Mum left 'humiliated' at 'milestone' birthday party after only three people came

While birthdays are supposed to be joyous occasions that you spend with your nearest and dearest, more often than not, you just end up splashing your hard earned cash on yet another disappointing day - much in the vein of Christmas, New Year's Eve... you name it.

Case in point: one mother was allegedly left "humiliated" after organising a big birthday celebration that only three people turned up to.

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Taking to Mumsnet, the women who has chosen to remain unidentified, asked if she was being unreasonable.

"It's my birthday today, a big one," she wrote. "I don't live in the UK anymore but decided to throw a party back home to celebrate this milestone, with drinks, food and entertainment laid on."

She specified that she has organised the event months in advance, and consciously chose a date that wasn't New Year's Eve - as previous birthdays held on this day had been poorly attended in the past.

In any case, she hoped things would be different this time as it was a "milestone birthday".

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Unfortunately, things did not go to plan;

"So we travel 500km, kids in tow, the evening comes and... 3 people turn up. 3. A few people did message that they/their kids were ill, but plenty of others simply didn't show. It was, quite frankly, humiliating." 

As could be expected, she received an influx of messages of support from other parents.

Several wished her happy birthday, with one writing "I'm sorry. Happy birthday for today."

"How horrible and disappointing. You are amazing and generous throwing a big bash and putting in all effort, and they really don't deserve you as a friend," another Mumsnet user added. "I wonder if there's a bit of envy there that you have forged a new life in another country. People can be very resentful of success."

Some suggested that it might have something to do with the fact that people don't want to do much between Christmas and the New Year, while others mused that the lack of attendees was probably because she had moved away. Everyone, however, agreed that these were poor excuses.

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"That is horrid and you are not being unreasonable to be upset. People absolutely should have told you beforehand whether they were coming or not," a third corroborated.

"I did find, however, when I lived abroad, that relationships with people back home changed. Not maliciously, but your lives move on separately. For a few people, you can pick up exactly where you left every time you see each other again, but for most, the distance does change things."

Well, whatever the reasoning, I think we can all agree that the woman in question here needs to invest in some new friends, stat.