in-law conflicts

MILs, Feuds & Furry Guests — From the Vault with My MOH Ivette

My new book Here Comes the Drama: A Ferris and Sloan Story is live!

When “I do” turns into “I don’t know what to do.” Wild.

From unexpected guest list debates to a mother-in-law meltdown that left everyone speechless, Me and my best friend Ivette dive into the wild world of wedding chaos. This episode is packed with hot takes, emotional moments, and wedding horror stories you won’t believe! Should couples feel obligated to invite family? Is banning kids a crime? And why are so many in-laws acting like it’s THEIR big day?

Listen in as I and my BFF and MOH Ivette spill the tea, share our own experiences, and remind you—it’s YOUR wedding, your rules.

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Episode Chapter Markers

00:00 Introduction

15:44 From Acquaintances to Best Friends

19:06 Hot Takes: Kids at Weddings & Wearing White

19:59 Wedding Guest List Drama: Who Stays & Who Goes?

27:15 Wedding Horror Story: The Mother-in-Law Meltdown

32:45 When Wedding Paperwork Goes Wrong

38:10 Wedding Confessions: Bridesmaid Disasters & Petty Payback

43:21 Ending the Drama: Mental Health & Marriage Advice

Must-Hear Insights and Key Moments

Me and Ivette’s friendship journey—how we met and became inseparable
Wedding guest list debates: Obligation vs. personal preference
Mother-in-law horror stories: When family feuds take center stage
Unpopular wedding opinions: Kids at weddings, guests wearing white, and more
The pressure of tradition: When “that’s how it’s always been done” doesn’t work for you
Wedding planning vs. Marriage preparation—what really matters?
Bridesmaids & boundaries: What’s fair to expect from your wedding party?
The most shocking wedding confessions submitted by listeners

Words of Wisdom: Standout Quotes from This Episode

“If you’re wearing white to a wedding and you’re not the bride, you KNOW what you’re doing.” – Christa
“Cutting someone from your guest list isn’t personal—it’s practical. It’s your day, not a family reunion.” – Christa
“Traditions are great, but they shouldn’t hold you hostage. Your wedding should feel like YOU.” – Christa
“Weddings are about celebrating love, not throwing a party to impress people you barely talk to.” – Ivette
“If you have to choose between keeping the peace and keeping your boundaries—choose YOU.” – Ivette

*This conversation is for entertainment and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. Please seek a licensed professional for your specific situation.

About Ivette:

Ivette is not just a special guest—she’s one of my closest friends and the matron of honor from my own wedding. As a supportive friend who has been part of my journey long before Here Comes the Drama was even an idea, Ivette brings warmth, humor, and thoughtful insights to the conversation. With a deep appreciation for meaningful relationships and personal growth, she shares her take on wedding traditions, family dynamics, and setting boundaries in the chaos of wedding planning. Whether reflecting on her own experiences or reacting to jaw-dropping wedding drama, Ivette keeps it real with heart and honesty.

Join the Drama with Christa Innis:

Got Wedding Drama? We Want to Hear It!

Your stories make Here Comes the Drama what it is! Share your unforgettable wedding tales, hilarious mishaps, or unbelievable moments with us. Whether it’s a wild confession or a story worth a skit, we can’t wait to hear it.

Submit your story today: Story Submission Form

Follow us on social media for updates and sneak peeks at upcoming episodes. Your stories inspire the drama, the laughs, and the lessons we love to share!

A Team Dklutr Production

Blog Transcript:

Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies

Christa Innis: Hey guys. Welcome back to another episode of, Here Comes The Drama. I’m your host, Christa Innis, and if you are listening for the first time, welcome. We are the podcast that dives into the chaos, hilarity, and unforgettable moments when it comes to weddings, events, and beyond. And today’s episode, of course, is packed with some juicy stories and hot takes that you will not wanna miss. Now we’re doing things a little bit different this time, and I’m releasing a never before shared episode with my best friend, Ivette. So a little background to this episode when I first. Plan this podcast out. So the first episode came out of January this year, which is wild to think about. We’re almost a year at this.

I like had a full roster of who I was going to interview or who I was gonna have on the podcast. And of course I wanted my best friend Ivette on there. She was the maid of honor in my own wedding. And so I figured, you know, we’d have a lot of fun stories to share. And so the first time I had her on, we recorded, gosh. It was after our, our kids went to bed we were on Zoom. And so, um, I wanna say it was like nine o’clock at night. So we’re both like tired and we recorded, and I think we’re both just kinda like perfectionist. Where afterwards, she texted me the next day and she was like, do you wanna redo it?

Or like, are you happy with it? And I think I was in my overthinking phase of this is just getting off the ground. Right? And I was like. I mean, we can redo it if you want, but like, let’s do a different story since we already like truly like live reacted to that one. And so recently I was like, I forgot we have that episode. And I was like, I just wanna listen to it. And I listened to it and it’s actually really good and it’s a shocking story. And it’s very real, uh, um, not like they’re normally not, but it’s just like. It’s two tired moms, AKA us, um, chatting and we’re just like doing a real reaction of what the story, and we’re just doing a real reaction.

And so I really liked it and I was like, you know what? I’m gonna share it. So I texted her and I was like, Hey, are you cool if I share this episode? I was there’s some really good insight. And um, it was a lot of fun. And she’s like, yeah, go ahead and share it. So I think we were just both in our stage of like, perfectionism and I was like nervous because I was so new. So when I do play it, which is gonna be in a minute, um, we’re gonna. She’ll be introducing herself and obviously since then I’ve had her on the podcast two different times. So, um, you guys, if you’ve listened, you know her now, but she’ll reintroduce herself then. This was recorded originally either February or March of this year.

So we are here now. Gosh. Eight, nine months later. So just to keep that in mind, a lot has changed since then. The layout of the podcast has changed as well, so I’m gonna play that in a minute. But before I do that. Next week is Thanksgiving. And what would Thanksgiving be if I just didn’t say a little note to you guys of how truly grateful I am for all of you. I mean, this is the most incredible community. I never saw this happening. I mean, when I was on my maternity leave two and a half years ago now, um. I just decided to pick up my phone and do a silly little skit. And you guys thought it was funny. And I remember keeping it a secret for so long because not like I was ashamed of it, but I just didn’t really know where it was gonna go.

And I feel like when you start telling people, you start viewing yourself differently, and I feel like you start acting a certain way. And so, um, I kept it kinda like to myself. Only my husband knew I was gonna do it. And it was this weird little thing. Like once my daughter would go to bed, I would like film in the bathroom. And I was like, what is my life right now? But it’s turned into so much more. It’s turned into this storytelling. It’s allowed me to share. So many stories from people from all over the world. I also am able to create my own stories, which, um, if you guys have been following, following me for a bit, you know, I love creating stories.

That’s what I went to school for. I’ve always loved writing. And so it’s just sparked something in me that I truly enjoy. And so, um, thank you to just like any of you guys for watching, for sharing, for listening on the podcast. No matter where you found me or how you found me, I’m just so grateful that you’re here now. And this is just the beginning. Um, this, because of this platform, I feel like I have the opportunity to share more and to help more and to hopefully make an impact. Um. And by the time this comes out, this might be a little late news, but like, for example, with everything happening with people losing their benefits and with, um, you know, I mean just the world is struggling right now.

So many people are struggling and so I did a. Feeding America fundraiser. Um, earlier last, actually at the end of last week, and in two days we raised $3,000, which was just incredible. And so hopefully, hopefully by the time this comes out, we can even double that. And that’s just a little teaser of like the kind of things I wanna keep doing. I wanna be able to help more people to. Share more ways of, um, impacting others as well. And um, I know I’m kind of going on a tangent now, but it just really means a lot to me, this community. And I don’t really take a time to sit back and just really realize what we’ve got going on here. And so to my, from the bottom of my heart, I just wanna say thank you.

Okay. Now I’m not gonna cry or anything. Let me get into the next segment. Okay. So before I get into, um, the previously recorded episode that no one has ever heard before, um, this is a wedding dilemma. So my brand new segment called Wedding Dilemmas or Wedding 9 1 1, um, is where people are sending me. They DM me, they email me current or past dilemmas. They’re kind of going through and they want just. Other feedback from people they want, honest, maybe unprofessional, um, advice from me. Um, what to do in the situation. So I got a longer one today, so we’re gonna read this one and I’ve not read it entirely. So let’s see what we got. Um, if you have a wedding dilemma of your own, please email me at Christa or.

If you have a wedding dilemma of your own, please email me. hello@christainnis.com with the subject line wedding dilemma and we will get to it. Okay, here is today’s wedding dilemma. So I’ve been a longtime watcher of your TikTok channel, and I’ve actually been engaged for a couple of years, but I was constantly getting met with a lot of apathy and negativity when I first started to try to plan the wedding. Not for my fiance of course. Recently my mom bought my wedding dress, and so we finally started to get the ball rolling. But in doing so and setting the date, everything is getting more real and some people are starting to ask the questions. I’ve been dreading. The main one is who is going to officiate?

That is an interesting question for people to ask because. I don’t think people asked me that unless I’m just forgetting. And that’s also not my first question when I hear someone’s engaged or planning their wedding. Um, it’s a fun question, but I don’t know. Interesting. My dad got ordained a few years ago. Okay. This is why. And he has a officiated, a couple of family weddings so far and he has made it clear in no uncertain terms that he really wants to officiate my wedding. We know how I feel about family or friends coming in and demanding or making hints at being a part of the wedding as a vendor. And yes, an officiant is considered a vendor, right?

Fisht photographer or dj. They’re all vendors. They’re typically contracted and paid. So he’s trying to kind of get in there. I would just worked a wedding where the stepdad was the officiant and it was amazing. It was beautiful, but they asked him to do it. He had never done it before and he was so nervous, but he did a great job, but, and they asked him to do it because he’s so meaningful in their life. Okay. Um, there are multiple reasons. I do not want him to do this. The main reason is I’ve given, the main reason I’ve given is that for that day, I want him just to be the father of the bride and nothing else. I just want my dad. That is, that is all you need. That is a great reason alone. But I get it. If he’s been pushing for this, he might not understand, but like, I wanna do this for you, you know?

Now onto the reasons I don’t say to him. My dad cheated on my mom when I was pretty young and he left us okay this off the bat. Why would you want someone that cheated, especially on your own mother to officiate your wedding? I know I want it. Like that’s just, to me, that’s like a bad omen Don’t you want someone that like really values marriage and relationship and building blocks of moving forward? I mean, at least I do. Um, he had kids with the other woman that he also wasn’t present for. Oh gosh. Because he would leave her and get back together with my mom, and the entire situation was so messy. Oh my gosh. So he’s now screwing up and hurting two families because of his own selfishness. At the end of the day, I don’t want a man who couldn’t respect his marriage to officiate mine.

Yes, I agree with you. Number two, I am Christian, but my fiance is not. And while we are incorporating some Christian symbolism into our vows and our ceremony, we would also like to incorporate other things from his beliefs. I feel like my dad is going to push for an overly Christian ceremony that is gonna make both of us uncomfortable. And here’s the thing too, the hypocrisy, right? So. she’s Christian, so but she sounds very like accepting of like her husband’s not, so she wants to do a little mix of like what both of their beliefs. Right. Which I think is very normal and very wonderful. But for the dad to be like, he cheated in the sanctity of marriage.

He cheated on his wife, got another woman pregnant. Doesn’t father those children or these children, leaves his families constantly, right. He wants to push for this very Christian wedding, and it’s like, okay, okay, what are we doing here? Um, number three, my dad believes in the role of wife, so to speak, and I absolutely hate this particular belief. Mostly just for how it has manifested with my own mom and how he believes I should accept being treated by a partner if I marry someone. So he probably thinks. even though he cheated, his wife should still accept him back because he’s the man. Right. I have been to so many weddings where I’ve heard very sexist language about the role of a woman, and I don’t wanna hear it on my wedding date.

Yeah. I I wouldn’t either. No. That’s something that I, when I was picking, um, an officiant side story, I was gonna have my uncle do it. He married all the cousins in our family. He’s my godfather. But, um, he was actually expecting a baby. Um, so the timing just didn’t work out, which I was so bummed about. But we ended up finding an amazing afic on the Knot. This is not sponsored. I literally just googled one day and the Knot came up and I found this amazing reverend um, Reverend Marsha. Shout out to her ’cause she’s amazing. Um. And one thing that I loved about her was that we had multiple zoom calls. We met in person and we went over the full ceremony detail by detail.

What kind of, what kind of thing are you looking for? Do you want it religious or not? Do you want a mix of religions? Do you want, um, a prayer? Do you want a unity? Like she really customize it for the couple and then before we agreed to it, or before we actually like had our rehearsal, um, she let us view. The prayers that were gonna be read, she had us view how she was gonna open it. Um, and we were able to say take this part out, put this part in. And I think that’s the most beautiful thing about getting married is being able to customize it to you and your partner. Right. So just to kind of like jump the gun a little bit.

Sounds like this Dad was like, this is how it’s gonna be. I’m gonna tell you. How your marriage should be, even though he didn’t live up to his marriage. Um, uh, how it, how even though he didn’t live up to how the sanctity of marriage should be. Right Now, to some of my points, you may say, I need to. Now to some of my points, you may say, I need to just communicate with my dad that I don’t wanna hear that type of language, or just communicate on one type of ceremony I wanna have. But he’s incredibly condescending and dismissive when my point of view opposes his.

Ooh. To be frank, I’m concerned that because this is so important to him, it’s going to have ripple effects into our relationship. It took us years to get to a good place Again, I have considered letting him do the ceremony just because I know how important it’s to him, but at the end of the day, it feels like I’m constantly sacrificing my happiness and my comfort so the other people can feel special and seen. I want to feel seen on this one day. Okay. You know exactly what you want and you know exactly what you need to do. And I’m gonna tell you based on what you just told me, right? You can’t have your dad officiate your wedding. Plain and simple. He’s not going to follow what you tell him to. He’s gonna put his own beliefs in there about.

Your role as the wife, you are gonna have this built up resentment because of how he treated your family, specifically your mom and you kids that he doesn’t talk to. I don’t know if you have siblings, why start your marriage off with your partner with someone that did not respect their own marriage? Right. And I think this is the time where you really need to put your foot down. And yes, communicate with him. Absolutely. But just tell him again and be firm. I want you there as my dad and my dad. Only you can walk me down the aisle. We’ve actually already found Blink to officiate the wedding and leave it simple.

If he asks questions, you can give him some details. Um, if he seems like he’s going to try to do something or grab a mic, or make a speech or take over the ceremony, you need to be very clear that if he does not do this, he will be asked to leave. And that might seem harsh to some people listening, but now I’ve heard so many stories where people do this kind of thing. If they’re not given the position they want, or they’re not allowed to be photographer, they’re not allowed to do this, then Oh, I’m not coming, or you’ll regret it. But I truly, truly believe based on everything you’re telling me and how your relationship is with your father and how you’ve had to work back up to this spot, you will regret having him officiate your wedding.

There are certain things that yes, over time you can rebuild, but the fact that he’s dismissive, still condescending to you and you’ve seen him speak at weddings before where he’s very sexist. I think all signs point to no. So you gotta be firm. If you need someone behind you, obviously your partner is gonna be behind you.

Um, I don’t know his relationship with your mom currently. Um, it sounds like he kind of goes back and forth so. She needs to be on your side as well. Um, get everybody on your side and in the meantime, find someone that you guys both agree on should officiate your wedding and get on the same page. And that point, he can’t fill the role if it’s already been filled. So I hope that helps. I hope that was considered some good advice, but I just, like, I read through it and I’m just like, no, everything you’re saying. He tells me he should not officiate your wedding. You truly deserve to have the best day, feel seen and have a ceremony that really represents you and your partner in the best way.

So I wish you the best of luck and I hope it goes well. And please send us updates. I would love to hear updates and um, hope everything goes well. All right guys. Now as I said, we are going to play, um, my previously recorded episode never before shared with my best friend and maid of honor, Ivette. So without further ado, please enjoy I.

Christa Innis: Welcome back to another episode of here comes the drama. I’m so excited. I’m just going to dive right in because one of my very best friends and was the actual maid of honor in my own wedding, my good friend, Ivette, welcome to the show.

Ivette: Hi, thanks for having me. I’m excited to be here. I’ve never done a podcast before, so I’m excited.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I knew like right away when this podcast was coming out that I wanted you to be a part of it in some way. guys like Ivette is just like. The kindest person. She’s like, we can go on and on about like how we met and all that stuff. But like, basically, our husbands have been best friends for a while.

