Reddit Stories - Sibling PROHIBITED me from ATTENDING her wedding without children prior to my BIRTHDAY,

Episode Date: November 22, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #weddingdrama #familyissues #childfree #siblingconflict #birthdaydramaSummary: AITA for not attending my sister's child-free wedding before my birthday? She prohibited me from bringing my children. I chose not to go, causing tension in the family.Tags: redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, weddingdrama, familyissues, childfree, siblingconflict, birthdaydrama, familydynamics, relationships, personalboundaries, eventetiquette, familyevents, siblingrivalry, familydrama, weddingetiquette, childfreewedding, familyconflictBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. Sibling prohibited me from attending her wedding without children prior to my birthday, but when I held a child-free wedding, she insisted that I permit her offspring. Subsequently, my relative informed me that she intended to, to announce her pregnancy at my wedding to steal the spotlight. Hello, I, 26, am going to get married in a year. I sent out the Save the Dates last week and since then I have been getting a lot of backlash from my sister and my parents.

I will get to the main problem but before that, I really need to tell you guys about what happened in the past. My sister Kayla, 31, and I have somewhat of a problematic relationship now. She can be extremely entitled and mean which has been a problem I am dealing with even now. So, I always wanted to be close to my sister but she never appreciated those feelings. She mostly treated me like an unwanted pest and tried to stay away from me. I was young and stupid and thought that I could make my sister love me. She was like my idol and I wanted to have a good relationship with her.

Growing up, my sister always did things to draw attention to herself. She was like that and I accepted her just as she was. I may have been a little deluded to think that we could have a close relationship. I think I finally woke up when she told me that I wasn't invited to her wedding. Kayla told me that her wedding was going to be child-free so I wasn't allowed to go there. Here's the thing, though. Her wedding was just a week away from my 18th birthday. I cried and begged my sister to make an exception because it was ridiculous she was tagging me as a child. Her venue wasn't child-free or anything like that. She wasn't even going to serve alcohol.

She had no solid reason to exclude me. I guess she really didn't want me at the wedding. Anyway, I couldn't change her mind and she excluded me despite my begging her not to. My parents had refused to intervene. From that day, I started to distance myself from my sister. Kayla either didn't notice or didn't care. I am leaning towards the latter. I have a very weird relationship with her and don't even know her husband that well. We only meet at family gatherings and don't have one-on-one communication of any kind.

She has two kids who I love, but frankly, I am not close to them either. Kayla never makes an effort to hang out with me alone or invite me to her house. I tried when her kids were born but she ignored or dismissed my attempts to get closer. Eventually, I gave up and concentrated on family members who actually wanted me in their lives. All this background will help you understand my situation better. So, I got engaged and decided on a date with my fiancé. We decided early on that we wanted a child-free wedding. We made the save the dates and sent them to family and friends so that they would be prepared.

We also included the fact that the wedding was supposed to be completely child-free. Kayla received an invite too. I was happily moving on to concentrate on making arrangements, but something happened that made me right this post. Well, my sister called me a few days ago and went off on me about how I have to be kidding her. Initially, I didn't understand what the fuss was about so I clearly asked her to tell me what was wrong. Then, somehow through her rants, I understood that she was mad at the fact that I was having a child-free wedding. Can you imagine that, guys?

The woman who had a child-free wedding was mad that I was having one. I just couldn't believe my ears when she said that. I kept asking her if she was serious or if I had maybe gotten it all wrong in my head. But, my sister angrily confirmed that I was right in my assumption. She hated that I was excluding kids from the wedding. I told her that it was my wedding, so I got to decide how to go about it. And, I clearly told her that I didn't want kids at the wedding. My sister absolutely raged at me and called me an immature and entitled bridezilla

