When it comes to planning a wedding, you may opt to ban children from attending the ceremony, and while people may not always agree with your decision, they should respect it enough to not blatantly ignore your request.
But one mum has admitted she did exactly that at her sister's wedding, as she decided to bring her 15-year-old daughter along despite being told "no children would be allowed".
The bride had told her sister that she didn't want kids at the wedding because she didn't want them to "misbehave", and rather than respect her rules, her sister decided to bring her teenage daughter along anyway, as she argued it wasn't breaking the rules because she was being "respectful".
Despite her intentions, the mum left her sibling "furious" when she showed up at the wedding with her daughter, and was told she had "completely disregarded" her wishes.
In a post on Reddit, she said: "I have a 15-year-old daughter. My sister got married last week. I was her maid of honour. My sister said that no children would be allowed at her wedding as they are loud and noisy. I brought my daughter because her aunt was getting married and she wanted to wish her well!
"At the wedding, my parents were shooting me daggers, and my sister came over furious. She asked, 'Who was I to completely disregard her rules?'. I was confused until she pointed out that my daughter should not be there. I argued, saying that the reason she didn't want children there was because they would misbehave. My daughter was silent, never on her phone, and was extremely respectful.
"I left the wedding early and my parents are blowing up my phone with angry texts. My husband agrees with me but says I could have handled the situation better. My sister is refusing to speak with me until I apologise, but I don't think I did anything wrong."
In later edits to her original post, the mum explained that she had RSVP'd two people when she responded to her invite but hadn't specified who would be attending, so admitted it was possible her sister assumed it would be her and her husband.
She added: "The invite was a pretty generic card that said 'We hope to see you at our wedding!', with the RSVP info, dress code, etc. I RSVP'd two people, my daughter and me. I believe my sister thought the two RSVPs were my husband and me.
"My husband did not attend as he was suddenly called out of town for a work conference. There was a place setting, chair, etc, for my daughter because I RSVP'd two people. I assumed my daughter would be allowed because my sister stated that she didn't want children at the wedding due to noise, tantrums, misbehaviour, etc."
Commenters were split on the issue, as while many sided with the bride, there were some that said they wouldn't class a 15-year-old as a child - especially not on the basis of tantrums and misbehaving.
One person wrote: "You didn't ask for clarification before bringing her and got defensive with the bride. Just apologise and say you should have asked and move on. This isn't worth causing further family drama."
While another added: "You don't bring anyone who is not invited, to a wedding. If you wanted your daughter to attend, you should have asked and discussed it beforehand. This is your sister after all, right?"
But a third disagreed, posting: "Is a 15 yr old considered a child though? I might make the same mistake unless it specifically said 18+ or similar. I don't consider teens to be children, especially teens that don't act like children."
The mum also later said she respects the criticism she received, and said she now knows she should have at least double-checked with her sister first.
She said: "Based on the responses, I understand that I was rude for not at least checking in first. I should have verified whether or not my daughter could come. There was no malintent, but all the same, I will apologise to my sister and daughter. My sister and daughter are very close, another reason why I thought she would have been invited."
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