So we met through them. But, she has been one of the most supportive and I don’t want to start crying. It’s an emotional day, guys. But, she’s just been one of the most supportive friends I could ever ask for. And so, here we go!

Ivette: Christa, when don’t you cry? I

Christa Innis: know! I was just telling someone, it was a joke at my wedding, that, like, in your speech, and Matt, who is Ivette’s husband, Both talked about how I cry all the time.

Yes. And it’s like not always sad stuff. It’s like happy stuff. It’s like I’m grateful listening to Taylor Swift, you know, whatever. but no, Ivette’s such a supportive friend. And so I knew that when this podcast was coming out that I wanted you to be a part of it. So, I’ll stop the tears. Ivette, if you want to do like a little intro of like who you are and then we’ll dive into this crazy, drama.

Ivette: yeah, so I’m Ivette. something fun about me, I don’t really, yeah, I guess, I just met Christa through my husband, who’s best friends with her husband, and it was kind of like a crazy journey because, I had like known, we’ve known each other, but we never really like hit it off. I think it was just, it wasn’t our time.

And then my husband and I were getting married. and Christa was just, again, so supportive, so kind. I think that when you always, like when anyone gets to know you, you always are so warm and welcoming and you always see people. that are like left out in the corner and again, I’m talking about you, right?

But, I’m just so grateful to be your friend. So if I were to introduce myself, I am your friend. I’m someone that has been cheering you on and that, has heard about this podcast. Probably like five years ago before it was even a thing before you even started any of it. so I’ve been hearing about, different titles and, different ways that you wanted to start this.

And yeah, I’m just so proud of you. and being a part of just one episode means a lot. So,

Christa Innis: well, I’m proud of you. I remember you’re talking about like your, wedding. And so at that point when Ivette was like planning her wedding, like, I think it was Matt. Matt might have still been living with us. I’m not even sure at that point, but no, at that point.

Ivette: You guys are like our wedding in the city or when we lived in the city. We lived in the city when we got married,

Christa Innis: right? Okay. Yes. Yeah. And, but I remember like asking, like, we were just talking about your wedding planning and stuff and we were not like super close friends. We were more like acquaintances.

We would see each other at things and we were obviously always friendly. But I remember specifically like asking you like, Oh, what are your, like, what are you doing for your wedding colors? what are your bridesmaids dress? Like just asking questions and then like. Before I knew it, like, I ended up just being, like, a part of your wedding stuff.

I wasn’t in the wedding, but, like, there the night before, like, we hung out, and, like, I just

Ivette: Yeah. And I always say like, you should have been a part of my wedding because you did so much for my wedding. Like, you just have that natural gift to like, want to help people or be there for people.

And looking back at it, like we were starting to be close friends at that point it felt like. And I feel like that brought us even closer together. but even that night, I just remember like, you should stay with all my bridesmaids. Like you’ve been a part of the process, just like be with me kind of thing. And so it was, yeah, really good to have you.

Christa Innis: Yeah, and then it was like we got closer and then when Zach and I started, when we got engaged, I was like, hands down, like, Ivette’s gonna be my maid of honor, or matron of honor, as I guess it’s technically called, but, okay. enough of Cause guys, we can like, Ivette and I could talk for hours and just like, keep going.

So I’ll kind of like forget that it’s being recorded. okay. Let’s jump in to, I always like to start with crazy stories and wedding hot takes. I know we were kind of talking about that before we started. So do you have any like crazy stories that come right off the bat and not to put you on the spot, kind of talk through some wedding hot takes as well.

Ivette: I don’t know if I, I honestly haven’t been, Like in as many weddings as you have, I feel like you were like 27 dresses kind of situation. Like you’ve had so many bridesmaids dresses. I haven’t had any like wild stories. I’ve had some fun bachelorette parties. but that’s really it. Nothing other than one too crazy. So,

Christa Innis: yeah, yeah, no, definitely. And I feel like too, it It seems like so long ago and we were like all in like, I feel like there was just wedding, wedding, wedding, wedding, wedding for a while and then there kind of been some pause and I’ve been like babies, you know, all that stuff.

So, okay, so let’s get into some hot takes. So these are hot takes that people sent in. And so let’s kind of react to them and see what we think. So the first one says couples should stick to a traditional guest list Or is it okay to make bold cuts for budget or personal reasons? So I share first. Sure. Yeah.

Wedding Guest List Dilemmas & Setting Boundaries

Ivette: here’s the thing. I come from a really, really big family and I am someone who’s been trying to break cycles and I think that family is a good thing when it’s people that reach out to you when it’s people that show that they care about you and want to engage with you and have been a process from the beginning, maybe even halfway.

But if it’s someone that feels entitled to be a part of your big day, just because. I’m like, cut them out. If it’s unhealthy, like, I don’t want you a part of it.there’s a part of me that wants to follow tradition. but also traditions can get us into trouble and can get us into cycles. And, unhealthy relationships. And I’m not about that. So.

Christa Innis: Yeah, just saying the yes just because they’re a family member or somehow related or they were your neighbor growing up. Like, we need to, I feel like, evaluate each relationship and how, not necessarily how they serve us, but how we’ve, like, served each other. It might be, like, both ends of it, because I feel like a lot of times when I share stories, people are like, Oh, well, that bride is, entitled. And it’s like, we have to look at it from both angles. Like, have they reached out to each other in the past couple of years? Or has that person ever asked about the bride’s life? Or, you know, that kind of thing. It’s, important.

Ivette: Yeah, and I even think, like, I didn’t have any kids at my wedding, unless it was, like, People that were in the party, like the brides, my bridesmaids or the groomsmen and it was like their kids, that kind of thing. That’s okay. But for me, it’s okay to be like, Hey, no kids, because I don’t want to be worried about kids at my wedding.

You know what I mean? I don’t want them to like take away. And that’s not to say that like, Oh, I’m being like a bridezilla, but it’s more like it’s my day. And I get to be there with all the people that I love. And I really want to like, enjoy that,

Christa Innis: yeah, I think kids is always like a really hot topic because everyone’s like really strongly opinionated and I was like to remind people that you can be as opinionated as you want for your own money, you know, because it’s not up to us to dictate how someone else does their own day or like what their relationship is like some people want it.

Every single person to bring all their kids and add 50 people to the guest list and other people are like, you know what? I’m gonna invite just like immediate family kids or you know, whatever. So that’s so important I think it would definitely I would say this to Zach I feel like it’d be a lot harder now like now getting married with like having so many close friends and their kids because Back when, like, I got married and you got married, like, a lot of us didn’t have kids yet.

And so it was a lot easier to be like, okay, like, we can make a cut here because, you know, there aren’t a lot yet. Yeah. I feel like this is like an obvious one, but do you think it’s okay for guests to wear white to a wedding?

Ivette: No.

Christa Innis: If the couple doesn’t explicitly say not to. No.

Ivette: No, like, you cannot wear white.

I think, I have sweet friends that are like, Oh, it’s fine. It’s not a big deal. But if I were a guest at their wedding and somebody else is wearing white, I’d be like, You need to go change. Like, go change. This is her day. That’s not okay. Yeah. that part of the tradition. I’m like, that needs to stay.

Christa Innis: yeah, unless it says this is a black and white tie affair or whatever, which even then, I think I would still pick a black dress.

Ivette: Absolutely. Like,

Christa Innis: I would just feel very, very odd to wear a white gown to someone else’s wedding. yeah, I feel like that’s one of those things where I feel like if you are wearing a white dress to someone’s wedding, you know what you’re doing.

Ivette: You want the attention on you.

Christa Innis: Yeah, you can’t claim ignorance. During the pot. Yeah. Okay. Jumping into a fun segment. Pick a side wedding drama debates. Okay. So these are a couple of things that people also have shared on Instagram. we’re going to kind of call unpopular opinions, but sometimes I read them and I’m like, I agree with you.

Okay. If a parent helps pay for the wedding, they don’t have as much say because it still is not their wedding. I agree.

Ivette: you don’t have to pay for the wedding, like that, you’re gifting that, so I think it’s their wedding, you gift it, it’s not like I’m gonna gift you a t shirt and I’m gonna say like, this is where you can wear it, you can’t wear it here, you can only wear it with these people, so I look at it the same way, it’s a gift and that’s it, and they can spend it how they’d like.

Christa Innis: Yeah, that is a great point about a t shirt. I tried sharing a similar analogy like that online one time and I would say like half people got half in it because I think people are so stuck on. Well, if I’m giving that much money, I better like be there making decision. It’s like you can be involved as much as a bride and groom wants, but you cannot go over their head or have strings attached to every little thing for sure. this can be like kind of a hot take. People are more worried about the party than what it means to get married and have a marriage.

Ivette: Unfortunately, I’m going to say yeah, like I tried really hard for my wedding to vocalize it and in my speech, I really wanted to make it a point like, hey, thank you all for being here, because this is the start of our marriage. And you guys are here, not to party with us yes it was a party, but like to witness this, and the people in our wedding party, including you. I feel like I’ve been invited to be a part of my marriage and like support us when we’re struggling, when we’re having a good time to like celebrate the highs and like hold us in the lows.

And so I think unfortunately, from a larger perspective, it is all about the party and like following the trends and like showing, I don’t know, just like having the most beautiful wedding and the most beautiful dress, but I have been so encouraged. I’ve been with. My really good friends who are, are not, all like that. They’re not like that. And it’s really, they’re laid back and they’re just so happy to be married to the love of their life, and I think that’s what it really needs to be about.

Christa Innis: yeah, I think it’s a really good indication, like, when we see lot of the celebrity weddings, and they spend, like, sometimes a million.

I think I just saw, like, Kim Kardashian spent, like, 11 million at the wedding with, like, Chris Humphrey? I’m not very For some for you. Attuned to those things. Yeah. Okay. So you’re more Taylor Swift. I’m more Taylor Swift. Yeah. Taylor Swift. but yeah, so they spent like 11 million and people think like, Oh, it’s this amazing wedding.

They put all this money in, but it didn’t last long. And so I think people need to remember like, yes, it’s a great time to celebrate with friends and family, but, we should be worried, not worried, but like more focused on is what’s to come. What’s down the line. Because if it’s all about show and, the big day, then we’re kind of losing that a little bit.

Ivette: Yeah, I agree 100%.

The Mother-in-Law Wedding Disaster

Christa Innis: Yeah. Okay, so I want to jump in because I know we don’t have a ton of time. So I want to jump in and read, this week’s story. so we’ll just kind of read it and then we’ll react as it goes. she says, or they say, because I don’t know what it is. Okay. Hi, I’ll try to make it shorter, but there is a lot of drama. My mother in law and sister in law showed up late to my wedding, missing most of the pictures, only taking ones with my husband. My sister in law brought her dog to the wedding, not a service animal, and inside the church. Late on the pews and in the reception hall around the food, there was a minor issue with the food being put out by the church attendants that turned into the little old church ladies yelling at my mom and making her cry.

All she was going to do was get the food out for my guests. Okay, already we’re off to a rough start. Yikes.

Ivette: Yikes.

Christa Innis: my mother in law witnessed this and tried apologizing to the church ladies, telling them their family is trash and I wish my son never married her. Oh, that’s bad. That is bad. My sister walked in on the convo and my mother in law stuck her finger into my sister’s chest saying, you’re the worst of them.

I can’t let this happen at someone’s wedding. We then had to kick my mother in law out of the wedding. After yelling at multiple people, she stayed outside the event, throwing a fit, and telling anyone who listened to her that we were terrible people. She somehow got back into the wedding reception as the mother and son dance was announced. Why, I would be like running to the DJ being like, we’re not doing that dance anymore.

Ivette: Like, yeah, no, you’re out. I just want to know like what the husband did. Like, what did he do?

Christa Innis: That’s my thought. I feel like so many times in these stories, like, The bride submits it to me or like someone in the wedding party.

And we don’t hear anything about what the groom was doing or like where he was. But I feel like that should be the like, not tiebreaker, but the person being like, okay. We need you to calm down, mom.

Ivette: Yeah, like, where is he, what is he doing to support his new wife? Like, the red flags, red flags already.

Christa Innis: Like, come on. Yes, especially like this mother and son dance. Why is that still happening if she was kicked out? Yeah. She must, I feel like she like, went and was like, ready for it somehow. Like, went in back door.let’s see. It says, my husband did the dance with her. But all of the pictures show my husband’s mad face with her. So, okay, so he was mad, but he still did this dance with her.

Ivette: It’s so hard. Like, okay, it’s hard because, okay, I put myself in his shoes. It’s like, am I going to regret not having the dance with my mother? Okay. Like I get that. But also like his mom just made his life so complicated because now he has to like, in a sense, choose between his.

New family, his family now, his wife, his family and his mother and that you as a parent, you shouldn’t want to do that for your son, yeah, I feel like, okay, maybe you aren’t,like happy with this choice. And maybe it’s not like your first choice, but that’s on him and for you to do that and like ruin their wedding if my mother in law did that to me, I. Would not be talking to her and my husband supported her or like didn’t stand up for me and my family That would be very concerning.

Christa Innis: Yeah, and it’s an odd thing where you do hear a lot It happens more with Boy moms, where it’s like my son, like you’re taking my son away from me and it seems very dramatic and a lot of the skits I do but so many comments are like this happened to me, this was my reality until we cut her off or something like that and I’m like I can’t even imagine because like I have an amazing mother in law too, it’s like I could never imagine her treating me that way and but when you hear these stories you’re like what is it that makes them so cool.

I don’t know. Is it a jealousy thing? Is it like losing time with their son? getting older. They’re going to miss out. but ultimately they’re just pushing their son further away. Absolutely. I don’t

Ivette: know what it is. Like I only have girls, like, I can’t picture what it would be like to be a boy mom and then have to like let go of my son.

I feel like, I would want to do like girl talk with my daughter in law and like, Do girl stuff with her. So it’s just, strange to me to think.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I don’t know. Yeah, that’s, my thought too. And it’s like, growing your family or adding into your family.

I feel like to some of the stories that I read, it’s like they have these high expectations of who their future daughter in law should be. So if they don’t fit this picture perfect idea of what they envisioned or who they envisioned their son with, they’re going to find something wrong with them. Maybe they’re really close to their mom and, you know, they don’t like the connection or the relationship they see, then there might be, some issue there, but I don’t know.

Ivette: I also, think you, I think this might be what you’re getting at, or you mentioned it before. It’s like, they’re stealing him away, or like, Now all the maybe they spent a lot of time together or something like that Is that we were trying to get out and now it’s like no now, it’s like, okay now she’s a new priority And definitely jealousy.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Yeah, this is crazy I also can’t imagine being left with so many like terrible memories of your wedding being like looking at pictures and being like oh, I remember when this happened like this is terrible like I was like to remind people is like We read these crazy stories that happen, but most of the time.

Drama does not happen, like I said, at weddings, and most of the time you won’t even know if they do happen. but when they do happen like this, people talk about them and share them because they’re like, this is outrageous. So, and not, like, not to scare people away. okay, it ends with, she then left.

Two days later, we met up at a restaurant To talk where she freaked out calling me a drunk B word because I walked around with a bottle of wine for other people and then she stormed out of the restaurant to make matters worse. Our wedding paperwork was not stamped by the county, so we were not legally married until two weeks after this, and then we had to go back and do it again with just a small group. Wait, I thought you have to then do it again.

Ivette: Well, you have like a certain amount of time to like sign the paperwork because If I remember correctly, like they give, like whenever they perform marriage ceremony, you’re not, always like signing the paperwork, right. You’re not actually getting married.

And so a lot of people like, don’t realize that I’m like, oh, we’re not actually married. So if you don’t do it. Maybe it’s like 48 or 24. I’m not sure this is wrong. by a certain time, you’re not legally married. So then, yeah, you would have to do it again. So couldn’t they have just gone to the courthouse and signed it though? They could have. I’m just, maybe they wanted, their family members to be there.

Christa Innis: Interesting. Yeah, that’s like, that is interesting because I just heard, no, where was it? I saw a video of a girl talking about they were supposed to like do all the paperwork for like their wedding coming up and their husband didn’t file the paperwork so they couldn’t get their marriage license.

And I was like, Oh my gosh, like that was something my reverend, I want to say my reverend was like, really like adamant. She’s like, don’t forget to do this. Like you need to do this this weekend. She sent me like a timeline because other than otherwise I would not have known to do that. Like,

Ivette: I mean, I didn’t even know you had to get a marriage license.