because I was going to exclude my innocent nieces and nephews from the wedding. I calmly told her that most of the kids are under five, so they will hardly miss the wedding anyway. Plus, I didn't want kids running around and getting into things accidentally. Not to mention that there will be an open bar with lots of drinking. Everyone in the family who is kids actually has infants and toddlers and we all know that small children cannot be controlled or scolded into behaving. Kids will act like kids and instead of dealing with any possible mess, I was just nipping

the problem in the bud. Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say because then my sister went off on me about how I called her child difficult and unmanageable. I told them that I never said anything like that. Kayla's reaction to that was to say that then they should be invited to the wedding since they won't cause any problems like the rest of the kids. I told her that I won't be making an exception like that because then everyone would want to bring their children

and call me unfair for playing favorites. I must admit that I have some very close cousins and friends who would be offended and sad if I allowed stupid Kayla to bring her kids while they couldn't. I explained it all to my sister, but she wasn't having it. The woman screamed and yelled at me to no end. After a point, I got extremely frustrated with her and told her that she had no right to raise.

at me when she herself had a child-free wedding. I reminded her how she hadn't even allowed me, her own sister, at her wedding. I was excluding literally children while she had excluded her own sister who was just a week away from turning 18. My sister did not like that. She started yelling at me again and told me that I was being petty, vindictive, and immature and holding on to silly grudges. She called me a crazy woman and told me that I was intentionally doing this despite her for what she did years ago. I was just about to tell her that this wasn't even about her when she hung up on me. I didn't bother reaching out again, so there has been dead silence on my end.

My sister, however, is blowing up my phone and calling me names. She has also recruited my parents and has gotten them to blow up my phone too. My parents are telling me that this child-free wedding is probably not a good idea and I shouldn't be heartless to exclude my own nephews from the wedding. They also keep saying that I shouldn't ruin my relationship with my sister thing and that it's a small request on her part. I don't see how this is a request or even a small one at that. I am really getting mad at my parents now as well. I talked to my fiancé and he told me that he doesn't want to make exceptions either. If anything, he is extremely annoyed with my sister and parents for trying to change my

mind. They know what my sister did at her wedding so he is mad that they are shaming me for the same thing. He doesn't want kids at the wedding top and his of the family is completely fine with it. So, yes, my fiancé is completely on board and doesn't even want my nasty sister at the wedding now. But, my parents and sister are saying the opposite. They are trying to blackmail me as well, which isn't even funny. I love my nephews even if we are not close and it's kind of making me feel a bit guilty. With the wedding preparations and my stressful job, I feel like I will go crazy. Can you please tell me what I should do now?

I literally can't deal with their crap anymore. I am already contemplating eloping and actually would have if not for my fiancé's family. They didn't do anything wrong so I don't want them to miss out on their son's big day. But, this nonsense from my family is making me question every decision I made in life. Edit, I am getting too many comments so it's impossible for me to reply to everyone here. So, I'm going to address a few things in this edit. I will include more information on a longer update and this one is just for the questions that keep cropping up.

I knew that I would be judged by some people for having a child-free wedding. I really don't see anything wrong with my request. If I had teenage cousins or something like that, would have included them. But every underage person in the family is under six or seven at most. Also, please don't pretend that children can ruin things. There is also the fact that weddings are long and boring for kids. None of them would enjoy that. Sending them home after the ceremony would be rude and make them feel worse.

That's why I don't want to include them in any part of the wedding. You guys also wanted to know what my sister said after I confronted her on her hypocrisy. Well, she had some messed up logic to support her stance. She said that no one really had kids during that time so it made sense for her to have a child-free wedding. But, now that most of my cousins have kids, I should be including them at the party. Now I realize that I would have been literally the only underage guest at Kayla's wedding. None of her friends had married that early and none of our cousins had kids back then. I was the youngest member of the family but still, she didn't make an exception for me.

