap everyone's presents just in brown paper to give them an authentic "parcel look". After this thread I'm now wondering how many of the receivers ripped off the parcel paper so they could place the "pretty" presents under the tree and were disappointed

Surely the postal element is simply the means by which is has arrived though? If a present is delivered by hand in an Iceland bag and the recipient isn't arround to accept it, would you tell the giver to come back another time so that the child gets to experience the joy and excitement of someone popping round and dropping them off a present in an Iceland carrier bag? What 9 year old cares by which courier method a present reaches them?

If it's cruel to remove brown paper from a parcel, is it cruel to send it by any means other than post, too? Technically that is depriving them of the joy of unwrapping their post too.

Or, indeed, would you remove it from the Iceland carrier bag before giving the present to the child?

YANBU. I wouldn't open a parcel addressed to my child, unless they were very small, Although I probably wouldn't get annoyed if someone did that to a parcel I sent for their child,
ajandjjmu I definatly would not open a parcel addessed to a late teen, to me that would be very rude, How would you like it if someone opened a parcel addressed to you.

hahahhaa to iceland carrier bag

it's not the same thing at all and now you're just being daft.
(ooh, wonder if it's because you know you're wrong about it? )

What a bitch!

The OP wasn't all that unreasonable - I can see that if that was the tradition in your family growing up, you might feel something was lost. However, lots of people have said they don't think it's that big a deal, so hopefully OP will be able to feel a bit less miffed with her SIL.

However all this business of poring over the postmark and thinking about who touched the parcel, and it being something you 'deny' your child..... just odd.

If DS knew he had a parcel through the post he would want to open it. He would then want to open the present inside the parcel, even though it wasn't his birthday. No way. I'd open the parcel and then hide the present.

Georgi - you jsut have to teach him the pleasure of waiting till the day

IntheNightGarden, think I love you :)

I am not getting why there is a 6 page thread over something so bloody stupid.

Makes me pmsl

Sorry should have been IntheNightKitchen-ach well love your posts on this thread anyway

i didn't marry him cos he was a postman

What if we introduce bubble wrap or other protective packing into the equation?

Parent opens brown parcel addressed to child and discards packing and bubble wrap to reveal lovely wrapping paper. Child never experiences joy of popping bubbles! How can this be fair?

She approved of your choice of wrapping paper FFS! how strange!

Well presumably that's a reference to the particular design which has a meaning for her, so not necc strange in context.

there you go, you see - all these layers of opening packets that he child will miss out on!

I had a strip of bubble wrap with huge bubbles on the other week, and the giggles that came out of DH when I laid it on the floor and walked all over it.
he kept walking across it pretending it was farts as he went