And then when you got it, I also didn’t know that it’s only good for a certain amount of time. And I didn’t know that it was like for specific County, which is crazy. Like, I didn’t know any of this. You know, I’ve never been married before. And then, did you know that some people have to get, like, their blood work done? Or, like, yeah, they have to make sure, like, for smaller towns. They used to do this, here in Illinois. They had to make sure that you weren’t somehow related, to each other. So you had to go to, like, a doctor. Improve. Yes. we should look that up. We should look that up.

Christa Innis: We should look that up. I’m gonna look that up.

Wait, I literally just started Googling, did you have to get a blood test? And I literally just had to get married. See, it goes. No, you don’t wait. Most no longer require it. But in the late eight nineteen thirties states began revolting blood tests

Ivette: for

Christa Innis: syphilis to

Ivette: show that applicants were not contagious.

Oh, that’s what it is. I thought it was what they weren’t. Okay,

Christa Innis: but certain states it was with like within the last 25 years, they stopped doing it. So some probably kept it longer. Maybe that’s because there was like such an issue. Like people find out years later, like, Oh, actually married my cousin or something. The

Ivette: real, yeah. reason why I know is because my mother in law was telling me when we were getting married, she’s like, Oh, you’re lucky.

You don’t have to like get all the blood work done. I was like, what are you talking about? So yeah, that’s what I found out. So she had to do it when she

Christa Innis: had to do

Ivette: it.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Oh my gosh. And she probably got married in what the eighties. Yes. So that’s not that long ago. Yeah. No. Well, I guess the eighties are going on 40 years ago.

Wait, is that 40 years ago? That’s over years ago. Yes.

Ivette: I see. I think it’s the eighties, like 20 years ago.

Breaking Wedding Traditions: When Family Won’t Let Go

Christa Innis: Me too. I’m just a baby. I’m like a teenager still. I know. I know. I know. I know. Like what? that would be something actually kind of cool to look at for like future episodes to see like traditions that have changed because that’s the thing too.

I think people are so stuck on traditions when it comes to weddings. And we need to remember, like, times have changed. Like, people get offended when I post about people having private vows. They’re like, well, why even have a wedding? And it’s like, everyone has their own reasons for wanting to do things differently.

Or one girl was posting saying her family told her that her wedding didn’t count because she didn’t want to walk down the aisle by herself. So her husband actually grabbed her at the beginning and they walked together like kind of you and yeah And she was like my whole family said it wasn’t me actually getting married because it wasn’t traditional But I feel like you like let go of some of those traditions I think traditions are beautiful but we also need to look at them and be like does this make sense for me or am I comfortable with this and understand that times have changed.

Ivette: Yeah, that makes so much sense. my grandfather, he passed away now, but, I remember my mom telling me after I got married, she’s like, your grandpa was like, what is this? Like, why aren’t we at a church? My family’s Roman Catholic. And they’re really big into Catholicism. I’m not Catholic. And so I still had, different aspects or different.

part of like religion and at my wedding, but I didn’t want to add a big church because it didn’t feel right to me and my heart was like, you guys aren’t even like married because you guys aren’t married before God. I was like, okay.

Christa Innis: Yeah. And it’s like some of those things you just have to like take and just like, let it roll off your back.

It’s like one of those, it’s not worth. Explaining. But yeah, I remember that, too, growing up, in the Catholic Church. It was like, it only, counts here, but it’s like, there’s so many different ways of doing it. And actually, and this is something I haven’t really fully looked into, but the Reverend at my wedding, she does, like, multiple, denominations of, like, Christian weddings or even, like, non Christian weddings.

And, my friend who still practices Catholicism, she did their wedding. But I wonder if that’s even like recognized by the Catholic Church because it’s not a priest. But I don’t know. I haven’t looked into that. So,

Ivette: which is interesting because then like moving on into your life, like if you want to have.

Like kids or have them, like do the first communion or not to get into religion, but then it’s like, wait, were you married in the church? You know what I mean? It’s very interesting.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Yeah. A lot of different. Little things to consider, but yeah, these stories just never, never seemed to shock me. I just feel like, I don’t know.

So I know we don’t have much time I don’t want to take up too much more of your time, but I want to end it with our weekly confessions game. I’m still kind of figuring out how I’m like going to do this, but like people are sending me their confessions and I was having people rate it, but I don’t know if that really makes sense.

So we’re just going to read them. Okay. And react to like, your thoughts on it. This person said my bridesmaid from another state didn’t even bother to show up to anything. Just the wedding. Okay.

The MIA Bridesmaid: Flaky or Just Setting Boundaries?

So when I read that. I have like a more questions and it’s not like in a judgmental way, I was one time I had questions for the bride and everyone’s like, don’t judge her. But I was like, I’m just wondering, like, the bridesmaid say she was coming to these things and then just not show up?

Or when you asked her to be a bridesmaid, she was like, I’ll let you know if I can make it to certain things. Like maybe she has kids or she has got multiple jobs and then just couldn’t come to a bachelorette party or couldn’t come to a shower And I think you were the same way, but like, when it came to my wedding, I told my bridesmaids, I was like, you know what, like, here’s the dresses, like pick your style.

If you can’t come to the shower, it’s okay. If you can’t come to the bachelorette party, it’s okay. In fact, I had two people not come to the bachelorette party and I think someone couldn’t make it to the shower. But to me, that wasn’t like high priority. It was like, you know what? I want you by my side at the wedding day.

So I don’t know what your takes are on that. I agree.

Ivette: I agree a hundred percent. Like I said, the other stuff is kind of like the fluff, right? Like, yes, you want them to be a part of like the journey and stuff, but they’ve been a part of your journey. Like that’s why they’re a part of your party, your wedding party.

and actually in my wedding, same thing. I had somebody come just for the wedding. And then they left and I didn’t even see them. I didn’t get to spend much time with them, but it meant so much to me that she would even like agree to be a part, of it and be a witness. To like my story with my husband.

So yeah.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I think that goes back to communication is so important when you’re a bride and you’re expecting things of other people. There’s gonna be brides that like want things like this and like everyone must be in attendance where these kind of outfits and I’ve never been a part of a wedding like that.

I’ve just heard of them. so I think it’s good to be upfront and clear if you want something like that. Now, if it’s the bridesmaid saying she’s gonna come to all these things and then just bails last minute, then yeah, that’s a problem on the bridesmaid, because that’s just kind of a flaky person.

Ivette: I have a problem with like people saying that they’re gonna come and like be there. And yeah, they come, but they’re not present. I don’t know how to, like, explain that in a better way. that’s just

Christa Innis: hard

Ivette: for me.

Christa Innis: More like they’re checking a box and not actually, like Yes. A part of it.

Yes, that’s hard. Like if you were to invite someone and they were on their phone the whole time. Or sitting in the corner, not actually engaging. Yes. Yeah, then you’re like, why did you even You’re just a body right now. Right, . right. Yeah, no, I totally agree with that. okay. Anytime I post about my wedding, I purposely don’t include photos of my mother in law.

Is this next confession?

Ivette: Okay.I don’t really know what to say. Okay. I feel like obviously there isn’t a good relationship with your mother in law. are you doing this on purpose because you know that your mother in law is going to see the post and not see herself? Like, are you doing this out of malice or, are you doing it because she hurt you?

And also I want to know, like, what do you bring to the table? Because, relationships are a two way street. So, like, is this just on her? It could be. But do you have faults in it? It could also be.

Christa Innis: Yeah, and I want to say too, like, I’ve seen on the other side, like, a friend of mine, I’m not going to give too many details because I know she’s probably listening, and I don’t want to, like, give it away, but, she had, like, kind of, like, I wouldn’t say terrible relationship with her mother in law, it was just kind of, like, they butted heads here and there, and they just did not agree on a lot of stuff, and one day she, like, looked inside herself, And then they like, they literally like had conversations and I asked her recently and she’s like, things are amazing.

Things are great. And I think sometimes we like, hold on me. No, we love no, yeah, definitely not you. but She was like, things are so great, and like, she’s like, it was just like a communication thing, and I think it’s also we put our own guards up, like if, or if we see one thing that’s kind of like, weird, then we kind of are like, I don’t know, then constantly have a guard up, or like little things that irk us, but she’s like, no, things have been amazing, and so like, I think there’s always a chance, but.

Oh,

Ivette: that’s good, yeah.

Christa Innis: But this definitely says there’s some kind of animosity between the two of them, for sure. Yeah. okay, last one before we’ll close off. I know you gotta head out. okay, sister in law called off wedding planning to elope, told us to bring food to share at a potluck reception.

I feel like I have more questions, too. only get so much. But, was there a date set and we were gonna do this whole wedding and then she was like, Hey. We’re actually just going to elope, bring some food and that’s it.

Ivette: I want to know like how much in advance, like, what was the notice like?

Like, did everyone already have their rides made, dresses, or you know what I mean? Like, did everyone have all the stuff, all the foo foo, or like paper, hair and makeup already? Cause I think that would be upsetting to me, like knowing that I’ve invested so much. but also. Like, if that’s what you want to do, like, good for you, like, that sounds fun.

And if, I support that if you’re doing it in a way that’s being respectful to the people that are in your wedding.

Christa Innis: Absolutely. Like if you started playing and you’re like, this is too much for me, let’s elope. That seems more my style. Do you grow? Like I’m all about that because so many people regret their wedding.

I think when they don’t do what is true to them and their spouse. whether it’s they went big and they wanted to go small or they went small and they wanted to go big. There’s so many opinions. So just like tune it all out and do what works for you. well, I want to thank you so much for coming on.

I feel, I feel so weird being like formal with you because like not how we talk. But I try to like be like as loosey goosey as possible. But I know we didn’t really get too much into like you personally and what you personally do. But is there anything like I don’t know, cool or funny you want to share that you’re working on, or like a little bit more about you and then, I don’t

Ivette: know.

Yeah,

Christa Innis: I mean

Ivette: for me, I’m all about working with people and mental health. So I just encourage couples that like want to get married to be honest with yourself, be honest with your spouse, like set yourself up for success and ask really hard questions now because you don’t want to go into marriage and have to ask yourself these questions. your first year, second year, you don’t go to university without first having read the reviews and learning about the programs. You don’t get a job without understanding the salary with the hours of life. And this is like the biggest decision of your life. So, prepare, get ready for the test.

You know, you should be studying, you should be learning each other. and yeah, that’s, really my encouragement. And then another thing that I want to say is if you’re pointing your finger at your partner, Look in the mirror first, right? Like, let’s see what we can offer. Let’s see, maybe areas that we can work on.

And so, yeah, I’m all about mental health and making our relationship work, but in reality, we can’t change others. We can only change ourselves. So.

Christa Innis: I need like wise words from Ivette like probably like every week because there’s so many times and I was just saying this to Ivette before we like caught on I feel like there’s always some kind of like mental break I’m having whenever I like we’re like getting together and I’m like panicking over something and I’m like why does this always happen and she’s like I’m your safe space

Ivette: and I’m like I’m safe.

People come to me because you know what, if you tell me like your lowest, I’m going to up you and tell you something lower about myself to make you feel good about yourself and make you see that, we’re all human. We can all grow.

Christa Innis: Yeah. we’re going to work on a regular segment guys.

Yeah. Well, thanks for having me. Thank you so much for coming on. I know you’re,busy woman. You’re a mom of two. So are you. You’re in school, you’re working, you’re doing your thing. I’m so proud of you and, Thanks so much. Yeah, of course.

by Christa Innis

Dress Codes, Divided Families & Day-Of Disasters With Lisa P.

What happens when a dream wedding breaks more than just budgets?

In this episode, Lisa Pontius shares how her whirlwind romance turned into a wedding that fractured friendships—literally.

From unexpected parent fallout to the silent war of traditions and finances, Christa and Lisa unpack the hidden landmines of wedding planning that no one warns you about.

Plus, they dive into viral hot takes—from guest dress codes to social media restrictions—and ask: are you really ready to get married, or just pressured to?

Join me on Patreon and get bonus content every month!

Episode Chapter Markers

00:00 Introduction

00:34 Lisa’s Background and Content Focus

01:25 Self-Care and Mental Health Through Fashion

02:48 Crazy Wedding Stories Begin

03:06 Lisa’s Wedding Journey and Family Drama

05:07 Wedding Planning Stress and Family Dynamics

14:21 Wedding Hot Takes and Opinions

25:02 Wedding Story Submissions

28:26 Wedding Mishaps in the Heat

30:26 Rainy Wedding Stories

31:59 Reception Disasters

33:54 The Missing Bride and Groom

38:02 Wedding Planning Realities

42:37 Weekly Confessions

Must-Hear Insights and Key Moments

When the In-Laws Stop Speaking – Lisa shares how her and her husband’s parents became friends, then stopped speaking after the wedding drama unfolded.
Wedding Planning Pressure Cooker – Money, expectations, and tradition clashed hard during Lisa’s wedding, revealing everyone’s “ugliest selves.”
The Myth of the Perfect Day – Lisa reflects on being the bride: “I wish I had been a guest at my own wedding.”
Hot Take: Dress Code Boundaries – Lisa and Christa break down why curating your event is not controlling—it’s thoughtful.
Unrealistic Wedding Expectations – How Pinterest weddings and movie moments set brides up for anxiety and disappointment.
Setting Social Media Limits – Can couples really control what guests post? Lisa shares her surprisingly balanced take.
Marriage > Wedding – With 12 years of marriage behind her, Lisa offers clarity on what really matters post-vows.
Planning Regrets and Lessons Learned – Why day-of coordinators are non-negotiable, and what every bride should do first.

Words of Wisdom: Standout Quotes from This Episode

“My number one tip for brides—get on the same page with your partner first. Block out all the noise.” – Christa Innis
“Weddings bring out everyone’s true colors… and not always in a good way.” – Christa Innis
“You cannot blame the wedding party for a day you refused to plan.” – Christa Innis
“Marriage should enhance your life—not be the only thing holding it together.” – Christa Innis
“You don’t have to follow a timeline. Everyone’s journey is different.” – Christa Innis
“Everyone is kind of their ugliest selves around wedding planning. It’s a recipe for disaster.” – Lisa P.
“I joke that I wish I had been a guest at my wedding—being the bride was not awesome.” – Lisa P.
“Weddings are not indicative of marriage. They’re a totally weird, standalone experience.” – Lisa P.
“You’re not just curating photos. You’re curating an entire experience.” – Lisa P.
“Be careful who your parents become friends with. You might be stuck with them forever.” – Lisa P.

About Lisa

Lisa Pontius is a New Yorker-turned-Charleston housewife who brings bold opinions, vintage glam, and real talk to every conversation. A former culinary school grad and kitchen pirate, Lisa traded 12-hour shifts for southern living—and never looked back. She first began sharing her story online during the pandemic and quickly found her voice talking about motherhood, self-worth, toxic relationships, and societal norms—always with a splash of style. Now known for her blend of 1950s glamour and modern edge, Lisa dishes up a mix of fashion, fire, and unfiltered honesty that’s anything but boring.

Follow Lisa P.

Join the Drama with Christa Innis:

Got Wedding Drama? We Want to Hear It!

Submit your story today: Story Submission Form

Follow us on social media for updates and sneak peeks at upcoming episodes. Your stories inspire the drama, the laughs, and the lessons we love to share!

A Team Dklutr Production

Blog Transcript:

Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies

Christa Innis: Hi, Lisa. Thank you so much for joining me.

Lisa P: Hi. Thank you for having me.

Christa Innis: Yes, I am so excited to dive into this. like we were just saying before, recording, there’s so much drama when it comes around weddings and events and all that stuff. But before I talk too much, can you just tell everyone a little bit about you and, I don’t know, like maybe what interested you in coming on?

I feel like I’ve seen your content. A lot and I feel like you share a lot of important takes so I’m just interested to hear a little bit more about you and, what kinda I interested you.

Lisa P: Yeah. well, I’m Lisa. My handle is, it’s me, Lisa p across all socials. I share a lot about motherhood and relationships on my page, so, the conversation of weddings absolutely comes up.

The conversation of marriage comes up. So, I was intrigued to kind of come on here and talk about some of the drama that surrounds it. but yeah, my content really focuses on. relationship motherhood centered, but with like a real life spin. I like to kind of get to the why of the way things are, in a cute outfit.

So a little bit

Christa Innis: of everything. Yeah. I just say like, I love your style. I am always like you so put together. And I like thought about that when I was like coming on. I was like, okay, I need to make sure I’m like. dressed well because I know Lisa will be, she has such good style.