I am starting to question why my parents allowed her to do what she wanted and now have a problem with my decision. I had actually begged them to convince Kayla to invite me but my parents just told me that it was her big day so they had no say in this. Also, there have been questions about what my other cousins and friends have to say about my child-free wedding. Well, they said literally nothing. All of them are SVP ed yes already. Everyone lives nearby and would either get their families or babysitters to take care of their kids. I mean, I am giving them literally a year's notice so they have plenty of time to make arrangements. I think some of them are secretly happy to have some time away from the kids

without feeling guilty about it. I am giving them a chance to unwind and have a little fun instead of being a parent for a full day. Update 1, wow, it feels weird to see so many comments on my post. Although I received a lot of mixed comments, most of the bad comments were from people who hate child-free weddings. I don't understand why some of you think that your child belongs everywhere. Do you go to adult-only places and demand to take your kids too? I just don't understand this logic. Entitled people like you guys are what made couples opt for child-free weddings in the first place. Children mess up. Period. Getting mad at them would be wrong because they are children so the easy solution is just not letting them come. Also, listen, that kid will barely remember

the wedding and probably will go bored out of their mind during the ceremony. Do you know what bored kids do at wedding ceremonies? Stop acting like children deserve to be everywhere. You guys are no better than my sister. Oh, and some of you really tried reverse psychology or some crap and told me that I shouldn't be complaining about my sister not inviting me to her wedding with the same logic. Well, I was close to 18 and knew wedding etiquette really well. I have been going to wedding since I was 14.

I never once acted up or caused problems because I was old enough to have full control of myself. If there were any teenagers in the family, I would have allowed them to come. Again, the kids I excluded are all under six or seven. Just wanted to give my perspective because I am not going to discuss these mean comments again. Everyone else who reached out with good advice has been really helpful. You guys raised some good questions about my sister making drama to be the center of attention. You may not be that far off the mark. My sister hates being a sister. She never wanted a sibling and doesn't like sharing attention at all. I think my parents kind of felt bad for having another kid when she wasn't on board with it. That's why they tried to take her side

and tell me to compromise. At least that's what I think. My sister has thrown some major tantrums in the past on my big days and I think she intentionally set a date close to my 18th birthday because she wanted everyone to talk about her and not me. The 18th birthday is a big thing in my family and people go all out on that day. I didn't get to have one because everyone was tired after the wedding and my parents were short on cash. I was a little angry and disappointed at that time, so I didn't really care. My sister got full attention on and up to her wedding. She declared her first pregnancy on my 20th birthday and her second one shortly after I got my first proper job.

So, yeah, there is clearly a pattern in that. It actually didn't occur to me, but some of your comments really made me think. Maybe my sister is trying to stir up trouble so that at least some of my attention would be on her. I am kind of weary of her right now, but I don't know what to do. Some of you said that I should consider uninviting her. Well, that's unfortunately not an option. My parents are big on the concept of family so they won't take this well. It's funny that even my fiancée Nate, 27M, has been talking about how my sister shouldn't come if she has such a big problem with our wedding. But, I know that cannot happen.

Right now, my parents are pushing to have a family meeting to solve this issue so that we can just get on with our lives. I don't know if it will solve anything but maybe I will attend anyway. They want me and my sister to be there with them so that we can discuss everything with family and under one roof. They are pretty confident that we will come to a good compromise if we do this. I highly doubt that and I don't know what kind of compromise they want on my side. I will know when I will know, I guess. I am preparing to be firm in my stance and not bend under pressure. I am not a doormat so I am not too concerned.

I will make an update to inform you guys how that talk went. Update 2, just got back from the family meeting and I still don't know what to do. My parents had been confident that we would reach a compromise but none of that happened. As I had expected, my sister wasn't going to compromise at all and neither was I. She just kept berating me and yelling at me because I had dared to exclude her precious kids from the wedding. I tried to explain my stance to her again, but she just wasn't having it. My parents felt a little bad for me because I was acting like a civil human being

