Have you ever been given money as a gift or help and then be told they want a receipt? Ok this may not sound too bad but it can be.

My dad is retired and have lots of money. He worked hard for his money and deserves the easy retirement he has. However to him, money is EVERYTHING.

My husband and I have made some bad mistakes in our past and are trying to recitify them. My dad ended up butting in to this when my grandmother died in 2005 and my inheritance he wanted me to use to pay down the new car we had bought. I wanted to use it on debt instead because I knew that was better. This is where all the problems started.

Now you might ask why I didn't take the money and just use it on the debt but tell him it was the car. The reason, he wanted to see a receipt that showed I had used it on the car. So this whole thing of us in debt started a debate and lectures and fights, etc.

I got the money and used it on what I could. My dad has given me money in 2006 as well, and wanted to pay it himself or see a receipt. The last time my husband refused to show him the current balance. It was ok for him to see that we'd paid on the account but my husband stated none of my father's business how much was left on the card. I have to agree and so do many people I know. They say that a gift is nice and if someone wants to see a receipt that their money went where it was, fine. But seeing the statement is none of that gift person's business.

My father gets upset and we are not on speaking terms right now.

Christmas Eve our washer and dryer died. Both are at least 10-15 years old and aquired as used. We've had them 5 years so we got our time out of them. We didn't know what we were going to do. Christmas Day we go to my in-laws for Christmas, as well as to use their machine. They gave us money to buy a new set. And the comment made? "We won't ask for a receipt". Because they know we are trying to get out of debt, don't have the money to buy a new or even used set, and they understand how hard it can be.

They also can't understand how my father can be the way he is about money with his child.

It really makes me wonder myself how someone can be that childish as an adult about mistakes being made and trying to recifiy them.