Lisa P: Listen, I love an outfit, but I’m just as likely to show up in, like my gym clothes if I haven’t had a chance to get changed.

So I totally get it. I just, this is one of my like self-care pick me up things that kind of got me out of my motherhood blues, and I consistently keep up with it because I know it’s. Like such a mental health thing for me.

Christa Innis: Yes. I am right there with you that I did the same thing. Like especially with working from home, I feel like you don’t see a lot of people all the time or like, I’m just here with my child.

And so sometimes it was just like, I need that feeling of like getting ready. And so like, even when I was home during like COVID, I was like, I need to like make sure I like, do something to make for myself. It’s like an

Lisa P: art. I think I got more into it actually during COVID because I was already a stay at home mom.

But I had that like busy schedule outside of the home, so I’d go from like gym to running errands to being with the kids. So I like wouldn’t have that time. And then once everyone was home, yeah, like fully sweat panted, I was like, oh no, no, no. I gotta get up and put some pants on because Yeah. Otherwise this is gonna be it for the next decade for sure.

Yeah.

Christa Innis: Oh, a hundred percent. I know. I was like, I can’t be someone, I can’t just like sit. In sweats all day Of course, there are days I am in sweats all day. I will not never deny that. I love a good sweatsuit, but If I’m like doing something from home, I’m like, I still need to like do something or else I will just melt into my bed.

Lisa P: For sure. It shifts your energy I think and it like definitely makes me feel more, especially ’cause I’m around little people all day, you know? It makes me feel like a little bit more adult.

Christa Innis: Yes, absolutely. I love that. Okay, so jumping into like crazy stories, people love hearing the crazy wedding stories.

I’m sure we’ve all have witnessed. I know I have some things you have. A situation, I dunno if situation’s the right word, something that happened in your family when it’s relating to weddings and marriage. So I dunno if you wanna talk a little bit more about that.

Parents Became Best Friends… Until the Wedding Planning Began

Lisa P: Sure. so I feel like I have to preface this with me and my husband moved very quickly, like right after we met.

We knew that was at one, like we were ready. I think we like attempted to put a deposit on a wedding venue down before we were even like. Publicly engaged. Wow. So it was very untraditional in that sense. And I think that sort of started off the entire wedding journey with our respective families and kind of threw everyone for a loop from the get go.

we were just ready to get married as soon as we met. And, yeah, so we actually met because. My parents who were like new transplants to Charleston, which is where I’m still living. they had met his parents and they had become fast friends, so they. Friends first before I had even met my husband, before I had even like, heard of my husband.

Christa Innis: and somehow, like through the process of us getting married, their relationship completely disintegrated. And you hear it all the time with weddings that like friendships will break up.

Mm-hmm.

Lisa P: But like, this was so out of left field because these were like the adults in the room, right. Like these were the parents.

Christa Innis: Yeah, especially too, because like, I dunno, I feel like that’s like a dream for a lot of people. Like they meet and then it’s like, oh my gosh, maybe our kids will get married. You know? Like it just,

Lisa P: well we thought we had it hacked. We thought we were about to hit the grandparent lottery of like, oh, we’ll have kids and they’ll just all watch these kids and just hang out.

Like, this will be great. It did not work out like that.

Christa Innis: Was it the wedding planning? And of course like if, there’s anything like. Too intrusive or you don’t wanna share, like, just stop me. do you think the wedding planning or like the moving fast or anything with that, that had to do with it or just like happened soon?

I think

Lisa P: so. It was 100% the wedding mostly. I mean, I don’t, again, I’m not privy to like what went on behind closed doors in their friendship. There might have been like some underlying stuff, like, who knows, right? that’s their drama. But the wedding. Added so much like pressure onto it and onto me and my husband at the time too.

Wedding planning is extremely stressful. There’s money involved, there’s like traditions involved. There’s a lot of things that like are much more serious than like a social relationship, and sometimes you kind of, what I think happened is like their incompatibilities as. Friends kind of got blown up like blown wider because of the wedding planning and the pressure of that.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I was just talking to someone how like weddings, especially when you bring in two families together, almost brings in this like Unnecessary comparison though, right? Because it’s like if someone’s like, let’s say like family A is like really into planning and like maybe they have a little more finances or something.

The other one not so much. They might feel a little like. Uh, not insecure about it, but they might be like, Ooh, like I’m uncomfortable with this, or I feel like they’re doing so much and I can’t do enough, or, I’m being pushed out. when that might not be actually happening. They might just kind of have those feelings of like.

what’s going on here?

Lisa P: I think everybody wants it to be like, really, even like really down the line. And like in movies you see it, you know, there’s like the bride side and the groom side, and it’s equal. And I think that’s just not as realistic as like it actually goes down.

I know in our situation, both of my parents are only children, so there isn’t like a huge extended family on that end. But traditionally the bride pays for the wedding. So like. There was a lot of like, well, this seems like a lot of your people and like, we don’t have a lot of people and we had a very small wedding anyway because that’s just what we wanted.

but it definitely. Everyone had a lot of feelings about it, about like how many people were coming, how many cousins we could invite, who all was gonna be there, who all was paying for what, and it just, ugh.

Christa Innis: It like there’s so many Yeah. Opinions that come into a wedding that it’s like, it’s so hard. My number one tip for brides like that, like watch and like listen. I’m just like, get on the same page with your partner first. Block out all the noise because it’s so hard. It’s like you get people coming in that you maybe never had an opinion on anything before.

And they come in, they’re like, you need this. And you’re like, wait, do I need, yeah. Where did this come from?

Lisa P: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think weddings are in some way, like. Not indicative at all of marriage. So I think it’s such a weird standalone experience. And again, I’m now looking at it like 12. We just celebrated our 12 year anniversary, so like 12 years later, all the feelings have subsided.

We can laugh at it now, right? we can all laugh at the drama and the craziness and how stressed we were because it wasn’t the end of the world at the end of the day, we got married and we’ve been married and marriage is longer right than,the wedding part, but. I think, you know, the family’s coming together.

This is the first time where people have to like work together, you know, work within each other’s boundaries. Maybe set some boundaries, maybe do things that their mother-in-law doesn’t like. Maybe like these are the first things that you’re like, oh, I’m not gonna be able to make everyone happy and myself happy all at the same day the same way.

Christa Innis: Yeah, yeah, that’s true. It’s like all the personalities coming together and. Certain ones really shining a certain a way me might not have seen before. I’ve definitely seen it in a lot of weddings. I’ve seen it in a lot of just events in general. Just like family events. You see like, oh, that’s how they, they are in this light.

Right? Or this is, that’s how feel about that. Interesting. Yeah. I feel like, you know, it’s just like. Especially like you don’t know what other pressures they’re getting. Like I know like just certain brides, like I’ve known before, they get married and then I know them during their wedding and I know them after their wedding and I’m like, oh, some of them were different people during all of those stages.

And not saying good or bad, I’m just saying like they just had different pressures put on them or different, you know, situations. And it’s just interesting how that comes up.

Lisa P: I mean, I know I felt victim to like the want everything to be perfect, like hyper fixating. I think brides in general do that. I think that’s where the bride Silda comes from.

Yep. Um, because there’s so much pressure to want this day to be this like picture perfect. Oh my God. Once in a million like time moment. And there’s so much pressure on it that I like. Oh my God. I, I joke with people all the time that I wish I had been a guest at my wedding. ’cause my wedding was awesome. Being the bride at my wedding was not awesome.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I, I heard that so many times and I was one of the later ones, like outta my friend group. I was like the la one of the last ones to get married. And I, my husband and I had been in so many weddings, so I’ve seen so many and I heard so many bride say that they were like.

I didn’t get to enjoy it or like there was too much of this going on or I kept getting pulled in different directions and so I was like, okay, I wanna try so hard not for that, to that to happen. Of course it did in to some extent, but yeah, you hear about that so many times. You put all this pressure on this day and half the time the bride and groom don’t get to enjoy it the way they want to.

Lisa P: Yeah. I think there’s just so much anxiety and so much riding on it and like. I feel like that contributed a ton to our parents, like kind of having a friend break up, um, during it for sure. Because everyone is kind of like, and this sounds terrible because it’s like a day of love, but like everyone’s kind of their ugliest selves, um, around like wedding planning.

’cause there’s big money and there’s big expectations and there’s big family. It’s a recipe for disaster. Yeah. Like, it’s just a recipe for like, something to happen. Like there’s gonna be some drama. It could be like with your girlfriends, it could be with like a bridesmaid or a groomsman or like, it doesn’t have to be your immediate family, but like, something’s coming up.

Christa Innis: Yeah, yeah. Oh, that’s for sure. It’s, they say everyone’s like, true colors come out during like intense moments and events like that. Um, so moving past that, so they kind of just like drifted apart and like. Now at family events, they just kinda like drift by. They like still aren’t

They Were Supposed to Be Co-Grandparents

Lisa P: friends. Um, they are co grandparents.

Um, and there are like family events where everybody comes and everyone’s like, fine and peaceful. But like I, I almost like to the point where I almost forget that they used to hang out like independently before us. You know what I mean? Like mm-hmm. They act like Stranger Law grandparents. Um, but yeah, they used to like.

Have beers by the pool and hang out and like that just blows my mind.

Christa Innis: Wow, that’s so interesting. It’s interesting how relationships can just change so quickly like that when you go through an experience, I guess.

Lisa P: Well, and I’m sure they, they all in their own way probably like, ugh, we’re gonna have to see them forever.

Like a divorced couple. Yes.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Like they’re literally going through all those stages. ’cause they’re gonna. Like they, yeah, you can’t just ghost

Lisa P: each

Christa Innis: other and like never

Lisa P: see each other again because it would be easier, like you could totally do that one. One set of these parents doesn’t even live here anymore, so like it would be easy to never even think about each other except for the fact that you share grandchildren now.

So be careful who your friends are. Yeah.

Christa Innis: Oh my gosh, yes. Wow. Yeah, I would say that would be a, I don’t even know if I would call the crazy story. It’s, it’s sad that that happens and it’s like sad that there’s like pressure on weddings and stuff, but, uh, I guess I. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be at the end, but

Lisa P: it, it was meant to be because you guys met through it.

I like to think that they were friends only for long enough to like bring me and my husband together. That’s my like silver lining about it, that they were never really meant to be friends. That that was kind of part of like the plan.

Christa Innis: Yes. I love that. I love that. And you guys knew right off the beginning, right from the bat that it was meant to.

Lisa P: Yeah, we knew. We knew really early and like, I know everybody says that. Some people get that like light bulb moment. Personally, like full disclosure, I didn’t have the light bulb moment. My husband had the light bulb moment. Um, but he, yeah, he turned to his dad after the first weekend we had met and we met at my dad’s.

60th birthday and we met because I flew down to Charleston for my dad’s birthday. And my husband’s parents were guests at like this birthday party, Shindi situation. And they like roped him into coming to kind of like, hang out with me ’cause I would be the only like under 60-year-old person. Um, and that’s how we met.

We were like kind of, they say it was like, it wasn’t a setup, but. It worked.

Christa Innis: Yeah. It like wasn’t a set up, but they were like, he’s got a son. They’ve got a son. I don’t know. You’re home. Yeah. Like, take your son maybe. Yeah. It was all meant to be in, in just a, a different kind of way. Um, all right. I love that.

Thanks. Thanks for sharing that. Um, okay, let’s get into some wedding hot takes. So these are different hot takes that people. Send to me on my stories and we’re just gonna kind of react to them, say what you kind of, what you think about them. Okay. Um, all right. Should couples get to control what guests post on social media about their wedding?

Lisa P: I guess it depends before or after the wedding, but like, I don’t think so.

Christa Innis: I know I’ve never really heard of that before. Lately I’ve been getting a few more like that, that are saying like, I don’t see, I was never like. I

Lisa P: feel like I got maybe too early to like even have that as like a conversation because like, like the hashtag thing hadn’t happened.

So I don’t think you can control everyone around you. No, unfortunately, no. Yeah. I feel

Christa Innis: like when it comes to like, okay, the bride’s getting ready and she hasn’t like come out yet. Yeah. Like don’t post.

Lisa P: Yeah. Don’t

Christa Innis: post a picture

Lisa P: of the bride in her dress before she does her like walk down the aisle. Like, be respectful.

Don’t post any pictures where the bride looks bad. I feel like that’s just not being a, a friend. Right? Like, you know, if you catch her like picking a booger, maybe don’t post that one. Um, but yeah, as far as like what they can share, I, I don’t see a problem with it.

Christa Innis: I feel it’s like the age we live in, it’s like you just know, like being a bride or groom at the wedding.

Like people are gonna take pictures, hopefully not during the ceremony if you have no photos, but you know.

Lisa P: Yeah, you’re not just gonna be able to share your professional photos. People will have like candidates and stuff.

Christa Innis: Yeah. And last times those turn out really good. I mean, I didn’t have photos like during the ceremony, but like I had some random like f friends that took photos, like during our fir first dance that were like so good that like just, they just happened to catch.

And I was like, you don’t. Yeah.

Lisa P: Um, we had a great video. We had a videographer, which I think was like pretty new when we got married. We got married in 2013, so like, okay. It was a while ago. Um, so we had a videographer and we had a photographer and I wanted a lot of those candid, so we did get a good amount of those, which I’m so thankful for because I think those are so fun.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I know. I ended up liking ’cause Yeah, we did the same, we had two photographers and a videographer and I loved the candid photos like so much more than the stage ones. Like the stage ones. I was like, oh no.

Lisa P: That was one of the things I had to fight my family on ’cause I wanted like a very. I guess now you would call it like editorial style.

Mm-hmm. Photography. Um, ’cause I just thought it was so romantic and pretty and like again, this was right like in the middle of Pinterest wedding, so I was like, let me do something a little different. Um, and they were like, no, you have to have the like portraits. We have to do every family member in every iteration stand there, smile, portrait.

And I was like, okay. That one. I was fine.

Christa Innis: You’re like, all right, that’s your thing. Okay. Yeah, I know

Lisa P: I have those though now, but

Mood Boards, Dress Codes & Wedding Boundaries

Christa Innis: I, yeah, it’s like I feel like they’re the ones that like look nice, but like I felt like when I was looking through them, I was like, that just doesn’t look like me. But yeah, you gotta have those, but sometimes you gotta do the old school thing for sure.

Yeah, it’s good. It’s a balance. Um, all. Is it setting boundaries or just controlling to ban certain songs, colors, or styles from your wedding? Because I’ve been hearing this more and more about people like setting a certain, like, no,

Lisa P: actually, I think that’s setting boundaries. In fact, I don’t think it’s controlling.

I think it is like, I think it’s curating. Mm,

Christa Innis: mm-hmm.

Lisa P: You’re curating your event. And I’m a girl who loves a theme. Okay. So like, if someone gave me a color palette and a vibe, I would be fucking psyched. Um, because I’d be like, what we’re doing glam Met Gala, black Tie. Got it. Like, I feel like. I think that is curating not just like the after products, like the photos and stuff, but you’re curating the whole experience.

Mm-hmm. Which makes it a more immersive experience in general, and that kind of elevates everyone’s exper experience.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I was just talking to someone about it and people get so offended by. Being told there’s a theme or like certain things to follow, but as like a planner as like, I don’t know, type A in, in some aspects, I love being told it too.

Like if they’re like, wear a shade of pink. I’m like, let me find my best pink. Um, let me look for it. Yeah,

Lisa P: no, I know at least that, you know, the expectation I, my biggest pet peeve is where it’s like so randomly vague that you’re like, what does this mean? Yeah, like barn cocktail, I’m like. Our boots too much, right?

Like where are we at? Like which level? Give me, give me more references. Gimme a Pinterest board. That would be great. Gimme a reference. Yeah. I have a friend of mine who does this constantly and she’s a, like a photo stylist and like it’s very on brand for her. This is what she does, like her living. But whenever she has an event, she will send out a mood board.

Oh my gosh, I love that. Or like outfits. So she had, um, her, God, was it her 40th? I think it, no, it couldn’t have been her 40th. Anyway, she had a big birthday that just happened and she had it at a magic show and she sent out a mood board and everybody showed up and showed out. And like we were the only group that was dressed up.

Okay. Like circus for performers. But we were all doing it together. Okay. Yeah. And it had colors, it had mood and vibe, and she was like, this is the vibe. And everyone was like. Bet and like someone came as like the rabbit coming out of the hat. It was wild, but it was so much fun. Oh gosh. If you’re not to that, I can understand why that would be intimidating, but you could still just pick colors.

