“Am I The Jerk For Bringing My Baby To A Child-Free Wedding?”

Whether or not to bring kids—and especially babies—to weddings can be a very sensitive issue. Strong arguments could be made for either case. However, when the happy couple explicitly ask their guests not to bring their kids, it’s usually best to honor their wishes. It is their wedding day after all. And they’re giving everyone plenty of notice to find a babysitter. Heck, some of the other guests might have hired certified professionals for their own kids!

Redditor u/babyweddingthrowaway shared what happens when guests don’t think that the rules apply to them. She turned to the AITA community for their opinion on whether or not she was a jerk for bringing her 10-month-old baby to her cousin’s wedding, despite everyone having been asked not to do this.

Scroll down for the full story in the new mom’s own words and to read how other internet users reacted to the entire drama. Oh, and when you’re done, we’d like to hear from you, Pandas. Who did you think was in the wrong? How would you have handled the situation? Do you have any weddings coming up soon? Tell us all about it in the comments.

It’s pretty darn unusual for the AITA community to be so united in their YTA verdicts. In this particular case, a huge number of redditors thought that the mom was clearly in the wrong because she did the one thing parents were asked not to do. She brought her kid. The baby disrupted the ceremony. And the thing that the couple dreaded would happen actually happened.

The redditor’s defense was that she’d RSVP’d and told her cousin that she’d be bringing her baby anyway. The groom and his bride didn’t tell her ‘no’ again because they didn’t want to start any drama. Meanwhile, some of the other guests were upset because they thought the redditor was given “special treatment.”

In short, this entire situation shows what happens when even a single person thinks they’re above the general guidelines. We absolutely adore kids at weddings and we totally get parents wanting to love and protect their munchkins, but at the end of the day, if it’s a childfree wedding, it’s a childfree wedding. And demanding exemptions when others are in the exact same boat as you sounds a bit selfish.

Previously, Anna and Sarah, team leaders at The Wedding Society, stressed to Bored Panda that it is vital to respect the wishes of the marrying couple.

“Whether it be that kids of a certain age are welcome, only specific children of a few family and friends, or no kids at all,” guests should honor the couple’s wishes regarding kids at the ceremony.

“Please don’t take the inclusion or exclusion of your little ones personally (especially if the couple don’t have kids of their own to fully understand your situation) and remember—as nice as it is to bring your babes along to the celebration, it’s also an awesome opportunity for a fun night off if you’re asked to leave them with a sitter!” Anna and Sarah said that parents should strive to look at some of the positive aspects of going to a childfree wedding. It’s an opportunity to spend time with your partner, friends, and family. It’s a date night in disguise.

“For marrying couples, the etiquette can be trickier. Newborns really need to be with their parents so please don’t ask for any babies under a few months to be left at home. It’s perfectly reasonable to ask for parents of older children to take the night off and leave them with a sitter, but the fairest way to do this is to make a blanket rule for everyone rather than picking and choosing which kids can come and who can’t.”