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Bride
Just Said Yes April 2022

Ex-wife wants to tag along on destination wedding

Bride, on August 25, 2021 at 6:38 PM Posted in Family and Relationships 0 14
So my SO finally popped the question and I said yes. Yay!! We decided on a destination wedding in the desert near Las Vegas end of April 2020 and will be there for 3 days. It is going to be a small wedding, no more than 30 people and outdoors. Mostly family and 2 close friends. Some background.... My FH has a 12 year old daughter that he shares custody with his ex wife. Since the pandemic started she has been homeschooling her daughter and has always been extremely overprotective of her for as long as I have known my FH. They separated 2 years before we met, my FH and I have been together for 6 years and he has visitation every weekend and are pretty flexible with that aspect of things. For the entirely of our relationship I have been attempting to set up a time and place for ex, myself, and FH to meet, have a conversation, and get to know each other, because as a mom of a now 16 year old I would want to know who is spending time with my kiddo. Throughout this time she has been very avoidant of me and when there was a chance for us to chat during an shared event for her daughter it has been very awkward with few words between us and no opportunity for us to talk privately. She is a homebody and not very social. My FH states he thinks his ex does not have any social outlets and she 'talks his ear off' when he goes to pick up their daughter. Anywho, she finally agreed to meet up this week(after 6 years of trying), I said nothing but kind things, told her that I respect and appreciate her and that I am grateful to her for being a good mom and hope to talk more with her in the future. She said that she has no animosity towards me and thinks I am a good person. We also agreed that we don't want to be best friends or anything but to better communicate for the daughters well being. Yay! However after that conversation she requested to fly separately to and from the wedding with their daughter and stay in a separate hotel room to have access to their daughter, drop her off to us as needed, and be there 'in case she needs mom if she has young lady needs' and 'give us that time to focus on each other, and concerns with the pandemic.' She does not feel comfortable with either my or my FH's family watching their daughter, even though we are all vaccinated and myself and my FH plan to be with her 99% of the time. She has looked into flights and hotels already (I haven't even sent out our save the date cards or figured out lodging details on our end yet). She also mentioned possibly taking the daughter to the Grand Canyon or Hoover Dam while she is down there during that weekend. I am just so confused and not sure what to do. I don't want to create any bad blood after we had what I consider a breakthrough; but I was hoping that this would be a weekend for myself, my FH, his daughter, my son and our families to bond. I feel like she is trying to prevent that bonding and being really overbearing... and it is another thing to add into the mix of an already stressful time. My FH has previously taken their daughter on trips to California and Mexico by himself, with some cohearsing, and there were no issues, so I don't understand how this is any different. I am also concerned that she will try to hijack our wedding weekend itenerary and will be devastated if my FH's daughter can't participate in what we have planned. My FH and I convinced his ex to hold off on any plans until the wedding gets closer and flights are cheaper and at that time we can reevaluate. To be honest, I really don't want her to go but am open to compromise to keep the peace as long as she is open to having their daughter follow our planned itinerary and not requesting early dropoff, which will basically leave the ex in a hotel room by herself the entirety of the time as she declined coming to the wedding. I just want to do the right thing, but don't want to have to worry about this kind of stuff on my wedding day. Please help!

14 Comments

Latest activity by Bride, on August 27, 2021 at 5:00 PM
  • V
    Champion July 2019
    Veronica ·
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    I'm guessing you accidentally wrote April of 2020. Anyways, I would recommend your fiance tell her he isn't comfortable with her being there, but that he wants their daughter to be. As her father, he has every right to let his family watch her and there really isn't anything the mom can say. It sounds like she is a controling individual and your fiance really needs to put his foot down.
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  • M
    VIP January 2019
    Maggie ·
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    I don't think there's anything for you to do. This should all be handled between your future spouse and his ex, based on their custody agreement and however they have worked things out for the past 8 years.

    I wouldn't focus so much on your wedding weekend being the perfect bonding time for your new family unit (you and your FS and your two kids) though. It will be busy and stressful and you can't force or engineer bonding anyway. True bonding comes gradually and should be something to work on now, before the wedding.

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  • Yasmine
    Master October 2020
    Yasmine ·
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    Unfortunately she can fly to Vegas whether y'all want her there or not, but I get where you are coming from. Out of curiosity, is this her only child & your FH's first remarriage?
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  • Victoria
    Dedicated November 2022
    Victoria ·
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    You seem like a very thoughtful and considerate future stepmother/co-parent, and I applaud you for it! You’re making a lot of effort to make sure FS can come and establish a positive relationship with ex-wife. WELL DONE, YOU!
    I would 100% suggest talking to your FS about the situation and see how SHE feels: does she want mom there? does she feel uncomfy with anything regarding wedding weekend? You don’t say much about your relationship with her; is it close? Or does ex-wife kinda interfere with it? FS seems VERY sheltered and I think having you as an outlet would be nice as it’s needed.
    For what it’s worth, I agree with other commenters. Your FH needs to be handling this. Keep doing you sis! You seem wonderful!
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  • Bride
    Just Said Yes April 2022
    Bride ·
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    Yes and yes. She is currently not seeing anyone as well.
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  • Bride
    Just Said Yes April 2022
    Bride ·
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    Thanks lady! I haven't really had much of a chance to talk to my SO's daughter as my fiance just proposed this past weekend. But when her dad let her know he was planning to propose she was really excited about it.
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  • Bride
    Just Said Yes April 2022
    Bride ·
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    Yes April 2022. Thank you for your advice!
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  • Bride
    Just Said Yes April 2022
    Bride ·
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    Very true. We are pretty close already. I just want to make memories with our mutual families more so.
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  • W
    VIP September 2020
    Willow ·
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    Is she going to tag along on every family vacation? You can't keep her from coming out. It's on your FH to enforce his custody time and set boundaries with his ex. If the ex interferes with scheduled activities, your FH needs to be the one to step up, not you. Don't worry.
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  • A
    Savvy August 2022
    A S ·
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    I agree with all PP that your FH needs to have this conversation with her, and I doubly agree that you should include his daughter in the discussion. She’s sounds old enough to be capable of having an opinion and for you to take that into account. A friend of mine is a similar although slightly different situation, but I know her children feel so guilty about leaving their single parent on their own to go out and have fun with their other parent and step-parent, that they end up not enjoying outings at all. It would be a shame if your FH’s daughter felt bad about leaving her mom alone in the hotel during your activities/the wedding that she ended up not enjoying the experience.
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  • Alyssa
    Super December 2021
    Alyssa ·
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    FH can tell her to kick rocks, she's not invited to your wedding weekend/honeymoon and he's entitled to time with his daughter. She needs to unclench and realize that a 12 year old is more than capable not only of going on a flight by herself, but of behaving herself with her father and stepmom for a few days without her mom in the same zip code "supervising".

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  • Samantha
    Expert December 2021
    Samantha ·
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    A 12 year old is capable of making the decision on her own as to whether she wants to go with you and your fiancé. Mommy needs to cut the cord and stop being a controlling psycho. The "reasons" she's giving to be there for her daughter are EXCUSES. The ex has no business being near your wedding/honeymoon and it's in very poor taste for her to attempt to involve herself like she has. It sounds like she can't let go and is still clinging onto your fiancé through their daughter.
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  • Samantha
    VIP October 2022
    Samantha ·
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    It’s ok to have boundaries, and not wanting an ex spouse on your honeymoon is a PERFECTLY REASONABLE boundary!
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  • Bride
    Just Said Yes April 2022
    Bride ·
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    Thanks for the feedback guys! Really good stuff here will keep you posted!
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