Yes. You know, you could, you could still adhere to it.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I think it’s nice because when there’s those times, certain events, not necessarily a wedding, but we’re like. It looks like everyone’s attending a different event. Like someone’s in a formal dress, someone’s in like leggings and a t-shirt, and it’s like, we’re like, what’s the, I always, I feel like I always try to dress a little nicer than I think ’cause I’m like, I don’t ever look under.

Take it from me. Yes. That was like, I feel like someone told me that years ago and I was like, yeah, I always wanna be a little, little over, because you never really know what to, what

Lisa P: to expect. Yeah. Well, listen, if someone’s gonna talk about you, you would rather them talk about like, wow, she was really overdressed, but that was a great outfit.

Yes. Than like, oh, yikes. You know what I mean? Like you’d always rather be like shining. Yes. Yeah. Like let’s not wear like jeans to a wedding. But I also feel like the dress code thing has gotten very convoluted in between like our parents’ generation and our generation and now like the younger generation getting married.

I feel like people really don’t understand, and I see this on TikTok all the time, and I feel like since you’re in the wedding sphere, you probably see it a lot, but like people don’t understand the difference between cocktail and black tie or black tie and white tie and these sort of like. I feel like giving the vibe and the color and like a theme is like the new way of doing that.

Christa Innis: Mm-hmm. Yeah, I agree. Because I’ve definitely have spent time like googling, like, okay, it says cocktail formal. And I’m like, what does that mean? Is that like a step up from cocktail? And I’m like, what does that mean? Um, so yeah, I, I agree. I feel like that’s their way of like helping them out. Like some people take it as like.

Oh, it’s so, um, you know, Bri the Bridezilla term so entitled, so it’s bridezilla to do this, but I’m like, I feel like from a bride’s perspective, they’re like, no, I’m, I’m trying to help. Like, I’m just like giving you some guidelines so you like, it’s easier. You’re like,

Lisa P: yeah, it’s a formal event, but it’s also like in a meadow with like grass and flowers and like, yeah, you might not wanna come in like a sequined ball gown.

Like, it’s just not gonna fit the vibe. So like, yeah, here’s the thing.

Christa Innis: Yes. We want you to feel comfortable and at home here. That’s why I always think about it. Um, awesome. What was the last one? Should a maid of honor or best man ever bring someone the bride or groom used to date? Oh, I’m gonna say no.

Lisa P: No, that’s not even like a hot take.

That’s like a obvious one. Yeah,

Christa Innis: I would, I would hope not. I’ve been seeing these like crazy stories lately. Um, someone commented on a video saying that. She was at a wedding where the maid of honor gave a speech for her sister. He was her twin sister. Turns out she had dated the groom before and in her speech talked about how she was a better sister and that he should have picked her.

I was like, how is this real? Like I, I don’t

Lisa P: you marry your sister’s ex-boyfriend. That’s what my thought. Like that. Wait, yeah. Like five steps back.

Christa Innis: How? How? Yeah. I was like, ’cause she’s like, he, when he met the twin, he’d left the other one. So I’m like, how intense was like, were they like teenagers and dated or were they like living together?

Yeah. Was

Lisa P: this like 10 years apart? You know what I mean? Like dated the sister in middle school. Right. Maybe if that’s the situation where it was like a, you know, you were eight years old in third grade handing notes back together and you were like, this is my boyfriend. And then like. If your sister started doing him in college, then I could get it.

That’s like the only scenario I could see that being Right. That’s like just really tricky waters. Like I just like not for me, not for me. It’s not for me. Absolutely not. I have two sisters and never has there been a stream crossed ever in any way, nor would there ever. That is just, Nope.

Christa Innis: No thank you. No, I’m the same with friends too.

Like I know people that I’m like, oh, I dated my friend’s ex, whatever. I’m just like, once a friend is like with that person, I’m like, no, I’m good. Thank you.

Lisa P: Agree. The closest I ever did was I dated for like a long time. A guy that my friend had like a hookup once with, and there was a conversation ahead of time.

Like, there’s gotta be a cur, like a courtesy call, right? Being like, Hey, is this weird for you? Is this okay? Are we okay? Yes. Yeah. ’cause that’s just, that’s real code. I mean, you’ve gotta, oh, sure. You, you can’t date someone’s like. No, that’s no. Yeah, don’t

Christa Innis: bring ’em to a wedding. Please. Definitely. Also don’t

Lisa P: bring them to the wedding.

Christa Innis: Yeah, no surprises. Especially. Okay, let’s get into this week’s wedding story submission. So these are a bunch of submissions that are sent to me. I don’t read them ahead of time, and we’ll just react in real time. So feel free to stop me or I’ll pause and here we go. Let’s brace ourselves. Okay. This wedding was just one crazy thing after another.

We all flew across the country from Oregon to Georgia. So, um, though some of us flew into Nashville and drove to save some money so the bride could get married at her parents’ house. The thing is they lived in a pretty normal subdivision and Georgia that they had moved to after she went off to college.

So she had no emotional attachment to it, and very few attendees lived nearby. She had been there for a month preparing for the wedding, but when we arrived the week before, she hadn’t done anything with the fake flowers to make them into bouquets. Hadn’t picked a single song for the dj, not even first dance, so we jumped in to help.

While I was helping her compose the song list, her dad yelled at me for being on his computer, even though his daughter was sitting right there with me. The morning of the wedding, the bride was on the front yard, in the front yard, setting up chairs for the ceremony and starting to yell, I’m claustrophobic if you’re not helping set up chairs, get out of the yard and none of you are helping.

We tried to help, but she really didn’t know what she needed help with and kept redoing everything herself, like moving chairs half an inch to the right. Yikes. Um. When she was finally getting ready to get dressed, her mom was nowhere to be found. After waiting over an hour, we sent the bride’s brother to check the neighbor’s houses, and they found her mom getting her hair and makeup done there.

When she finally came back to the bridal suite, which was actually just the master bedroom, the bride wanted a picture of her mom helping her into her dress. For some reason, instead of stepping into it, they lifted it up over her head and fell straight onto the mother of brides. Freshly applied bright red lipstick.

Oh my God, that, that’s my nightmare. That’s terrible. She said yes. It stained the dress. Oh no. If she’s already like that panicky, that’s razzled

Lisa P: and pissed off. Oh my God.

Christa Innis: Uh, everyone panicked. I ran to the computer. This was 2009, no smartphones yet, so I googled to how to, how to get lipstick out of the wedding dress.

I don’t even remember what the solution was, but we found the instructions and luckily the stain wasn’t too noticeable in photos, so we moved on with the day. The bride had insisted to get these fancy high heels that matched the floral belt on her dress. Most of the bridesmaids didn’t order them in time, but we all had to have heels and colors that coordinated with the floral belt.

I was her roommate, so I made sure to order them early. They were expensive and uncomfortable. You were talking about like the having everyone look the same. Um, and of course we had to walk through a yard in them since the aisle was in the grass,

Lisa P: so that was something that was not thought through. Like, this is already just like bad planning like this, this can all be attributed to a lot of bad planning.

Christa Innis: Yeah. This is just like not thinking of like the logistics behind everything. It’s like, yeah, you want these great shoes, but we’re gonna be walking in muddy grass or you know, through the grass. Yeah. Yeah. Ooh. I’m already like bat in heels, so walking in grass is terrible. Um, okay. We basically, um, aerated that lawn, our aerated the lawn ourselves.

I nearly lost a shoe and another bridesmaid almost fell. They, they scheduled the ceremony for 5:00 PM in direct sunlight. In the middle of July, the bride was sweating so much. One of her brothers, a groomsman, passed a handkerchief to the best man who passed it to the groom and handed it to the bride so she could wipe her face.

Oh, that’s another thing. Weddings, outdoor in the middle of the summer. Like you, it’s so hard to plan for. Like I’ve been to a wedding in the middle of July and same thing, we were like covered in sweat. The sun was literally like in our eyes. I dunno how the writing room felt. Oh my gosh. Well

Lisa P: then your hair.

Yeah, and like the hair, the makeup, the whole thing. Like it’s just

Christa Innis: all that time and money is just,

Lisa P: yeah, I know. We got married at the end of April and in Charleston it’s like hit or miss. We like, luckily had a good day, but we almost got rained out so could go the other way.

Christa Innis: Right. And I feel like that’s, it’s like so hard.

’cause you never know, every month has their kind of battles. Like, same with us. We got married the end of March. And it could be like rain, almost rainy season. We had every kinda weather that day. It was like snow, sun, rain or like whatever. Bring it our way. It’s fine. I think I would take

Lisa P: most things over.

Sweating though. Yeah. Rain. I feel like you could just be like, oh well, like

Christa Innis: there’s been a lot of pretty weddings I’ve seen online with rain and they like have like their umbrellas and it’s all like decked

Lisa P: out still. Do you know that scene from Pirates of the Caribbean? It’s like the second one where she’s like.

The wedding got interrupt, interrupted, but she’s like being rained on. Yes. And I always thought that was so beautiful that you could do this like white gothic wedding almost. If you had like the right vibe, it could definitely work out.

Christa Innis: Yes, and I, and I always look at those brides too, and I’m like. This is a bride that’s there to get married.

She’s like more of like, yes. Like let’s look, make it look a aesthetic and everything. But like, I love when they just show them like running down the aisle or like at the end, like getting rained on. I’m like, I love, that’s, it’s romantic. Yeah, it really is.

Lisa P: It’s, it’s an underrated. We had a, we went to one where it was pouring rain and luckily it, like, it was pouring rain the whole way up until like the, like the, she had to walk down the aisle.

Like we were sitting there. Everyone had like. So, you know, our programs covering our heads, like it was raining and then it stopped. Oh my god, I’m gonna get chills. Um, and this like wasn’t even my wedding. And she, she walks down the aisle, the sun comes out, and a rainbow, a double rainbow comes out at the end of their ceremony.

And I just remember thinking like. That’s amazing. Like Bravo, like I had the best photos. Yeah, the photos were unreal. Like it was so well done. Well done weather. Like it was well done. I love that,

Christa Innis: that

Lisa P: Yeah, that’s the thing too. It does not always happen that way, but I was very happy for her.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I feel like right after our rain, it’s like everything just looks like a little brighter, like Yeah.

That’s amazing. I love that, but the

Lisa P: sweating like a pig. Not so much.

Christa Innis: Yeah.

Lisa P: That I, that I’m kind of out on. There’s no aesthetic way to like handle that. There’s no glistening,

Melted Makeup, Broken Microwaves & Bridezilla Chaos

Christa Innis: no, I’m definitely not one to glisten when I’m sweating either. Um, after the ceremony we took a few pictures and they sent us. Up to the reception venue, a community center in their neighborhood, about half a mile away.

The caterers arrived at the same time the bridal party did. It was Mexican food catered by a restaurant, but they microwaved it on site. There weren’t enough outlets in the prep area, so they plugged the microwaves in throughout the room. Naturally, this overwhelmed the circuit. And tripped a breaker. No, someone had to find the breaker box to reset it.

Lisa P: Oh my gosh. This, oh my God. So my background is in catering and the second it was microwaved on scene, I was like, oh, this is gonna be bad. From like a, just from like, it’s gonna be gross kind of way, but also. The breaker box.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Because even that alone, like micro, we microwaving all the food. These like golf, I’m assuming

Lisa P: it’s like a golf club type thing.

Like they have kitchens, commercial kitchens. Usually I’m kind of think or usually skates will come and like see where they’re serving from ahead of time. So like that’s an interesting, or they would bring their own like. Affordable kitchen type deal. So

Christa Innis: yeah, that seems like another interesting thing with like logistics.

Like if you’re gonna get married at a place to not, for them to not tell you, like the people that like own the venue to be like, Hey, so we don’t actually have a kitchen, so you have to do, bring it hot

Lisa P: or I don’t know. Yeah, bring it hot, have some chaing dishes ready to go, like. Do they have like six microwaves, like through the reception area?

That’s what I’m picturing.

Christa Innis: We’re just gonna put on the head table for a minute. We gotta warm up. Yeah, just all of

Lisa P: these microwaves just showing up. I’m just like,

Christa Innis: yeah. Oh, this poor bride. Does it get worse? I know. Um, there’s a few more paragraphs, so I’m gonna get. Um, okay. Even after all the guests had arrived and had been just standing around talking for 30 minutes, there was still no sign of the bride groom or photographer.

There was no music, no announcements, and people were hungry. That’s one of my worst things at a wedding. I feel like food needs to be like on time. Priority. Sure.

Lisa P: Yeah. People are hungry. Can be drunk. So like feed them early. Yeah.

Christa Innis: You need to fill their bellies. Yeah. Like weddings where you’re waiting like an extra long time for food.

Like I feel like that you remember food, you remember things around food. At weddings, I. We, the wedding party and bride’s parents finally decide to let people go through the buffet. No one told us not to. About 70 minutes after we arrived and around 15 minutes after everyone, everyone had eaten the bride and groom finally show up.

So they’re all eating before the bride and groom come. ’cause no one knows where they are.

Lisa P: I get it. Sometimes you do like cocktail hour or you do like, but you gotta feed people or give ’em drinks or something. Long time.

Christa Innis: You have to think about it as like you’re hosting a party and so like your guests need to be taken care of.

Like yeah, you run away sometimes and do photos and stuff, but it sounds, yeah.

Lisa P: Photos after the ceremony are super standard, but like that’s usually when there’s like cocktail hour with some bites and some food.

Christa Innis: It sounds like there was no like wedding planner or coordinator or some, oh, no, there was no plan.

Get this in the. Oh my gosh. So at that point, the DJ announces them. The bride was livid, that people had eaten Without them, not much we could do. At that point, we had gotten them plates and had them sit down so the rest of the schedule could continue. During the cake cu cutting the groom ended up dripping chocolate down the front of the bride’s dress.

This poor, let’s just go to bed at this point. Done? Yep. Oh my God. Why are we having drip dripping chocolate? Like, we gotta think about these

Lisa P: things

Christa Innis: when we pick our desserts.

Lisa P: Dripping chocolate. I’m not sure I understand, unless it’s like a fondue thing, but,

Christa Innis: uh, yeah. Yeah. Maybe it’s like a. Was that chocolate fountain or something?

I don’t know. Oh gosh. The bridesmaids helped her to the bathroom to clean it up, and of course it just smeared. Luckily she was able to laugh this one off. Okay, that’s good. Good. Okay.

Lisa P: That’s

Christa Innis: a win. Yeah. The next day we saw the couple at brunch before they left for their honeymoon. The only thing the bride could say about the wedding was that she still couldn’t believe that we let people eat before they arrived.

She said it on repeat even after we explained the situation and we even had to remind her of the good parts. We actually stayed friends after that until I broke up with a boyfriend who I’m only, who I only dated for about 10 months, and she had only known for about five. He must have said something wild about me because she texted me saying she was worried about me.

I explained why I broke up with him. He was manipulative, verbally, abusive, narcissistic, and basically never heard from her again after that. Whoa. Interesting. Whoa. That’s a

Lisa P: interesting, uh, that was, that was a wild ending to like, this girl stuck it out for this wedding. Like that she was doing her best to make this day happen.

I know. And after all that, to just get a friend broken up with Yeah. What, I mean, the ex-boyfriend must have said something really heinous.

Christa Innis: Mm-hmm.

Lisa P: Like, I feel like you should corroborate that.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I would feel like. Like, if any of my friends, if their boyfriend or partner came to me and said something, I’d be like, yeah, I’m gonna trust my friend over you.

Yeah. I’m gonna

Lisa P: double check on that. I’m

Christa Innis: gonna, we’re

Lisa P: gonna have a

Christa Innis: talk. Yeah. Um, so she just ends with, last I saw she and her husband are still married with kids and seem happy, at least from what I can tell on Facebook. So, um,

They Thought They Could Plan a Wedding…

Lisa P: well, thank goodness they, you know, the, I feel like the, the older generation always says the worse the wedding, the better the marriage.

Or at least that’s, I think what they say like. To make people feel better about things like that. Yeah, yeah. Um, that honestly, I dunno if I, like, I feel like these things didn’t happen to this couple. I feel like this couple like thought they could plan a wedding and did and could not, like, could not plan a wedding and realized way too late.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I find because of the weddings I’ve been a part of, I find there’s a lot of times where people just. Nice as nicely as I can put it. They live in fairytale Land, so they like see a movie and they’re like, oh, that looks beautiful. But they don’t realize there’s all these people, people behind the scenes that make it possible.