while my sister was screaming like a banshee. But, it's not like my sister listens to them anyway. I firmly told Kayla that no amount of screaming or guilt-tripping would sway me. Then, she said that I should find and pay for babysitters since I was hell-bent on being a spoil sport. I vehemently denied that because I don't think that's my responsibility. Again, no one was asking for compensation or help other than Kayla. My sister can afford child care just fine. I know she hired them from time to time for her date nights. But, she wasn't willing to pay for one because not having her kids at my wedding wasn't her decision. I told her

that I am not paying for her babysitters just because she wanted me to. Our budgets were tight anyway and there was no way Nate would approve this either. Kayla then started screaming about how she would have to scramble to find a babysitter on such short notice so the least I can do is pay for it. I laughed and reminded her that she has an entire year to make arrangements. My parents then offered to pay for her babysitters but Kayla didn't want their money. Yeah, she was being petty. she wanted me to pay for not taking her feelings into consideration about my wedding.

My parents also tried suggesting that Kayla's husband stay at home with the kids while she attends the wedding. My sister didn't like that suggestion one bit. After what felt like forever, I was absolutely done with the conversation. I was already mentally drained and my sister's tantrums had exhausted me. I told her that I am not changing my wedding for her and if she is so much problem with it, She doesn't have to attend. My sister then screamed at me and my parents supported her. They told me that I shouldn't say those things and I should want my sister at the wedding. I left a little after because again the conversation wasn't going anywhere.

I knew that the meeting was useless and didn't do me any good. I am back home now and just told Nate what happened. He had gotten more furious than before. My parents and sister are still blowing up my phone with nonsense but I haven't checked it yet. Now I am really considering eloping and not inviting my side of the family at all. If the extended family asks me why no one was invited, I will tell them to ask my parents. I am literally at my wits end and eloping is probably the best option right now. Update 3, before I make this update, let me tell you that you have no idea how much

your lovely comments have helped me. I was just sick of everything and felt like my wedding was already ruined. I haven't even properly planned the wedding, but problems have started to pour in. I felt extremely unmotivated and couldn't even feel the excitement anymore. All these wedding processes were being overshadowed by my sister's nonsense. I was really close to just eloping with Nate and was about to tell him to warn his family. But, your comments have really opened my eyes. You are right in telling me that I shouldn't punish my friends and the extended family because they haven't done anything.

Also, you pointed out that my sister was already making this whole thing about herself and probably succeeded in getting the main attention on her. It was like a light bulb went off in my head. My sister was actually already ruining my wedding and I was letting it happen. I should have shut down this nonsense way sooner. I don't even know why I was so insistent on having her presence when we didn't even have a good relationship anymore. Kayla has already proved that she won't change. I am just wasting my breath and giving her unnecessary importance. I thought about all these things. Then, I decided to have a little sit down with my parents.

I also brought Nate along for support. We had the meeting without my sister because I wanted to talk to my parents privately. You guys have really bashed my parents for their role in this mess. I am mad at them but at the end of the day they are still my parents. And, they are a lot better than my horrible sister. So, I wanted to have a little talk with them to try and make them understand my side. We talked for a long time and I absolutely unloaded my feelings on them. It wasn't a calm and collected discussion at all.

I was crying, my parents were crying. It was really emotional. This time I didn't hold back. I reminded my parents of all the times Kayla ruined my special days and did something to take the attention away from me. I reminded them how they had refused to convince Kayla to include me in the wedding so she had no right to tell me to include her kids. I absolutely unloaded on them and even told them that they were all making me want to cancel everything and just elope. I think my parents were seriously affected by the fact that I wanted to elope just because I was too weary of planning my own wedding.

