28-year-old refuses to dance with stepmom at wedding, chooses grandma instead but she throws a fit: “She said she was deserving of the honor and recognition”

Author image for Briana Viser
Briana Viser • Writer and Editor
Jun 6, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

Wedding traditions are so strange in my opinion. The whole ring situation, the fact that you're supposed to spend thousands of dollars, your father gives you away, someone else wrote your vows, and then your new husband dances with his mom? Let's start with the rings: I absolutely hate wearing rings of any kind, I feel like I can't use or wash my hands properly. Not to mention it's supposed to be 3 months of paychecks. It's a little piece of metal and a stone that could fall off at any moment. Not to mention all of these archaic practices surrounding gender roles, it's really not my thing, but let's get into the story. Let us know how you feel about wedding traditions in the comments below. 


In the story below, the protagonist is getting married. His mother passed away already, so he can't follow the footsteps of tradition by default. His father wants him to include his stepmom, but he refuses. Read the full story below for all the juicy details. 

Add as a preferred
source on Google
Advertisement
  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10513729280
    via Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    1 27M and my girlfriend 27F have been together for 4 years now. I've always wanted to visit Universal Orlando to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter but I'd never been able to justify it financially.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920

  • It's wild to ask your stepson to forgo his grandmother for you. Stepparents should know that they'll always be the stepparent, especially in this case when the stepmom isn't even close with the protagonist and she knows it! Delusion at its best. 

  • 03
    My dad did recently and I got an inheritance in his will, not life changing money, but enough to pay off my debts and have something left over. So I decided to book a trip for Universal, and I was
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 04
    lucky enough to get tickets for their new park as well. My best friend loves Star Wars, and so do I so we decided we'd go together and split
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 05
    time between Universal and Disney World because we probably wouldn't have the chance to go again anytime soon.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 06
    I told my girlfriend this upfront and she said she was excited for us but didn't want to go because she doesn't support Harry Potter because of Rowling and her views
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 07
    My mom dad when I (28m) was 11. My parents marriage had been bad and they were not living together by the time mom passed away. Dad was dating at the time and a year after mom d d he brought home a
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 08
    girlfriend who became his wife when I was 15. So I lived with dad's wife from 12 to 18. She wanted to be some kind of mother figure but to me I saw her only as dad's wife. I never felt connected to her and
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 09
    while I don't dislike her, I never liked her either. I guess I'm indifferent or kinda meh overall. I feel like she's a nice enough person but can be stubborn and difficult to try and get what she wants. We're civil but not close and I would not
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 10
    Cheezburger Image 10513729536
    via oattobar69 from Getty Images Pro / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 11
    invite her on her own to my wedding. And I wouldn't spend time with just her even while her and my dad are married. We see each other some of the time I see
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 12
    my dad and otherwise at family functions. I have an older sister who's relationship with dad's wife is even more strained.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 13
    I got engaged to my fiancée Maelynn (26f) last year and we've been working our way through all the different details and decisions we need to make for our wedding.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 14
    We decided to walk down the aisle together. Her grandpa is doing the father-daughter dance and another time he might have walked her down the aisle as well but he's dised and wants to be standing/walking for this. He can
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 15
    only do one and the dance meant more to him. So we're walking together and she's dancing with her grandpa. Her grandparents raised her for those who'll wonder/ask.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 16
    I asked my sister to be my best woman lol. She's my best friend and I was her man of honor at her wedding. When Maelynn and I talked the wedding dances she asked if I had anyone I wanted to
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 17
    dance with in the place of a mother-son dance and after we talked about it a lot I decided I'd love to do it and with my maternal grandma. After mom did she came through for me and my sister.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 18
    I knew my sister had danced with her at her wedding and when I thought about it I decided it would also be a nice tribute to mom. Which grandma was so happy to do.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 19
    The problem came when I told my dad about it and he told his wife. She was upset that I asked grandma and not her and her argument is she raised me for 6 years and felt like she had taken
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 20
    the place of the primary maternal figure after mom d d. She said she knew I didn't feel that way but I had lived with her for 6 years and she was deserving of the honor and recognition for that. Then she mentioned that my sister had done
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 21
    Cheezburger Image 10513729792
    via Zeinab Ghassemi from Pexels / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 22
    nothing to honor her at her own wedding and she would not stand by and let two of us do it. She told me mentioning her briefly in a speech and including her in photos was not a worthy honor. Then she
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 23
    told me honoring the living should take precedent over honoring the de d. I interrupted her before she could continue and I told her honoring two people vs one was more important and that dancing
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 24
    with grandma honored both grandma and mom. My dad's wife told me mom gets honored all the time and my sister and I won't ever shut up about her. But for once one of us could honor her instead
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 25
    because she's here and she's willing to take over where mom left off and neither of us will let her.
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 26
    My dad told me he doesn't like to see his wife upset and I could throw her a bone and choose to honor her instead of grandma and mom one time. AITA?
    via u/GroomlyAnon920
  • 27
    agnesperditanitt • 22h ago NTA "My dad's wife told me mom gets honored all the time and my sister and I won't ever shut up about her. But for once
    via u/agnesperditanitt
  • 28
    one of us could honor her instead because she's here and she's willing to take over where mom left off and neither of us will let her."
    via u/agnesperditanitt
  • 29
    But please tell me this isn't a verbatim quote? Because if it is, this is so callous.
    via u/agnesperditanitt
  • 30
    Your mother didn't abandon you and your sister, ... She didn't walk out on you and never looked back. She did not chose to not be there for her children.
    via u/agnesperditanitt
  • 31
    To word your loss like this is simply cruel. To your mother, who would have loved to see her children grow up, created their own families and to you, who has lost your mother so young.
    via u/agnesperditanitt
  • 32
    For that comment alone, I would rescind your father's wife's invitation to the wedding and limit any contact in the future.
    via u/agnesperditanitt

Tags

family drama drama toxic stepmom family feud relationships wedding lol love family reddit thread Reddit funny dating
Scroll Down For The Next Article