Battles

My mother, without asking me first, invited her good friend’s granddaughter to be the flower girl in my wedding. Boyfiend and I had no intention of having a flower girl.

I was furious when she first told me that she had made a decision about my wedding without asking me first. I was going to refuse out of principal. When she nearly burst into tears I realized that this is really, really important to my mother, and if I refuse to make the concession she’ll look like a smacked ass. She doesn’t want to be humiliated, and I don’t need another fight with my mother.

But she went ahead and made a decision without me. Whether she wants to accept it or not, it’s my wedding. If I allow her the flower girl am I setting a precedent? Will she think that it’s okay for her make decisions without consulting me first? Perhaps if she was paying for the wedding I’d be more apt to allow her this one decision, but she’s not. And at some point she needs to learn how to act like an adult and take responsibility for her mistakes. This was a big mistake on her part, making a promise she can’t keep. But my mom’s crazy. When she cuts someone off, that’s it. She hasn’t spoken to her brother in more than ten years.

I’m leaning towards letting it slide. Perhaps the flower girl’s mother will think it’s more trouble than it’s worth and she’ll simply thank me for the offer and decline. I don’t want this to be something that my mother holds against me for the rest of my life. With her I have to choose my battles and I’m not sure if this one is worth the effort.

What would you do?