Nate also piped up and said that he supported eloping since all this drama is already making me not want a big wedding. My mom cried and my father started to desperately tell me that I shouldn't do this. They were very apologetic and sort of accepted her own role and how my sister kept intentionally targeting me over the years. I was right in assuming that they tended to take Kayla's side because she has often criticized them for giving her a sibling and making her share everything with me. The level of jealousy and greed my sister has is just insane. I am just so done with her now. I had a long talk with my parents and Nate gave his thoughts too which was actually really helpful. He provided

provided an outside perspective that made my parents realize that they were being extremely unfair with me. They begged us not to elope because they didn't want to miss my wedding. Interestingly, they also said that they wanted to really enjoy my wedding since they had spent most of my other milestones calming Kayla down or celebrating her achievements instead. I already told you that Kayla always found a way to ruin my special days. My parents also seemed to be done with that behavior of hers. Thank God they finally understood me and have primed.

promise to be better. As for my sister, I don't care anymore. I will draft a no-contact letter soon and also un-invite her for my wedding. Nate and I have already made our decision and my parents are now on board with it. Kayla may be my sister but I will not be a complete doormat for her sake. I am serious when I say that I am done. Update four, hi, guys, so, I just had to pop back in to make a last update. A lot of you have been Demang me wanting to know what happened because you guys expected some drama. Yes, there had been some drama for my sister after I communicated my decisions with her but things are pretty calm for me now. I mean, I kind of expected her to create drama but this time she suffered more than I did. You may want to

know how my sister ended up suffering which is why I came back to make an update. Spoiler alert, my sister is now having marriage troubles. So, as promised, I drafted and sent my sister a text and an email telling her that she has been officially uninvited and I am going no contact with her indefinitely. I had mentioned everything she had done to me and reminded her of how nasty she has been. I told her that I didn't want her drama anymore and that I was done being a complete dormant. I sent my sister the email and well she blew up again. I was actually pretty surprised that she felt offended when I uninvited her and went into contact with her. I thought she would have been happy since she never wanted me in her life in the first place.

But, she was offended and she went to my parents to complain because I wasn't replying to her texts. She was in for a rude surprise because my parents supported me instead of hers. So, she went and told the rest of the family that I was excluding her because of nothing and that I was a jealous and mean bright assila. At first, people were texting me to solve things and go easy on her. But then, one of my cousins, Giselle, 34, dropped a bombshell in the group chat. According to Giselle, my sister was mad at me for uninviting her from my wedding because

she had planned something to steal the attention away from me. Giselle told us that Kayla was actively trying to convince her husband for a third child and had planned to either show up pregnant or announce her pregnancy at the wedding. So, it looks like my sister is even more messed up than I thought. She had stupidly shared her plans with Giselle after I got engaged. Kayla had even proudly declared to her that she would humble me at my own wedding and take take over the limelight like always. I won't go into the details of what else she said, but it just proves that Kayla is somewhat obsessed with the competition between us.

There is no competition on my end, but she has sort of always seen me as a rival. She had been pissed when she learned that she may never get a chance to upstage me again because I was going no contact with her. You can only imagine how badly things blew up for her after Giselle spilled the beans. Long story short, everyone thinks she is crazy and my own parents have been extremely mad at her. Quite surprisingly, Kayla didn't deny anything and instead tried to justify her actions. I think it ended up making things worse because her husband didn't like the way Kayla was acting. From what my parents tell me, he was not amused by the fact that Kayla was pushing for a third child just to overshadow my wedding. Apparently, she has also

displayed some competitive behavior with his sister and cousin so his family has been upset with her already. This thing was just the last straw for him and he told her that she either got help or they divorced. Kayla went crying to our parents and blamed me for ruining her marriage out of jealousy. Yeah, apparently this is also my fault. Oh, she had tried to call me and yell at me from a different number, but I hung up as soon as I recognized her voice. Thankfully, she stopped her antics in a few days because her husband started to really get mad. As of now, they are attending couples counseling while her husband is sleeping in another room. Pretty sure that the guy is staying because of the kids. He has been upset for a while because Kayla's antics had ruined his relationship

with his family members too. I am hoping that this time Kayla will take things seriously and finally work on herself. As for me, it looks like I will be getting a peaceful and drama-free wedding after all. Thank you so much for all your input because it did help me set some strong boundaries. But this will be the last update since its unlikely things will get bad again. If they do, you know that I will come back with a fresh post.