DEAR ABBY: My 30-year-old daughter has extremely high expectations for her birthday. No one in the family has ever given her a gift that she liked, so now we actually have to get the gift approved by her husband first!
She doesn't like gift cards, and our budget is small. Although she barely acknowledges anyone else's birthday, she still expects the "perfect" present for her own. We love her and want to celebrate with her, but the expectations and confrontations make her birthdays miserable for everyone -- including her. How do we stop this? -- BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
DEAR BIRTHDAY: Who created this self-entitled monster? Remind your daughter and her husband that you are all adults now, and because of that, "the family" has decided from now on to mark milestones with greeting cards instead of gifts. Period. If you want to celebrate with her in addition, fine, but her behavior "takes the cake."