To want my birthday presents gift wrapped?

[StuntNun]

It’s my birthday tomorrow, a milestone one, and there are currently at least thirteen cardboard boxes, mostly from Amazon, stashed around the house. My mum is trying to persuade my DH that he shouldn’t gift wrap the presents but just let me open the cardboard boxes myself instead since “it will still be a surprise.”

So, AIBU to prefer my birthday presents wrapped up rather than open a stack of cardboard boxes on my big day?

At Christmas, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law ordered sheets of wrapping paper along with their presents for my kids and asked DH to wrap everything for them. He didn’t mind as it saved them spending £3 per gift on Amazon wrapping bags.

Like I said in my other comment it’s fine to have a preference on how you like your presents wrapped but it doesn’t mean the giver has to do that. If anyone was to complain about presents being given in a box then they’d be ungrateful, I’m not saying you are (unless you’re saying you’re not happy they’ve not been wrapped)

God you people are joyless! Why even buy the presents - they're married, it's all coming out of the same pot? Actually why bother celebrating birthdays, you're going to die in a few years anyway?!

OP, I agree with you - opening boxes and opening presents are totally different things. You aren't spoilt or ungrateful, you just want to have a little fun - don't let mumsnet silly billies or your mum spoil it for you.

On what planet is it actually normal to just bung your beloved relatives an unwrapped Amazon box for a birthday gift??
It is not spoilt to hope that someone might have made 20 minutes worth of effort to make you feel special on your birthday.
Yet again mumsnet is a parallel universe.

That’s good of him!

Have your standards always been so low?

I think, as the boxes are addressed to you, they should (ugly as they may be) be left for you to open.

However, that does not stop your DH (or your mum!) wrapping your presents from them thoughtfully and with care, arranging them nicely on a table with some flowers and hopefully a cake. Then the brown parcels can be stacked, so you get a nice mix of 'oh! look how many people remembered to send me something!' (amazon) and 'oh, what pretty wrapped presents!' (people in your house).

But really, they should have hidden the Amazon parcels from you so that they are not lying about the house spoiling the surprise. They should have squirrelled them away and produced them - ta-da! on the day, rather than involve you in wrapping-gate. Or are you the referee and receiver of all the questions (where shall I put this? Which spoons shall we use? What were you thinking of for tea? etc).

Happy Birthday!

DH is actually out today but I suspect he will tell my mum he doesn’t mind wrapping presents and pack me off for a long bath to get me out of the way this evening. To be fair to my mum, my dad used to do all the present buying and wrapping when I was a child so she never had to do anything - from her point of view the presents miraculously appeared already wrapped on birthdays and at Christmas.

I love opening parcels so this wouldn't bother me. You don't know what's in them until they're opened, so I don't see the point of him opening the parcels and wrapping them in paper that you're just going to unwrap again, especially as people don't seem to reuse it. They just rip it. He could decorate/find someone to decorate the parcels! But that's just me. If you want them wrapped then tell him! Maybe the ones from your SILs etc are already wrapped?

I would be more bothered that most of my presents for a significant birthday are from Amazon.

Yeah, it smacks of a bit 'low thought/effort' from SIL/MIL. Just click away on Amazon and get stuff delivered straight to the OPs house, job done.

13 of them as well. You don't know it's a snide or not, so it's probably better they were opened before given.

I think I'd prefer 1 decent present than a load of clutter. But some people like a pile.

Tell your mother to stfu or you'll give her Christmas gifts in a bin bag.

Seems like a spectacular waste of time and wrapping paper to wrap them at this stage.

YANBU, OP! Even if they were put into a gift bag it would look much nicer than a pile of brown boxes!

It’s not my fault that he has procrastinated. He always leaves things to the last minute.

Incidentally, my mum has wrapped her birthday present for me. It’s squashy - I suspect pyjamas. 😊

Actually we have a load of Amazon gift bags in the loft from Christmas so that would be a great idea. Better for the environment and much quicker but still nicer than opening shipping boxes.

Yes. I would expect my presents to be wrapped. It’s my birthday Thursday and my dh is fab at presents. He’s already given me one early as he was so excited and wanted to see my face. It was a mulberry bag, a Bayswater mini. Bloody gorgeous. We are on holiday and him and the kids have all sorts planned.

God there are some joyless people on this thread. I'd want presents wrapped rather than just Amazon parcels too OP. Nice colourful paper - normal wrapping paper or tissue.

Don't be ridiculous.

OP, you don't have to have low standards just because too many (mostly women) do. I don't think many people particularly enjoy wrapping, but it's about putting a bit of effort in. Me and my partner wrap for each other unless they are already in pretty boxes and I do not enjoy it. I'd feel like a right lazy git if I just handed him Amazon boxes and I'd think the same of him too.

Happy birthday for Thursday, it sounds like you’re going to have a lovely day.

I suppose if she’s never done them that’s probably because she isn’t bothered about wrapping presents or bothered how she receives them. She’s probably trying to save your DH a job but if he wants to wrap them good on him, especially if it buys you an hours peace in the bath lol

If you bothered to read my comments I’m not calling op ungrateful

How is he being lazy? OP did not say that he wasn't going to wrap the presents, she said her mother was trying to convince him not to wrap the presents. That would imply that he usually does it. Men are not always in the wrong.

Don’t invite mum for Xmas or Birthday again! Text DH saying I love how we are an ‘unwrap presents’ household and I hope you don’t listen to her!

It feels so much more special if the presents are in a gift bag or wrapped up. I open Amazon parcels pretty much every week and being presented with a bunch of brown boxes would definitely make me feel a little crestfallen. As PP have said, some of them might already be in gift bags inside the box. I am with you OP, the outer boxes should be removed. If not wrapped, the contents should be so, or put in a spare gift bag (I always keep mine exactly for this purpose). I do this for all my family, I would never chuck them a pile of Amazon boxes!