Long-time lurker, first-time poster and yes, I am absolutely outing myself (I’m also on my phone so forgive me for formatting issues). Just as the title says, my mom made me commit the ultimate wedding sin.
This happened when I was around 7 or 8 years old. I was a CCD kid, like all the kids at my church, because we went to a Byzantine Catholic Church and there were no Byzantine Catholic schools anywhere near us (or possibly anywhere in the US, honestly).
I hated CCD. It was the worst 2 hours of my tiny existence. The teacher disliked me because I asked too many questions about the Bible, and I was also bullied. I was the only kid who went to public school and, scandal of scandals, my parents were divorced.
That May, I had my First Holy Communion. Whether it was because I was the last kid in my family to go through this “honor” or because my mother felt some fleeting pity for me, my Communion dress was a full-length, white, princess ballgown. And I loved it.
I was out there stunting on every other girl in her basic knee-length dress, fully believing I was Cinderella and they were background extras. Unfortunately, most of my extended family, specifically my mom’s side and my godparents, couldn’t make it to my Communion.
Enter October of the same year. My oldest cousin is getting married. My mother decides this is the perfect opportunity for an encore performance of playing princess. She makes me wear my Communion dress to the wedding (minus the gloves and veil because that apparently made it okay??) so the family who missed my Communion could “see the dress.” But wait… it gets worse.
As guests are lining up to send off the bride and groom right after the ceremony, my mom tells me to go hand out bubbles to everyone. You know, like a member of the wedding party. And because I was a deeply obedient, approval-seeking child, I did it.
I distinctly remember the wedding photographer taking photos of me, almost certainly assuming I was part of the wedding. I was not. I was just a small child dressed like a literal miniature bride, wandering around distributing bubbles like it was my life’s mission.
Now, 20-some-odd years later, I’ve been told my mom allegedly had permission for this. Knowing my mother as an adult, I find that…extremely unlikely. She has strong narcissistic tendencies, which is why I’ve been no-contact with her for the past 12 years.
I desperately wish I remembered whether anyone said anything or that I could locate the photographic evidence of me committing this crime against wedding etiquette for all you to giggle at. But yes, I attended a wedding dressed in a full-length white gown and was mistaken for part of the ceremony. I still physically cringe thinking about it.
Here’s what people had to say to OP:
KickIt77 said:
I was raised Catholic and it was EXTREMELY common in Catholic families for the girls to wear that first communion dress for easter and family weddings in subsequent years. I have pictures of myself in my first communion dress at a couple weddings. You were a small child. Anyone that cares needs to get a hobby.
Grungemaster said:
You were 7. Anyone who is going to seriously hold this against you is the crazy one.
Electrical-Date-3951 said:
If ANYONE cared what a 7 year old kid wore to a wedding, they had issues. Also, I feel like frilly princess dresses for little girls was the norm at weddings for a very long time.
ER_Support_Plant17 said:
Cut yourself some slack. Kids dressed in white at weddings is fine. Flower girls often wear white like little brides. Also no one for an instant thought you decided that dress to a wedding on your own.
MissMurderpants said:
Op, kids under 13, especially kids in single digit age and offrn those under 15 could wear white to weddings as who TF who think that child is the bride? Plus girls for a looong time that was the only choice for young girls to have color choice wise in nice dresses.
I wondered about this too as my first wedding I went to of my aunt I wore a frilly pretty white dress with super pale peach rosebuds on the hemline. I grew up catholic. Don’t think twice about this. It’s not like YOU were the one who actually chose your clothes back then all the negativity about this would be on your mom. NOT YOU.
shy_tinkerbell said:
The crime is wearing a white dress which makes them look like the bride. If you were a kid, that isn’t an issue. You could have been mistaken as a flower girl or part of the wedding party. That reflects on your parents not you
