Ang Bao as a single parent

Question

I’m a single mom (not working) and i was told by my friends i don’t have to give ang bao because i’m not working and because i am single. They understand that i have to save money for my kid and to purchase a house because of the cost of livingHowever, my mom says i should give ang bao since my child will be receiving ang bao even though she knows i’m not working, otherwise it will be rude and greedy. She say she doesn’t allow me to see her side of her family unless i am going to give ang bao. What is the take on this?I get where my friend is coming from because even if i do get a job, i am raising a kid on 1 person’s income and starting pay is not very high. I also get where my mom is coming from but i feel it isn’t so bad. The ang bao her family gives me won’t be going to me but to my child (i won’t be taking the ang bao money back because it is his blessing money so it will go into his bank) . But because of this… i may not get to see her side for a few years because even if i do have a job, it will take awhile for me to be stable enough to have savings to give ang bao (she has a big family). What is the proper etiquette of this?#advicepls #advice #cny

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

My POV on angbaos and CNY, if I’m not doing too well and cannot afford to fork out that sum of money, I won’t attend. Eg we are solely depending on my husband’s pay and his side of relatives have ALOT of kids while I only have 1. I know it’s not supposed to be about money but I won’t put myself in a situation where I have to stress about money because of an event. So now we don’t appear during CNY (relatives), only visiting to families from both side. If they understand they understand, if they want to bad mouth, go ahead. I only see them like once a year (if I do appear)? Else I will probably see them like 10 years later hahaha. Again, this is solely my POV 😃.