A mother of the groom has been left in tears after being branded ‘cheap’ by the bride’s family, who insisted she had to pay for a lavish rehearsal dinner – despite explaining she couldn’t afford it.
The details of the family feud were exposed by the groom’s brother on the Reddit thread titled Wedding Shaming.
He explained that the bride’s “wealthy” family had insisted on a rehearsal dinner for 150 guests at a cost of $37,000, with the entire fee to be paid by the groom’s family.
But relations spiraled out of control when the parents of the husband-to-be explained that they could not afford to cover such a large amount.
A mother of the groom has been left in tears after being branded ‘cheap’ by the bride’s family, who insisted she pay for a lavish rehearsal dinner
In the post, shared earlier this week, the groom’s brother began, “My family is in the middle of this right now, and I just have to rage!” Please tell me I’m not crazy if I think this is out of line.
“My brother is getting married this fall to a woman who comes from a VERY wealthy southern family (our family is middle class). The bride recently selected their wedding venue, a large resort. It looks beautiful and we are very happy with it.’
But he said things started to take a turn for the worse after the location was chosen.
‘My mother (the MOG) gets a call from the mother of the bride. The MOB then tells my mother that SHE has already selected the venue for the rehearsal dinner at the resort – they want about 150 guests, and the resort caterer will contact my mother shortly with the pricing information.
‘My mother is a bit overwhelmed by the MOB’s pushiness, but agrees to wait for information from the caterer before making a decision about the rehearsal dinner.
“Well, the information is coming in, and the cheapest possible catering option for the rehearsal dinner is $165 per person! Not even including the rental price, or the service costs of 24 percent plus 9 percent tax. In total, the rehearsal dinner would cost my parents almost $37,000 to organize.”
Elaborating on his family’s financial situation, the groom’s brother candidly said, “My family doesn’t have that kind of money.”
‘My mother immediately called the MOB back and said that unfortunately they cannot afford such a rehearsal dinner. She apologized profusely and asked if they could organize something cheaper at a nearby restaurant instead.
He explained that the bride’s “wealthy” family had insisted on a rehearsal dinner for 150 guests at a cost of $37,000 – with the entire fee to be paid by the groom’s family (stock image)
‘The MOB immediately gets angry and says that is not possible because all the wedding guests will already be staying at the resort hotel and they cannot drive to a restaurant outside the hotel because they will be drinking.
‘Unfortunately, at that moment my mother realized that she had to tell the MOB that our family would not actually be staying at the resort hotel either. We would love that, but a double room at the resort for that weekend starts at $550 per night, which is way too expensive for us.
‘This even further infuriated the MOB, who went on to say that my parents were ‘cheap’ and, and I quote, ‘The room only cost $550 a night! That’s not even that much!’
‘The MOB followed this up by saying that her daughter wanted everyone to stay at the resort and have the rehearsal dinner there, and that she would be very disappointed to hear this news.’
The doting son said his mother was ‘crying and overwhelmed’ after becoming ‘worried she might be wrong’.
But the whole story didn’t end there.
Later that evening, the groom’s father received a call from the bride’s father.
“He told my father he was calling to ‘clear up any confusion’ about their wives’ conversation earlier, and to reiterate why it was so important that my parents host the rehearsal dinner at the venue.
“He talked to my dad for a long time, and they finally compromised on a much smaller (45 people) rehearsal dinner at the resort.
“My father told the FOB that this was still a lot of money for them, so unfortunately they would be staying at an Airbnb half a mile away from the resort instead of the resort hotel to save money. He promised that our family would still make it to all the wedding festivities.
‘The FOB replied, “Well, I guess this is the cheap option” and they hung up. The bride has had no contact with my parents at all since then.’
The groom’s brother concluded, “I really hope this drama settles down before the actual event.”
The post was quickly flooded with comments, with most rushing to defend the groom’s family
The post was quickly flooded with comments, with most rushing to defend the groom’s family.
One person wrote: ‘There’s never anything wrong with the answer: ‘That’s not in my budget.’
‘There’s no shame in doing something else with your money. The groom has to pay or stop this.”
A second person commented: ‘That’s just rude. In situations like this, where there is a big income gap, if they expect this level, the wealthier family will take care of it.”
Another added: ‘If this is the in-laws’ expectations then they should pay for it. Their rudeness and their openly demonstrated lack of education and manners made me reassess everything.”
Someone else noted, “If the bride’s parents decide where the event (rehearsal dinner) will be held and create the guest list for the event, then they are officially the host and get to pay for it.”
But on the other hand, there were some readers who thought the fault lay with the bride and groom
But on the other hand, there were some readers who thought the fault lay with the bride and groom.
One person wrote: ‘This is insane. Your parents should not be made to feel this way, nor should they be forced to spend money on this. Your brother and his fiancée have to solve this themselves. Talk to your brother!’
Someone else commented: ‘I hope their daughter hears about this and takes action. This is not a healthy way to start a family. Resentment will last for YEARS.
‘Maybe you can share this message with the bride and groom, so they know what’s going on. At least give them the chance to intervene.’
Another said: ‘I sincerely hope the bride is shocked by her parents’ rude behaviour. What bullies. They can’t be very decent people.’
“Why are the parents making all these decisions instead of the couple actually getting married?” one more person added.
One person joked: “Almost $50,000 so people can practice walking, and eating is actually kind of funny.”
