Wedding Party

MOH/Sister Issues

I need some major advice. I am getting married in October, and right now I am finishing up my first year of law school, trying to plan the wedding, and trying to find a job, so things are a little crazy right now. I started planning my wedding around January and my sister nominated herself as my maid of honor and started taking on various duties - without me asking her to do so. She booked my florist, my reception hall, and the ceremony cite - she has been helpful, and I am grateful for the help, but she has planned the wedding that *she* wants, not necessarily the wedding that I want to have. She is quite a bit older than I am, and she says that if I have a wedding that is anything less than fully formal that it will be disgraceful and embarrassing to her (her words exactly). This is not what my fiance and I particularly want, but the last thing I want is for her to go around telling everyone how embarrasing I am and how awful my wedding is. The problem is that my wedding is becoming more of her second wedding than mine. I feel like she went behind my back to plan things for me that I never asked her to do, and now I am stuck in "her dream wedding".

I picked out a wedding gown that I absolutely love - it is plain, without a lot of embellishments, and with a short train. My sister has decided that she wants to look different from the other bridesmaids  - with a full train and embellished dress. She will also be 9 months pregnant at the wedding.

As the wedding gets closer, she keeps telling me how my ideas are awful - from the color (teal) to the invitations.

On top of this, I feel that she takes advantage of me and does not take the fact that I am a full time student seriously. She asks me to run her errands - go to the dry cleaners, buy her weekly groceries, pick the kids up from school, babysit them all day - and when I tell her that I am too busy because I am in class, she gets angry and tells me that she "will never help me with my wedding again" and that I "owe her" for all that she has done for my wedding (none of which I asked her to do). I help her when I can, but I am starting to get angry that she feels that she can hold her MOH duties over my head to get me to run her errands.

She is currently not speaking to me, as I had to tell her that I could not babysit one night before I had a test.  When I told her no, she called me all the names in the book, as well as insulted my fiance.

I don't really know what to do here. I have just picked out the bridesmaids dresses, and I know that I can't ask her to step down. What should I do? Should I be guilty for not helping her more, even though I am a full time student?

Re: MOH/Sister Issues

  • She's taking advantage of you. She bosses you around because you allow her to. Stop being a doormat and stand up for yourself.

    You're right, don't kick her out (because that will only cause more problems), but don't allow her to book anything for you anymore. Do it yourself, don't talk about the wedding with her, and only help her with things if YOU want her to.
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  • First year law is hell.  I can't believe that your sister doesn't understand that.  You're being a doormat.  Stop letting her walk all over you. 

    Don't talk about the wedding with her, don't let her book things, don't let her dictate how the wedding is going to be.  And don't let her guilt-trip you into being her personal errand girl.  If you have time to run her errands, you have time to plan the wedding.  And at least you can do that on your own schedule.
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  • skippylouwhoskippylouwho member
    1000 Comments
    edited April 2010
    Either this is a troll or you need to grow a spine. For someone who plans to be an attorney, if you don't have more control and more forecefulness about you, that would worry me.

     Refuse to run errands for her, tell her to stop planning your wedding, you start planning your wedding. If you don't have time to plan a large wedding, go to a justice of the peace. 
  • Don't give her the boot, but learn to say "no" and just keep on saying it. Tell her that you don't have time to babysit, and while you're willing to spend "aunt time" with her kids, you don't have time to play babysitter as well.  She needs to find a babysitter for her children.  Also tell her that you and your FI will be planning your own wedding.  If you don't like what she's booked, book something else.  If it's not her money, it's not her decision. 

    How is she getting a hold of the wedding budget money to put these deposits down?  If it's her money and not actually fromt he wedding fund, just rebook it and tell her thanks but no thanks.
  • Don't kick her out, but stop letting her take advantage of you. Yes, her behavior is not ok, but you're also partly to blame for letting this happen.

    Explain one last time how busy you are, and then tell her no when she asks for favors. If you don't like what she's booked, change it. You might not be able to change vendors, but meet with them to make sure everything they're doing is what you and your FI want. If your sister doesn't think it's fancy enough, that's her problem, and if she goes around badmouthing you/your wedding that'll make her look far worse than it could ever make you and your FI look. If you told her you would be picking BM dresses and haven't told her she can wear the one she wants, explain that you're looking for something in a different style. Honestly, you need to grow up a bit - if you're old enough to get married, you're old enough to tell someone you want to plan your own damn wedding.
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