When you're a kid, being invited to a birthday party is a real highlight. I mean, there are very few occasions on which you have free rein to eat what feels like unlimited junk food, where you can totally let loose and be as loud and energetic as you want, and where you can leave an already fantastic day with a treat-filled party bag.
These were the kind of parties I remember attending as a kid anyway. But it turns out, that not every children's birthday party is as ideal.
One mother, in fact, is opening up about one of the cruellest birthday parties in the history of children's birthday parties.
Credit: Pexels
Initially, the party seemed like it would be an incredible one - one that the children would remember for a long time to come. But it soon became clear that it would be a memorable occasion for all the wrong reasons.
The party took place at a Build-a-Bear Workshop - every kid's dream, right? It's a chance for children to put all that creativity to good use, and end up with their own self-customised stuffed toy.
The kids and the adults headed to the mall, ate pizza from the food court before going to Build-a-Bear.
Credit: Reddit
When they were done eating, the kids went to work on crafting their very own stuffed bear - they were told to design the toy exactly how they wanted.
According to the mother who posted the story on Reddit, they each chipped in $30, as they knew how expensive it can be at Build-a-Bear.
She also warned her daughter against going over the top with her bear, telling her to keep it simple by dressing the bear in a shirt without a load of accessories.
"As far as I know the parents didn't really put a limit, but I made my daughter stick to just a standard dog with a shirt, which about half the parents did as well," the mother wrote.
Credit: Reddit
The children were thrilled to be able to design what they assumed would be their own bears. After everything was paid for, however, things got a little, erm, harsh.
They left the store which is when the mother told the young attendees that they had to hand over the bear - that they had created with their own two hands - to the birthday girl.
"They all disappointingly handed over their animals, and friend wasn't even being nice about it either," the Redditor explained. "Another little boy didn't want to, and friend ripped it out of his hands. I probably should have said something, but I didn't. The other parents seemed pretty baffled too."
Credit: Reddit
And it gets even more awkward - there was still the second half of the party to attend at the stingy family's house.
"I left with my daughter pretty quickly, and once we got back into the car she just started bawling," the mother added. "I felt bad so we went to build a bear and got her a new one. I'm just wondering if this is totally normal and I should have expected this, or am I being an entitled parent?"
The majority of the Redditors commenting on her post agreed with the disappointed mother.
Credit: Reddit
Credit: Reddit
But the story doesn't end here. The Redditor decided to confront the birthday girl's mother, and made sure to tell everyone on the social news site about it after.
Whose side are you on?