So they have all these wishes or like desires for things to happen, and they think it’ll just happen on that day. They don’t realize like, okay, well if you want catering, then you need to have. Someone to set it up or you need a kitchen, or if you want your bridesmaids to wear these dresses, you need like an aisle for them to walk down or you need, you know, like they don’t think of all the things it takes.

Pay attention to detail, which

Lisa P: is why there are wedding planners.

Christa Innis: Yes.

Lisa P: Sometimes people can’t do that and you need someone to help you. And again, like we only had a day of wedding planners, so I did a lot of the planning myself, but I feel like I had. I had a lot of like friend vendors, so like that helped out.

But also just like, I don’t know, have you never thrown a party? Like there’s certain things, you know, alcohol, food, logistics, schedule like I do that when I throw my kids’ birthday party. You know what I mean? It’s the same skill. Yeah, you still gotta feed people, you’ve gotta make sure people can get there.

Um, probably wanna set up ahead of time. These are like pretty standard. Yeah. For hosting anything, not just a wedding. And a wedding is like 10 times more intense.

Christa Innis: Oh yeah. I know. My husband always laughs at me. ’cause like even for our daughter’s party, like birthday parties, which are like two, three hours max.

I like write out a whole timeline. I’m like, okay, food arrives at this time. People arrive at this time. Like I just, I have to visualize. Oh I’m, it’s funny, I’m like type A when it comes to like planning stuff like that, but like I see type A like mom videos and I’m like, I don’t think I’m a type A mom. I think I’m a type A like planner.

I don’t even know if that makes sense. But

Lisa P: I have some of that too. I feel like when it comes down to making sure things like kind of run smoothly, I can be very hands-on. I don’t make a timeline, so like I feel like that’s, that might be my next step over the top might be my next step. Um. Yeah, like I love hosting, I love cooking and like cooking very much is about timing and execution.

So like that sort of skill, like my biggest pet peeve is when I’m like finished cooking and I’ve timed everything and I’ve told people like when food’s gonna be ready? And then they’re like, absent mindedly, like mingling or something. I’m like, no, no, no. The food is hot and ready. Like right now.

Christa Innis: Yeah. This is the now time.

Right now. This is even time

Lisa P: we must sell now.

Christa Innis: Yeah, no, for sure. I feel like those definitely all those things, like I feel like when we said like, have you like hosted or whatever, I think there are a lot of like brides that this is their first time, like really like hosting something. You should not be

Lisa P: doing

Christa Innis: it on your own.

Like Yeah,

Lisa P: if it’s your never hosting anything, you’ve never done like a holiday party or you’ve never hosted your friend’s birthday party. Mm-hmm. Don’t try with the wedding, the wedding’s not the time to like take a stab.

Christa Innis: I know, I think that’s when it gets so stressful. I was the same with you where I, as you were, I had, I pretty much planned it, but like our event, our wedding venue had a day of coordinator and people don’t realize how helpful that is because that person’s gonna like do the behind the scenes, running around, making sure things are where they need to be.

And I’ve done that for a few weddings now and that I love doing it because I’m like. You tell me what to do. You tell me what needs to be done, I’ll make sure it’s done. Don’t get dirty. I will do that

Lisa P: if you want to. And like back to what we were saying before with, I wish I had been a guest at my wedding.

If I had also been like running around coordinating the, the staff and the vendors and the, the drop offs and the pickups, you’re not having any fun like that. You’re not having any good of a time at all because you’re so stressed about the comings and goings and there’s so much that goes into. Getting everybody where they need to be at the right time.

Right. Like and getting everything to execute.

Christa Innis: Yeah.

Lisa P: I am like a huge proponent of, even if you don’t do a planner for like the whole wedding prep. The whole wedding planning, definitely a day of like, yeah. But maybe that you’re like engagement gift right? From your parents or your in-laws or something. A day of coordinator.

Christa Innis: Yeah, just someone to like ease a little bit of the stress because you don’t wanna just like randomly like. Task people with it that day. ’cause they’re not gonna be thinking about it. And it’s just, yeah, there’s random things that just pop up. For sure.

Lisa P: They really are.

Christa Innis: All right, well, that was a crazy story.

All right, I always like to end these. I know we’re running short on time, but I always like to end these with weekly confessions, so people send me confessions kinda related to event or weddings, um, on social media. So let’s see here. This first one says, um. I absolutely hate the girl that my sister-in-law loves.

It makes me hate seeing my sister-in-law, too. Oh,

Lisa P: well hopefully that doesn’t last long.

Christa Innis: I don’t know. Yeah, I That’s, that’s tough. ’cause you can only do something much when it’s, when it’s a, a sister-in-law. I’m guessing it’s like a, your. Partner’s sister? I would guess so. You probably can’t.

Lisa P: That’s what I assumed.

I assumed it was like your partner’s, sister’s girlfriend that we were going with. That’s okay.

Christa Innis: That’s what I would get.

Lisa P: Yeah. Yeah. And like you usually button your mouth until you have to not button your mouth on that one.

Christa Innis: Yeah, yeah. Wait till they say something to you and they ask for your opinion, or something happens and you can be like, well, here’s what I think.

Until then, you gotta let it work itself out. Otherwise you’ll be the villain. Oh, absolutely. Yep. Um, this says I had to uninvite half of my friends to make room for my mother-in-law’s tennis buddies. No. What? Whose wedding is it?

Lisa P: Oh my God. I call it they’re gonna stop talking to the mother-in-law like five years down the road.

Yeah. Like altogether. No way. That’s insane.

Christa Innis: That sounds like, and I’m obviously reading between the lines, but that sounds like a mother-in-law that was maybe paying for part of it or something, and she used that as a way to like control the wedding because mm-hmm. I, I see the make room like you had to, like who’s, who said

Lisa P: you had to.

Yeah, that’s definitely, that’s a manipulation like that. Mm. I don’t love that. I don’t either. I feel like is probably gonna go bye-bye for in a, a little while.

Christa Innis: Yeah. We need to, we need to say no. Set some boundaries with that mother-in-law. Um, okay. This last one says, I joked I wanted pockets on my wedding dress for getaway money.

Deep down, I think I knew it was true. Oh. The number of times people have confessed to me like, oh, I’ve had a, I had a feeling, um, before the wedding. I told my dad I didn’t wanna get married before the wedding, and I still did. I’ve gotten so many of those.

Lisa P: I had a

Christa Innis: friend do that to me. Really?

Lisa P: Yes. I knew before they got married that they did like they, that, that, that she did not really want to start all over is like how she kind of put it.

Mm-hmm. Um. I don’t know. I took that to my grave. We don’t really speak anymore, and that is not my business. And they’re still married, so sometimes

If You Have Doubts, Don’t Walk Down the Aisle

Christa Innis: it works out. Oh, see, I was gonna say the opposite, uh, opposite happened to me. I, and I’ve talked about this before, um, but I was in a wedding years ago and every wedding event there was some kind of thing, and it was with him, every kind of thing.

And she, and she like cried in the car after the bachelorette party. She cried in the car. Oh, yeah. After the rehearsal. All these different things. And I was just like. Hey, maybe we like, should we rethink this? Oh, I, we already paid the vendors. I’m like, yeah, but divorce is way more expensive.

Lisa P: Oh God no. Yeah, no.

If there’s like, if there’s a doubt in your mind on the person, I feel like I. You’ve gotta cut and run. Like you, you getting divorced is so much more traumatic. It’s so much more expensive. God forbid you like, have a bunch of kids. Um, no, no. If it’s not right and like, this is why, uh, so on my page I talk a lot about, and I’m very happily married, that like marriage should not be this like.

Default standard that people are trying to hit. Because you know when you get 12 years in a marriage and you’re, you know, most people my age got married somewhere around the same time I did. You see a lot of divorces by now. Okay. We’re starting to have that first round of divorce A is coming through and it’s like, God, what a wait.

Not a lot of waste because like a lot of them have children and that’s like the wonderful thing that came out of it. But you know, you don’t have to get married like. You could end up really miserable like in so many ways. And that’s like, you know, it’s just not something that, if you can, if you can in any way, imagine your life without that person, not without a spouse, but without that specific person.

Don’t do it. Right, a hundred percent. Especially if you’re a woman.

Christa Innis: Oh yeah, totally. And I always have this too, like I’ve been with my husband, I think we’re going on 11 years this year. But we’ve been married three. And so like for us it was like, I totally agree with you what you just said about like, you don’t have to get married, you don’t have to follow a certain timeline.

So many people were constantly like, when are you getting married? When are you getting married? And I was like, we, like, we do things on our own timeline and I just feel like. So many people have this, like their own expectations on everyone else, and especially as women, I feel like we have the expectations of like, okay, I need to do this, then I need to get married.

I need to have a baby. And you feel like you have to follow this timeline.

Lisa P: Yeah. And it feels like a rushed timeline at the, at the moment. Like, and I feel pre to that too. I was like, oh, I wanna have two kids, um, by 30 and like I did, but. You know, now looking back at it, I’m like, you idiot. Like you should have just been like, find the right person and then figure it out.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I know. I remember like, I would like if it were just like my hu like then boyfriend, but husband and I, I just like doing our own thing. Like, we’d be like totally fine and then like someone would like bring up like, oh, are you guys gonna get married? And I would be like, do I wait? Are we doing something wrong?

And like, it almost puts us like, not like guilt, but this feeling of you of like. Wait, are we doing something wrong? Is our relationship, because we’re just dating right now, is that like wrong? And you start getting this like, no, because half

Lisa P: of the men in divorces anyway, so like, you know what I mean? Yeah.

Marriage isn’t the great indicator of like lifelong companionship anymore. Mm-hmm. Um, well, and like

Christa Innis: too our, like our parents’ generation, I feel like they were so committed to like marriage that like they stayed. Are unhappily married for so long without actually like admitting like, I actually hate this.

Oh, they wrong

Lisa P: gold stars for it too. They’re like, we’ve been married 35 years. I hate Jeff, but he lives in the other bedroom, so, you know, but we’ve been married this long. And I’m like, but why? What kind of award are you winning here? Like, I know some people have the whole like, divorce is a sin thing, but like you’re already in hell.

So. Yeah. Yeah. I don’t see the point in that like a relationship should only be there to enhance your already like wonderful life. And if it doesn’t do that, then it’s not worth it. And like kind of feel the same way about kids too. I feel like the relationships that I see with people who don’t have kids by choice, obviously there’s like.

People who have extenuating circumstances where they can’t have children, but people who choose not to have kids, I feel like they have this like gift of time to like really find their perfect partner.

Christa Innis: Yeah.

Lisa P: Uh, and they usually choose better.

Christa Innis: Mm-hmm. Like.

Lisa P: They get to choose somebody that they truly just genuinely wanna spend all their time with, as opposed to people who do, who do the musical chairs type of marriage, where they’re like, well, it’s been three years since college.

Like, I guess you’re the guy.

Christa Innis: Yes.

Lisa P: Yeah. Yeah. I guess you’re the person I’m with right now. So musical chairs, let’s do it. Like, let’s get married. Timelines are ticking, like I feel like it kind of saddles us down. Um, oh yeah. In a.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Yeah, that’s definitely another thing with, as women we’re like told that the biological clock is ticking, you need to have kids hurry up.

My husband and I since like one year, one of dating, when are you guys gonna have kids? And I was like, I’m not even thinking about kids. Or what are you talking about? And, and I like, and I like look back and I’m like, if I had kids when we had started dating, I was like, I would’ve been a completely different.

Ma Um, I would’ve been in completely different like financial point in my life and I just feel like we need to like, and not saying that’s right or wrong, I’m just saying everyone’s timeline is different. ’cause I know people had kids at in their early twenties and they are thriving and they were meant to be moms at that point.

But I just feel like it’s so important to like listen to your own timeline. ’cause I have friends now that are like,

Lisa P: this new generation is doing a lot better than like we were as millennials. Yeah. I feel like the younger girls are like, really? Coming to the table with the head on the shoulders a little bit more without like the fairytale movie, prince Princess aspect that, that we were kind of sold.

Christa Innis: Yes. I love that. Yeah. I’ve noticed like the shift in the movies, especially with my daughter being she’s two and I feel like. The movies have shifted. Obviously there’s still the fairytale, but I’m like, let’s watch Moana because she’s like brave and she, you know, or Meredith, she doesn’t need a man. You know, I try to like show her some different things because of course we still love the classics, but it’s good to kind of open the horizons up a little bit.

Lisa P: Yeah, definitely. I mean, my daughter is, I mean, she still like, very much knows she wants to get married and have kids like I knew from a young age. So I don’t like balk at that. Like I, you know, some people just like really have that desire. Um, but she still is like, well maybe I’ll be president and a dance teacher.

And I’m like, you go, you do both. I love that. Yes, you do both.

Christa Innis: Stop you, girl. I love that. Yeah. Yes. Well, thank you so much for coming on. This was such a good discussion and I feel like it was good to kind of like just kind of talk about like, obviously the pressures on women and Bridezillas and there’s just a lot of cool things we talked about, so thank you for coming.

Yeah, I loved it.

Lisa P: This is such a fun topic. I’m sure you get so entertained hearing all these stories, so that was so fun.

Christa Innis: Yeah, they always, they never cease to, uh, surprise or amaze me. It’s, it’s always something new. I bet. Yeah. Well, for anyone listening, um, where can everyone follow you, find more of your content and anything exciting that you wanna share?

Lisa P: Yeah. Um, you can find me on mostly TikTok and Instagram. My handle is, it’s me, Lisa PI like to say I talk about hard topics in cute outfits. Um, and that covers relationships and marriage and parenting and boundaries and setting boundaries once you have kids, which I feel like once you get past the bride phase, that’s coming next.

Mm-hmm. Um, and you can find me there. Um, and. I would like to say I have something big in the works coming, but I don’t because I homeschool my kids and this is what we’re doing. And that’s big in. That is big in

Christa Innis: in itself like mom and is a full-time job.

Lisa P: Yeah. I wear a lot of hats, that’s for sure.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Oh my gosh.

Awesome. Well, thank you so much. Thank you

Lisa P: very much. Have a good one.

by Christa Innis

Vegas Vows, MIL Meltdown, and Uninvited Guests with Saron Olkaba

What happens when a mother-in-law hijacks your wedding and makes it all about her? Absolute mayhem.

This week on Here Comes the Drama, we dive into one of the most outrageous MIL meltdowns ever. From insisting on a 500-guest wedding to uninviting the bride from a wedding dinner, this story is a rollercoaster of entitlement, manipulation, and jaw-dropping audacity.

Saron Olkaba, a pop culture commentator, reality TV aficionado, and queen of hot takes joins Christa for a brutally honest take on wedding chaos, pop culture madness, and why cash bars should be banned. They’re spilling all the drama—from surprise proposals gone horribly wrong to the great debate on whether kids should even be at weddings.

Trust us, you don’t want to miss this one. If you love wedding scandals, unfiltered opinions, and stories that will make you gasp, this episode is for you!

Join me on Patreon and get bonus content every month!

Episode Chapter Markers

00:00 Introduction

01:13 Pop Culture and Reality TV Talk

05:15 Wedding Hot Takes and Trends

14:43 Crazy Wedding Stories

19:25 Wedding Drama Unfolds

19:59 Mother-in-Law’s Overbearing Behavior

21:57 The Wedding Day Chaos

25:15 Post-Wedding Reflections and Confessions

Must-Hear Insights and Key Moments

A bride shares how her MIL tried to double the guest list, uninvited her from a wedding dinner, and threw a fit over boundaries.
Should you ever make guests pay for drinks?
Should we retire the bouquet and garter toss tradition?
A best man ambushes a wedding toast with a proposal—without asking the couple!
Kids at weddings: Are they cute guests or chaotic distractions?
When the groom actually attended a wedding-related event that excluded his bride…
MIL’s final meltdown: Blocking, crying, and dramatic exits—this wedding story escalates to a shocking ending.
Will the couple cut ties for good? Should this bride run before it’s too late?

Words of Wisdom: Standout Quotes from This Episode

”If you can’t be away from your kids, just don’t come, it’s fine.” – Saron Olkaba
”Some hills are not worth dying on and others are. You just have to trust your gut.” – Saron Olkaba
“Cash bars, certainly, never, it’s never okay under any circumstance. That’s a huge problem.” – Saron Olkaba
“Be creative. You don’t have to shove yourself into this box.” – Saron Olkaba
“ Let’s not surprise a bride and groom on their wedding day.” – Christa Innis

About Saron

Saron Olkaba is a pop culture content creator known for her sharp commentary on celebrity news, reality TV, and trending topics. By blending humor, insight, and real talk, she delivers engaging takes on everything from viral scandals to entertainment industry moments.

