Patricia Grisafi
If a wedding party requests that you leave your adorable little ones at home, please do it.
You have lots of time to set up care for them or decide that it’s not the right time to leave them with a babysitter.
But don’t, like this Redditor did, passively write on the RSVP that the baby is coming and then assume that everything is fine. Because likely, it’s not.
“AITA for bringing my baby to a child-free wedding?” writes u/babyweddingthrowaway
“My cousin lives a 6 hour drive from me and the rest of our family. A few months ago we all drove over there for his wedding. Due to limited space, no children were invited to the wedding except the bride’s young nieces and nephews,” the OP writes.
“My baby was 10 months old at the time and I wasn’t comfortable leaving him alone in an unfamiliar place with a stranger, which was a babysitter that my other cousins hired for their own kids. So I decided to bring him to the wedding. I wrote on the RSVP that I was bringing him but he would be sitting on my lap and I would bring my own food for him. My cousin didn’t say anything so I assumed that he was OK with it.”
“My baby cried at the ceremony but I quickly took him out of the room. At the reception I had him with me the whole time in a body carrier. He didn’t make much of a fuss and I thought everything was OK. After the wedding my aunt (groom’s mom) confronted me and told me that I was rude for bringing my baby without permission. I explained that I wrote on the RSVP what I was planning to do but my cousin didn’t object. She said that my cousin and his bride had a problem with it but the bride didn’t want to start any drama because she doesn’t know me well.”
“My other cousin’s baby was 7 months old at the time and my aunt said that he had no problem leaving his baby with the ‘certified’ babysitter and I should have done the same. And some of my cousins were upset because they thought that the groom gave me special treatment by letting me bring my baby and making them leave their kids with a babysitter. I didn’t mean to start any drama. AITA?”
Yes, it’s scary to leave your baby alone with a stranger, but perhaps other arrangements could have been made? What do Redditors think?
“YTA – your baby literally did the thing that the bride/groom wanted to avoid – disrupt the ceremony. You had plenty of time to find a babysitter or other family member to watch your kid while you went to the wedding but decided that you were just above the rules,” said
“Not to mention, OP didn’t even contact them directly to explain the situation … she just included it in the RSVP. She had to know this was going to be an issue, she just believed she could get away with it because the rules are apparently different for her,” noted
“People like you get on my nerves. Child free means child free. You do not get to change the rules of someone’s wedding because you didn’t want a babysitter. It’s very entitled. YTA,” said
“Couldn’t you just have not attended? Next time stay home and send a gift. YTA,”said
“YTA. You can’t just write in a plus one. Especially a child at a child free wedding. Your child was disruptive for the bit before you took them out, which is exactly what the couple didn’t want. You disrespected the bride and groom, violated their wishes, and disrupted the ceremony. This was extremely not okay of you. If you can’t find a suitable childcare arrangement, stay home,” explained
Featured Image: Pexels
