Mother defended after letting her daughter sit separately from her at a wedding

‘What a delightful way for her to feel grown and independent while still being 100 per cent safe,’ one person writes in response

A mother has been defended for letting her child sit separately from her during a wedding.

In a recent post shared to the popular “Am I The A**hole?” Reddit forum, the parent asked if she was in the wrong for letting her seven-year-old daughter sit “with strangers” during the nuptials. However, she then acknowledged that during the wedding, which was for her nephew, her child was still seated with people that she was somewhat familiar with.

“She was seated at a different table from me with her cousins (who are all late teens and older) and some of the bride’s cousins,” she wrote.

She also specified that although she wasn’t right next to her daughter, she was still aware of where the seven year old was during the wedding. “Our tables were close to each other so I could keep an eye on her but she’s very well behaved and has good self management so I wasn’t concerned,” she added.

The Reddit poster added that after the wedding, her daughter was thrilled to discuss the opportunity she had to sit at the separate table.

“My daughter is very proud of herself for getting to sit at the cousins table and has been telling anyone who will listen about how she got to sit with the big kids apart from me,” the parent continued. “She feels very independent.”

However, according to the mother, her child’s father isn’t pleased about the situation, as she claimed he’s upset at her “for letting [their child] sit at a table apart from [her mother],” since there were some people at the table that the Reddit poster didn’t know.

She went on to express her child’s father’s concerns about the table, before reiterating that she wasn’t far from her daughter during the wedding.

AITA for letting my daughter sit apart from me with strangers at a wedding
byu/Temporary_Speech_640 inAmItheAsshole

“He thinks that they could have been inappropriate and I never would have known and it was unfair to expect her cousins to make sure that didn’t happen,” the parent added. “I think it was fine because she doesn’t need to be managed and her cousins were there in case of emergency and I was only 15 feet away.”

The Reddit post has quickly gone viral, as it has more than 2,400 upvotes, as of 30 January. In the comments, many people defended the parent from her child’s father, claiming that the wedding sounded like a good experience for the seven year old. They also supported the mother’s decision to allow her child to sit at the table with her cousins.

“What a delightful way for her to feel grown and independent while still being 100 per cent safe,” one person wrote, while another quipped: “I mean she probably sees people you don’t know at school every day. Does he freak out about that too?”

“Your daughter seems to be very excited about the seating plans,” a third agreed. “It’s not like this is being forced against her, he should be happy as long as she is happy. There should be no issue with her sitting with her own cousins either. Either way you are not even going to be sitting that far from her so if there are any issues you will be there for her.”

Other people expressed how they could relate to the child’s experience at the wedding, noting that they’ve had the opportunity to make new connections through sitting at events with extended family members they’ve never met.

“The kids table is STILL a thing in my extended family, even though the oldest kids are nearly 50. It is always where the most fun is had and I still have amazing memories of all of us plus ring in friends telling the grown-ups to go away. It’s how relationships were solidified,” one wrote.