With a background in political consulting, Saron brings a unique perspective to the digital space, proving that smart women can love pop culture too.

You can find her sharing the latest buzz on TikTok and Instagram (@saronthings), and stay tuned for her upcoming YouTube series featuring deep dives into the hottest topics in media.

Follow Saron Olkaba:

Join the Drama with Christa Innis:

Got Wedding Drama? We Want to Hear It!

Submit your story today: Story Submission Form

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From cozy hoodies to quirky mugs, there’s something for everyone in our collection. Your purchase helps keep the laughs coming, and it’s the perfect way to show your support.

🛍️ Shop Here

A Team Dklutr Production

Blog Transcript:

Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies

Christa Innis: Well, hello. Thank you for coming on.

Saron Olkaba: Thank you for having me. I’m thrilled to be here.

Christa Innis: I’m so excited. I was saying before we started, I feel like I know you from watching, all your videos and your hot takes. I mean, you talk a lot about things in the media, I mean, right now it’s like Justin Valdoni and, I was gonna say Serena Van Der Woodsen.

Oh my gosh, aging. I haven’t watched Gossip Girl in so long. Blake Lively, totally a brain fart right there.

Saron Olkaba: Could not even think of the thing that people say about her, is that she plays the same person in every character she plays. So, like, Serena Van Der Woodsen and Blake Lively, kind of interchangeable.

Christa Innis: It’s fine. I do get a lot of news from you. I’m like, okay, when I see your video, I’m like, okay, I need to see what’s going on in the news. TikTok brings us all the good stuff we want to hear about.

Can you just tell everyone a little bit about yourself, what you do? and then we’ll kind of get into these crazy hot takes.

Getting to Know Saron Olkaba

Saron Olkaba: Yeah. So I make pop culture content on Instagram and TikTok. It’s content about like the zeitgeist things that are going on in the media, celebrity gossip. I think that, like most of my viewers and followers, are women. And I like to think that women contain multitudes, right? Like, I’m a political consultant in my nine to five day job, but, I also am obsessed with all things pop culture, and, you, Bravo and similar things. So I like to say that smart women Love this kind of sh*t as well. So I like to take it from a kind of Look at these things kind of from a higher level. I like to be fact based, but I also like to talk sh*t So it’s a fun little community.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I love it. I feel like it’s just a great Real Housewives, that kind of stuff, it’s great to just turn your head off, do your mind off, and just, watch some trash TV.

I haven’t watched Real Housewives in so long, like, that kind, but I was a big, like, New Jersey girl all the way. Loved watching it. So good.

Saron Olkaba: You have to, if you’re gonna watch the Housewives, Salt Lake City. Just watch that one. I urge you. To watch Salt Lake City. There are only five seasons. It’s immaculate. It’s horrifying. It’s. incredible, just please.

Christa Innis: Okay. I didn’t even know there was one. So I got to jump back in. I kind of like to hop around when it comes to reality TV. I was in bachelor nation for a little while. I wasn’t in it. I watched it.

Saron Olkaba: I missed

Christa Innis: Oh, yeah. No, definitely not. and then I would watch Bachelor in Paradise and I was like, I don’t know.

It’s all the same. Like I can’t get into it. So I like reality more. Like what’s going to happen is who’s going to fight with who? Right stuff.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah, I really got into The Bachelor because I feel like none of the couples really make it. So we’re just doing the same thing over again. We know how it is, they’re going to, they might be with each other for a little bit and then they break up or there’s two happy endings and 30 seasons. So, yes.

Christa Innis: Yeah. And it’s funny. I don’t know if you saw,, and by the time this comes out, this will probably be old news, but. Alex Cooper interviewed, I don’t even know if you know who Rachel Kirkholm is. Yeah, and they were one of the couples I was like, they’re holding on strong. They always presented themselves as happy.

And you see that and you’re just like, it was all a lie.

Saron Olkaba: Well, I think a lot of people are saying that he was just never gonna marry her if he didn’t want to get engaged at the end of this process where the end goal is to get engaged. What would make you think in the next four years something would change? So I’m excited to listen to that interview too.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I was listening to it last night, part of it and I was like, Oh my gosh, is she got her like quick. Let’s talk about it. So one of the reasons I was like, you would be perfect to have you come on this podcast is because you have so many great hot takes and I feel like just with these crazy, wedding stories, I get, um, proposal, engagement, all that stuff.

I was like, I need someone with some good opinions and we can just kind of banter through some stuff. So the first kind of category is crazy stories and wedding hot takes. So I have some different hot takes that people send me. And so I want to get your opinion on these. So what is one wedding trend or something that you’ve seen at weddings that you either absolutely include or you despise seeing?

Cash Bars, Garter Tosses, and Other Wedding Debates

Saron Olkaba: Cash bar, certainly, never, it’s never okay under any circumstance. That’s a huge problem. That’s a huge problem. Even if you don’t drink. Oh, alcohol free weddings. Even if you are sober, you got to provide, got to provide a drink or two and you can’t make people pay for it. I think it’s like the tackiest thing in the world. Period.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Yeah. I love it. I love it. No, I love it. I think it’s great. me personally. I agree. I feel like you need to have. Something there. I remember one time this actually just came to me. We’re talking about crazy stories. we’re at a wedding and it started off as a semi-open bar. So I think certain things were selected. It was fine. But then they switched to a cash bar without telling people and it was like people were getting their drinks. My now husband and I were up at the bar and he ordered drinks for us. And they were like, Okay, it’s this total. And he’s like, Oh, I thought this was open. Like, we didn’t have our wallets on us or anything.

And they’re like, No, switched to cash at 8 p.m. It was the weirdest thing. I would have said, Oh, I thought this was a wedding. Yeah,

I was like, Wait, this is weird. So then he ended up getting his wallet, buying the drinks. Then we left our drinks on the dance floor while we were dancing, and they cleared everyone’s drinks off the table.

So we’re like, they switched to a cash bar mid wedding, but didn’t announce it. And then we’re clearing the drinks off the tables when people are dancing. Oh no,

Saron Olkaba: That is absolutely unacceptable. Absolutely. You’re like providing an experience. People are coming out of their way to celebrate you.

They’re probably giving you a present. They might have flown out here. It’s not a paid experience. There’s already enough investment being involved in a wedding, just going to a wedding, doing all the events around a wedding. No, give them a good time if you’re gonna do it.

Christa Innis: Yeah. I totally agree with that. So, what are your thoughts on the bouquet and garter toss, because this is one of the ones I always ask Instagram followers, and this is like the one that comes up all the time to get rid of it, stop doing it. It’s weird. It’s gross. So what is your take on it?

Saron Olkaba: Yes to the bouquet, no to the garter. The garter is when the guy goes literally under her dress. That is a horror, that’s not okay. I can’t imagine. I feel like I’m at the wedding. My dad’s here, that’s so insane, no, please.

That’s not. I don’t feel particularly passionate about the bouquet as passionately as I feel about the garter knot, which should not be a thing, it’s fun, but I hope no one actually thinks that it means that you’re gonna be the one to get married next.

Christa Innis: I. Literally have been to so many weddings where the women get vicious and they like to push you. I’m like, we know we’re not actually the next one. Like it’s going to be okay. I’ve seen the videos too where they like literally push all the way and I’m like, it’s not that serious.

Saron Olkaba: Like full on shove her to the ground.

Christa Innis: No, not for me.

Saron Olkaba: Not for me at all. And then there’s the like, you throw the bouquet and then someone catches it or like she hands it to the woman so that she can get proposed to. That’s my list of no’s as well. proposals at the wedding.

Christa Innis: Yes, I’m so glad you brought that up because someone shared a confession with me last week saying at her wedding, the best man during his speech proposed to his girlfriend, who was also a bridesmaid.

And I was like, no one knew? The bride and groom didn’t know that was gonna happen? No one knew. She said she was mortified. Security. Security. Yeah, out of here. I was like, I need to know more. I messaged her and I was like, can you tell me more? And so she said they ended up pulling him away and being like, this is not okay.

And they didn’t understand why. But then he still came back, put the ring on her finger. She hugged him and said yes. In front of everybody. She’s walking around the dance floor showing off her ring. She’s like, yeah. I can’t even believe this happened. And she’s like, I always watched your crazy wedding stories thinking it would never happen to me.

And that happened. Were there any signs that this man was a psychopath prior to? They said they’ve been friends with him for a long time. And I, I don’t know. I don’t realize how Weird and rude that is.

Saron Olkaba: No, it’s so tacky. No.

Christa Innis: Absolutely not.

Saron Olkaba: Unless, you know, the bride is in on it. And I’ve seen videos where the bride is full on team, get proposed throughout my wedding, like here’s the bouquet, turn around, I was like, yay. And do you, God bless you. That’s incredible. right. Couldn’t be me, but incredible nonetheless.

Christa Innis: Right.

Saron Olkaba: So that’s fine.

Christa Innis: Yeah. There’s a lot of steps you should take before making sure that’s okay. Like no surprise. Let’s not surprise a bride and groom on their wedding day.

Saron Olkaba: Right? No.

Christa Innis: Okay. So these are just some fun, like picking a side on these wedding drama debates. These are other unpopular opinions that people sent me.

So this person said having kids at the reception is a good thing and they should come and feel welcome. What’s your take on kids at weddings?

Saron Olkaba: I think that just likeA declarative sentence, having kids at a wedding is a good thing, like, by what measure, you if the bride and groom feel like it’s going to be a safe experience for them and whatever, sure, but if they want to party and not have to worry about some kid getting trampled on the dance floor, that’s completely up to them, and you should absolutely respect it, It’s not up to you, so, I don’t understand why people get so upset about it, it’s a big deal for them, it’s the one event where they’re allowed to kind of do this, if you can’t be away from your kids, just don’t come, it’s fine, just RSVP, no, yeah.

Christa Innis: I know, that’s why I’m like, when people get so upset about it, I’m like, if you can’t go, just say no, wouldn’t be offended. Either way, I’m like, now that I have a toddler, I get it. If people do not want a toddler, day, night, either for me, or if we can’t get a babysitter, I will say no, because I would not want to.

A toddler there. Like, I get it. it’s just like, when people get so mad about it, I’m like, I don’t understand the philosophy.

Saron Olkaba: That being said, I told you I was engaged once and I almost got married. It was like a couple of months out from the wedding when it was cancelled.

But, having said that, I’m more than okay with child free weddings. We had set up child care for the people that were going to come and babysitters. And there was a difference, they were in a completely different place with their home. They would have been with their own food and their own people watching them.

And their parents could have gone back and forth to see whatever. So, If you’re going to have kids at your wedding, I think that’s a nice way to do it.

Christa Innis: I love that. I’ve been hearing that more and more. People have a separate area, a fun room for kids, or fun things, yeah. Padded walls. Exactly, yeah. Blocked, because that’s the thing. It’s like the biggest thing I think with kids at a wedding is, it’s the parents that aren’t watching the kids, or like, they’re at a certain age where they can get into anything. Like, I know if I bring my toddler somewhere, like, they’re, she’s gonna figure out a way to try to do something.

And so, like, there’s certain ages, too, where it’s like, you have to either be on them the whole time, or you can’t enjoy yourself. So, I feel like the extra room is great. Like, we had just, like, our nieces and nephews at our wedding, which was, like, so great. seven kids. And we, but we were provided with coloring stuff.

We had their own kids table. Plus we knew them well enough to where like, okay, we know they’re going to be well behaved there.

Saron Olkaba: So you said only like, I think that that’s perfectly fair as well. If you’re just like only the children that are related to us can come, like, and if people make a stink about not being able to bring their kids because, Oh, like, why can they come then? You know?

Christa Innis: Yeah. Sucks to suck. I know, because that’s something I hear too. They’re like, oh, but if you say no to my kids and I come and your nieces and nephews are there, I’ll be so mad. It’s like, you’re gonna be mad that like the bride’s niece is there versus like a co-worker’s son or something like that. I’m like, that’s so different.

Saron Olkaba: The entire drama is wild.

Christa Innis: They just don’t come. It’s fun. It is so wild. This person said, White bridesmaid dresses are weird.

Saron Olkaba: If the bride likes it, I love it. I’m not judging someone’s, like, aesthetic choices in, like, that sense. If the bridesmaid dresses are, like, stunning, gorgeous white, as long as they look good, I don’t care.

I mean, and, I don’t know if you’ve watched, like, Selling Sunset, Christine Quinn. She had, like, this black ball gown wedding dress. Oh, I did! Right? And so like, is it my style? No, but like, I don’t know. It’s 2025. We’ve been doing weddings for a long time. Like, let’s, I don’t know, let’s mix it up.

Christa Innis: I love, yeah, I love when people do like unique, crazy stuff.

I love when the bridesmaids all wear white dresses along with the bride. I think it looks pretty. But I saw this bride that had a dress that turned into a rainbow and like, like, she unbuttoned it and it turned into this rainbow dress. And I was like, that is beautiful. That’s stunning. That’s something I never would have thought of.

Yeah. Like, you go, girl.

Saron Olkaba: Be creative. You don’t have to, like, shove yourself into this box. Like, as long I mean, if you want to As long as you’re getting married at the end of it, that’s the end goal. Just like throw the party you want to throw and invite the people you want to invite. Like you’re spending a lot of money on this sh*t.

Have a good day, do whatever you want to do. Yeah.

Christa Innis: Do you black out all the haters? Pluck out the naysayers, provide

Saron Olkaba: booze, but provide,

Christa Innis: provide booze. Yeah. Provide some good entertainment. Good DJ. Yeah. Okay. Let’s jump into. This week’s story. It’s a long one. That’s all I can do. I have not read it. Just the beginning starts with the monster in law.

So it’s about to get kind of crazy.

Saron Olkaba: I love monster in law stories.

Monster-in-Law Alert: Wedding Drama at Its Worst

Christa Innis: It’s insane. I read these and I feel so grateful that I have a great mother-in-law. I reason I’m just like, these are insane. okay, so feel free to stop me at any point. And then I’ll kind of just pause and we can kind of just react as we go.

okay. I’ve been holding my tongue for a long while, but I’m angry all the time and I needed to get this off my chest. So who better than to tell you? Hopefully this will give some content, um, because I honestly don’t know what else to do about my monster in law. I got engaged in July 2024, and from the moment we announced it, my future mother-in-law started bombarding us with questions about the wedding.

She asked when it would be, how many people we were thinking of inviting. I told her around 250 guests and she immediately said, no, it should be 500, 500. Holy cow. Um, Right. I’m like, that’s the thing, too, is like you find the ones that are so opinionated are not even giving any money a lot of times.

Saron Olkaba: I would think that would be obvious, like, you can’t say you can double the wedding if you’re not paying for the wedding.

That’s insane. Okay, continue. Yeah.

Christa Innis: No, I agree. Um, I calmly explained that we only wanted people we were close to, family or not. I also mentioned it would be a kid-free wedding except for nieces and nephews. There we go. She lost it and started a fight. Okay, a few weeks later the topic came up again, and I mentioned we were planning a sober wedding since my fiance is two years sober. He’s like covering all the things we just talked about.

Saron Olkaba: I swear we did not cover

Christa Innis: Literally, I don’t even put these together because I don’t want to read them ahead of time, so I did not even know. My mother-in-law and future sister in law laughed and said it was fine. But my fiance would need to leave the reception because they would be drinking. Wait, but isn’t this his mom and sister?

Saron Olkaba: Why would they want your fiance? The groom would be leaving his own reception to drink elsewhere apart from the

Christa Innis: what? And this is confusing because I’m like, it’s the mother-in-law, you would think she would be not wanting to like you think she’d be up against the bride, but not the groom because the groom’s her son, right?

Saron Olkaba: I think that she’s probably positioning this as oh, he wants to have a good time and drink so he can’t stay at a dry reception all night. Like we got to go to the bar or some Insanity like that. I don’t know. Please. I can’t wait to go.

Christa Innis: What? Oh my gosh. Okay. Um, That is crazy. Okay. Eventually my fiance and I decided to get married in Las Vegas to avoid all the drama.

We kept the guest list to immediate family and one friend each because the venue could only hold 50 people. We thought this would make things easier. It didn’t. Oh yeah, someone like that’s going to come right in being like, You didn’t invite me.

Saron Olkaba: Continue. There’s no winning. Okay.

