Husband prioritizes Super Bowl over wife’s 40th birthday, so she plans her dream trip with best friend instead: 'He [acted] like I was trying to rob him of some fundamental right'

Author image for Isabella Penn
Isabella Penn
Feb 10, 2025 8:00 PM EST

Some people take the Super Bowl way too seriously. It's not just a game; it's an event, a holiday, a sacred tradition complete with buffalo chicken dip and pigs in a blanket. There are the fans who throw elaborate parties just to sit around a family room TV, the casual viewers who are only there for the commercials (me), and then there's the one person in the group who only showed up for the food (also me). For some, the day is non-negotiable. Any plans that fall on Super Bowl Sunday are canceled. But what happens when the biggest game of the year just so happens to fall on your milestone birthday?

For this woman, she couldn't care less that her 40th birthday was on the day of the game. She had been looking forward to a romantic getaway with her husband, only to have him insist that they stay home and watch the Super Bowl instead. So, rather than sit through a game she doesn't care about, she decided to reclaim her birthday.

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  • "I wanted a small, intimate celebration with my husband, but he insisted on watching the game."
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  • "AITA for reclaiming my 40th birthday after my husband chose the Super Bowl over me?"

    My 40th birthday is this Sunday, Super Bowl Sunday. All I wanted was a quiet, romantic weekend with my husband (I'm an event planner so I like to plan things in advance). I told him weeks ago that I wanted us to go away. He initially seemed on board, but then the Super Bowl came up.
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  • He's a HUGE football fan. He watches every game, every year. For his birthday a couple of years ago, I even surprised him with tickets to the Super Bowl in Miami. So, when I mentioned my birthday plans, he immediately pivoted to, "We HAVE to watch the Super Bowl together!"
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  • I don't hate football, but I have absolutely no interest in it. It's just not my thing. He knows this. I envisioned a completely different kind of birthday celebration. But he was so insistent like I was trying to rob him of some fundamental right.
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  • Cheezburger Image 10465252352
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    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Honestly, it felt like he cared more about the Super Bowl than my 40th birthday. I told him fine, we could watch the stupid game together. But inside, I was absolutely crushed. I felt like my feelings, my desires, were completely disregarded.
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  • This weekend, I was talking to my best friend (who is gay) about how upset I still was. He totally got it. He reminded me that turning 40 is a big deal and that I deserved to celebrate it in a way that made me happy. He suggested a weekend ski trip - exactly the kind of thing I
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  • originally wanted to do with my husband. So I told my bestie today to book it, just me and him. We're going to hit the slopes, get massages, and just have a fantastic, drama-free time. I'll be back on Tuesday.
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  • I texted my husband about it and he completely lost it. He's saying I'm selfish, that I've ruined everything. He claims he had already made plans for us: dinner with friends on Saturday and brunch with my parents on Sunday. He's acting like I'm the villain here. News to me. I
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  • reminded him that I told him my weeks ago what I wanted for birthday, but he was so focused on the Super Bowl that he completely dismissed my feelings. I told him I wasn't going to spend my 40th birthday doing something he wanted, after he ignored what I wanted. I even
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  • texted my parents to let them know I was going away, and they were totally cool with it. They just said, "Have fun! We'll see you next week." Now, my husband is acting like I'm selfish But I feel like I was backed into a corner. I tried to
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  • communicate what I wanted, and I was ignored. So, AITA for taking matters into my own hands and celebrating my 40th birthday the way / want? Am I wrong for wanting to feel special and loved on my milestone birthday, even if it means missing a stupid football game?
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  • (My best friend lives in another state and has been travelling for work so He didn't know my Husband had planned anything. He says that ultimately, I should do what makes me happy).
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  • Yes, she should. It’s her birthday, why should she have to rely on others to make her happy? Most of us end up feeling a little down on our birthday anyway (something about the existential dread of aging), and that’s especially true when you’re stepping into a whole new decade. 

    But don’t worry, things take a turn for the best. Keep reading to find out how it all worked out in the end.

  • Update: My Husband did plan the brunch with my parents, made a reservation 2 weeks ago at my favourite fancy place. He wanted it to be a surprise. The dinner he planned was also supposed to be a surprise, at a friend's restaurant. We talked
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  • and his idea was to do all this and then stay home Sunday night, order in, veg out and watch the Super Bowl. But he didn't tell me any of this and I'm a planner so, if I don't know what's happening, I take the reins.
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  • He's an eagles fan for those asking. Update 2: Officially going skiing and the Husband is coming. He saw this post and we talked it out. We're going to watch the game from the bar at the resort. I
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  • get to spend my birthday carving clean lines on the fresh powder (I'm a huge skier) so it all worked out. Btw- celebrating my birthday on my actual birthday is a big deal to me and he apologized for the lack of effort (before you chastise me I got him Super Bowl - Tickets for his birthday in 2020 - so fair is fair)
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40s marriage birthday super bowl birthday party friends wife married life relationships surprise husband entitled football
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