Christa Innis: Yeah, this is like two weeks before the wedding. Okay, so they still were going to have this big wedding. They just did like an elopement, just the two of them. So two weeks before the wedding, my mother in law started talking about my fiancé’s dad’s nephew. I’m like, fiancé’s dad’s nephew, okay?

Um, come back. Yeah. Oh yeah. I’m like, drawing a tree in my head. I’m like, where did this go? Um, I never met this nephew. In the 12 years I’d known my fiancé, I told her the guest list was set, and there was no room. She said that was fine, and he could just enjoy it, he could just join us afterwards. I agreed.

Five days before the wedding, my fiancé got a text from his sister in law, oh, from his sister. Inviting him to dinner. He asked if I was welcome and she said, no, family only. That’s weird. His mom chimed in, doubling down saying only immediate family. She cannot come. Okay. Don’t you think like a fiance kind of becomes that?

Okay, this was a dinner to celebrate my fiance getting married and I wasn’t invited what

Saron Olkaba: getting married

Christa Innis: to you and they didn’t want you to come. Okay, he went while I stayed home and then he went. See

Saron Olkaba: girl, this is why you can’t, I already know how I feel. You can’t marry this man. This is a crazy situation.

Don’t, you’re asking for misery for the rest of your f*cking life. Yes. Who will not, who will go to a wedding, a party about a wedding that you are the bride in, that you are not invited to. He said, chill, bet, like this sounds normal to me. This is how you want to start our union? This is insane. You can’t, you can’t do this.

You can’t marry this. No,

Christa Innis: I am. Yeah. What? I am shocked. Why would he go without you? That would be like a no for me. That would be like, sorry. Like, you, you’re choosing your immediate family, who, your fiance, new wife, should be your immediate family. No.

Saron Olkaba: Marry your sister then. Marry your mom. What?

Christa Innis: Okay, five, Okay, later, okay, so he went, while I stayed at home, later my mother-in-law made a Facebook post congratulating him and tagged me in it, which this is important later, she says.

The day before we left for Vegas, my mother-in-law asked me to lunch. Even though I had so much to do, I agreed. At lunch, she told me my fiancé’s little brother had invited a friend to the wedding. I corrected her, saying he asked Wait saying he asked but we said no. Okay, so that little brother had already asked them and she said no She replied.

Well, he invited her weeks ago, and I said it was fine. It’s too late to uninvite her now

Saron Olkaba: It’s not even too late to uninvite you b*tch. Okay, so what do you mean? It’s too late to uninvite her

Christa Innis: Like what is this controlling behavior? Like I’m already so like Angry for this person because I’m like he your fiance is not even on your side.

Saron Olkaba: I’m sweating. Okay,

Christa Innis: this is bad Yeah, I feel like hot

Okay, I was furious but decided to talk to my fiance first when I told him he immediately texted his mom explaining It was disrespectful to invite someone without asking us that she needed to tell the friend he couldn’t come This sparked a meltdown. My future sister in law started calling and yelling at him, but he stood by me, okay, finally, saying no one else was getting a plus one.

When we arrived in Vegas, my mother-in-law asked again, Okay, so the wedding in Vegas is where the mother-in-law’s coming?

Saron Olkaba: Did I? She’s coming to both. Okay. They did the wedding in Vegas first because they thought it would placate her. And they invited only the immediate family from both sides, right? But they’re still having this big wedding.

Okay. They thought it would shut her up to do the first thing.

Christa Innis: To do her own thing. Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Because I’m like There’s so much happening. Yeah, you’ve got me. Okay. When we arrived in Vegas, my mother in law asked again if the nephew could come to the wedding because he was already there. I reminded her there was no room and my fiancé backed me up.

On the wedding day, I went to brunch with girls from both sides of the family. My mother in law ignored me completely. Even when I greeted her, I brushed it off and enjoyed the day. This mother in law hates her. Like, this is, I would be like, you are, you can’t come. This is terrible. Like, why would you want to feel like a stranger or unwanted at your own wedding?

Like,

Saron Olkaba: I don’t, I’m like, you can’t have this. She just has the worst energy. She’s just gonna, she’s gonna try and ruin your day. Why would you, no, I would hire security, give them a picture and That would be it.

Christa Innis: Yeah, because it’s not her right to be at this wedding.

Saron Olkaba: Like,

Christa Innis: I’d be like You’re, you’re done. Sorry.

I don’t want you there. She’s a guest. She’s a guest. Yeah, you are nothing more than a guest who could easily be scratched right off. Um, at this ceremony, my sisters told me that my fiancé’s family had taken up the front rows on both sides of the pews. My mother in law refused to move, saying her parents can find another place to sit.

No, so now she’s rude to, like, her family.

Saron Olkaba: I, I’m, I, okay, like this would not be, go well

Christa Innis: for me, or, or, like, I, cause now you’re gonna be, like you said, you’re gonna be dealing with this mother in law for the rest of your life. Like, if it’s bad now, imagine like, if they have kids, or if they buy a house, you know, any step in there,

Saron Olkaba: I don’t understand why someone would, why anyone would sign up to deal with that forever.

Like, mm hmm. You’re asking to be miserable for the rest of you, what man is worth that? What man is worth having to deal with the devil day, no.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I really hope this ends with like, they cut her off. Like, they’re done with her, I hope. Fingers crossed. Uh, cause that’s like the only way this is gonna work, I feel like.

Um, okay. So she said she had to move. I had to ask the officiant to step in and remind everyone which side was for the bride’s family and which for the groom’s. This made my mother in law furious. After the ceremony, during photos, the photographer suggested moving one of my fiancé’s siblings to my side to even things out.

My sister in law loudly said, Hell no, I’m not going over there. I ignored it. At the bowling alley reception, my mother in law asked, “Who are these animals? Who

Saron Olkaba: are these beasts?

Christa Innis: I don’t know, why do they think they’re so much better than, like, her and her family? Oh, God. Jesus. It’s like I’m speechless. This is probably one of the worst mother in law stories I’ve read.

And I’ve read a lot. At the bowling alley reception, my mother in law refused to sign the guest book, despite me and my husband asking multiple times. When she finally did, she just wrote congratulations with no warmth, and she left without saying goodbye.

Saron Olkaba: Like why? That’s the nicest thing she’s done thus far.

That’s the most pleasant she’s been in this whole story.

Christa Innis: Yeah. The next day, my mom invited us to lunch before she left town. My mother in law didn’t contact us, but took my brother, my husband’s brothers to go go karting and sightseeing instead. When my husband asked why we weren’t invited, she said, you were busy.

We weren’t. Two days later, I made a Facebook post about the wedding and saw that my mother in law had untagged me from her earlier post. When my husband asked why, she said, it was a post only for you.

Saron Olkaba: Ew. Do you wanna f*ck your son? Like, what is going on here? Why? I’m sorry, can I, can I curse here? Yeah, you’re fine.

Christa Innis: A little late to ask that question, but. Redo! No. Yeah, it’ll be fine. I don’t know. That is, um, yeah, why? Like why? I don’t get these mothers-in-law that hate their daughters-in-law so much that they’re, that they have no, they don’t care like what they say, like, I don’t, like no one’s good enough for their son.

I don’t, I don’t know what it is.

Saron Olkaba: It’s an enmeshment. I think that’s the word. Or like, what is that, um, no, it’s emotionally incest, even worse. Yes. No, that’s creepy as hell. Right.

Christa Innis: There was this skit, I don’t know if you watch SNL. There was the, did you see, um, oh, who hosted the Timothee Chalamet one? No, I haven’t seen it.

This last weekend? Okay, you have to watch it, but there’s one about that, but it’s extreme, like the Oedipus Complex. It’s about like Mother’s Day and like the sun being like, hey mom. I don’t know, it’s like. I,

Saron Olkaba: I’m horrified that I’m going to be looking this up just immediately after we get off this.

You need to.

Christa Innis: It was like a cringe, but I was like. It’s like way over the top, but it was like some of these moms, yeah, I could see it. I find

Saron Olkaba: It’s like, once you meet this psycho mom, mother in law, right? How, and you see that this man sees nothing wrong with their relationship and kind of encourages it and won’t ask her.

How are you still attracted to this man that might want to f*ck his mom? Like, I, how do you not, how do you not get the ick immediately and run away from, like, self preservation?

Christa Innis: Yeah, like, cause this is, my thing is, this is not the first time something like this has happened. She had given signs before they got engaged, or when they first met, like, I’m thinking, like, first dinner at a parent’s house.

Every girlfriend

Saron Olkaba: had a book before

Christa Innis: him, before her. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Yeah, like, what were the signs before? Yeah, because it wasn’t like, oh, they’re engaged now, they’re serious, now my real, like, craziness is gonna come out. Like, I feel like she had to have treated her poorly before this.

Saron Olkaba: Right. And the sister in law is also a b*tch as well.

Christa Innis: Yeah, what’s the deal with that? Okay, three days after the wedding, she texted my husband saying she wanted to talk about my behavior at the wedding. What? He told her he wouldn’t have that conversation without me there, and she refused. A few days later, she blocked me on social media and deleted my husband?

So what her behavior was like having boundaries and like, No, expecting her

Saron Olkaba: parents to be able to sit in the front row. Yeah. And not allowing some, uh, the friend of a co-worker of her neighbor’s nephew to come last minute. Those were the things. Right. Those were the things.

Christa Innis: Yeah, it’s, it’s. Those are really harsh to have.

I mean, maybe blocking on social media and deleting the husband is like the best thing, because then you guys can’t see her on social media. I wouldn’t have said a thing

Saron Olkaba: about that.

Christa Innis: I would have

Saron Olkaba: said,

Christa Innis: great. I’m like, awesome. Yeah, you saved it. Saved, saved me from doing it. When I tried reaching out, she called my husband crying.

Here we go. The victim said she’d been crying every day because of how I treated her. When he defended me like a good, she hung up because she realized he was gone. He is not, he’s not backing you up anymore, crazy mom. He is now

Saron Olkaba: someone else’s husband. Not yours.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Not yours. Finally, my husband texted her saying she had two options.

Have a conversation or lose him. She replied, I guess I won’t be seeing you anymore then. I mean, I would say hallelujah.

Saron Olkaba: I would be like, I’m so sorry, babe. Yeah. It’ll be like, we’ll, we’ll get this. It’s just trying to keep my face straight. Okay.

Christa Innis: I know. I feel like the petty in me, I’d be like, I’d text her, I’d be like, well, have a great life. Best of luck. Yeah. Honestly, like I’m, I’m relieved, you know, and I really hope they don’t like to contact her.

And I hope it’s just like left that way because this, like we were saying, this mother in law would make her life a living hell.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah. But like do, like crazy mother in laws like this, like just like let it, like let things go. Oops. I know, did

Christa Innis: She came creeping back? It’s over, yeah, right. They’re not that easy to get rid of, I’m

Saron Olkaba: pretty sure.

Christa Innis: I wonder how, like, soon this, how soon she sent me this story after it happened. So, like, if this was, like, that day or, like, a week later.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah, we might need a, a, uh,

Christa Innis: Yeah, we might need her to like to follow. Yeah, we need to follow up. We need one of those episodes where it’s like you tell us like everything that has happened since.

Did she really not speak her word? Um, because yeah, it could be that victim mentality of like, fine, I guess I’ll never see you again. You know, so dramatic. Yeah. They show up at the front door. Let’s make up. But big

Saron Olkaba: romantic gesture.

Christa Innis: Yeah. Come back. Running back to them. Um, well that was a crazy story.

Um, really hoping that this, um, bride woman, um, got some stronger boundaries away from this mother in law because if she comes crawling back, you know, it’s, it’s going to be worse. I don’t think this, this woman’s not realizing what she’s doing wrong. Yeah.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah. Yeah.

Christa Innis: Yeah. There’s.

Saron Olkaba: I mean, honestly, this ended the best case scenario for me.

Like ideally if she, I mean, this is your best chance at peace, ma’am. So let’s just continue praying every night that she sticks to no content and contact, and you can live your life peacefully because she sounds. Absolutely horrible. But like, is your husband sad about it?

Christa Innis: I don’t, that’s not your problem.

Yeah. Yeah, I’m glad the husband I hope he kind of realizes like showing up at that dinner without her was kind of weird. Because it seems like later on in these stories, he’s defending her more. So I’m like, okay, maybe he went and was like, okay, the way my mom’s acting is weird. Yeah, it was

Saron Olkaba: weird for me to go to a wedding with, about, without the bride that I’m marrying.

Yeah, perhaps. That’s, that’s

Christa Innis: Yeah.

Saron Olkaba: That was weird. That was weird. Let’s do that. Jesus. Frig it. That was insane.

Christa Innis: That was, yeah. So, uh, props to you for keeping your boundaries up and I just hope it stays that way and, and uh, your husband realizes that. He needs to back you up first.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah, let us know if, um, if she stays out of your life.

I pray that she does. Yeah,

Christa Innis: yeah, I think I need to do, like, uh, there’s so many stories on here that I, like, need follow ups with, so I feel like I need to reach out to some of these people and be like, a follow up episode and, like, share what’s been going on since, since they sent it. Cause this was 2024, so we’re talking seven months later now.

Hopefully seven months of peace

Saron Olkaba: and quiet. So much peace and quiet. It’s like your first seven months being married. I would imagine you just want to enjoy that. You do want someone tainting every big life milestone. Every time you have kids, she’s going to make it a problem. Like, every holiday. Like, you’re literally signing up to never enjoy anything, almost, like, ever again.

Best case scenario is that she eliminates herself from the situation. Yeah.

Christa Innis: And she can feel like a victim all she wants and you can live your best life. So

Saron Olkaba: 100%. Yeah.

Wedding Confessions & Unfiltered Reactions

Christa Innis: Yeah. Okay. All right. So I like to end this with a weekly confessions game. So people send their confessions and we kind of just We can rate them.

Sometimes it’s kind of weird rating them because I feel like, I’m like, oh, your confession wasn’t great. So, um, we can rate them if we want. But, um, so people send these ones. Here we go. Um, my sister in law got mad she wasn’t my maid of honor and then questioned all of my wedding decisions.

Saron Olkaba: Uh, she sounds awful.

Uh, no wonder she was not your maid of honor. And you sound like you have discernment, ma’am. So,

Christa Innis: yeah. Sounds like she didn’t even know you knew why.

Saron Olkaba: You’re not allowed to. You’re not allowed to get mad at people for the choices that they make in their wedding, right? Like, if she feels that someone, she wanted to have someone be her maid of honor that’s not, like, her, what she did was her being honest.

Her changing her mind is just doing it to placate you. Why would you want that? Let her have whoever she wants beside her. If you’re her sister and you love her, whatever, make sure she has the day that she wants and it’s not about you. It’s literally not about you.

Christa Innis: Yeah, totally agree. Um, oh, this one tells a couple not to marry each other.

We begged, um, was begged by so many people up until the wedding to stop it. So I don’t know what the outcome was. I did see one similar, maybe this is the other part of it, but I did see one similarly where she said they still got married and she still regrets, like they still like regret, regret it or something.

Um, letting it happen? Yeah, yeah, she said she liked to tell a couple, yeah.

Saron Olkaba: You have to be okay with every possible outcome. You gotta play this every way, you know, like if I tell her and she is, Like, f*ck you, I never want to speak to you again. Is this worth me potentially losing my friendship? Is this, are his, are the problems with him big enough or dangerous enough that it’s worth risking her reacting poorly and me losing her and her being like, even more isolated with this person?

Like, you just have to think that through. Some, like, some hills are not worth dying on and others are. You just have to trust your gut. I know.

Christa Innis: Yeah, like, I’ve definitely been a part of a wedding where she Was very unhappy and you could tell it was, like, a bachelorette party. They were, she was very upset. Like, I don’t want to go through with this.

And we’re like giving her support, like, Hey, we’re here. Like, you don’t have to do it. Like I’m talking like the night before the wedding, like after the rehearsal dinner, crying in the car with us and long story short, they got a divorce. So like. It didn’t work out. And, um, Were there signs? There were lots of signs.

Lots of signs. I think you’re right. Like,

Saron Olkaba: literally weeping the night before your wedding. Yeah. Not of happiness is

Christa Innis: Yeah. Well, that’s the thing. It’s like, So we could have been like, no, you’re not gonna marry him. Like, we’ll beg, you know. But it’s like, ultimately, it was her decision. Like, she was worried, more worried about like, you know, vendors that they already paid and this and that.

And it’s just like

Saron Olkaba: Vendors? That’s like a couple emails and you just gotta be, okay, eating, believe me, I’ve done it before, eating like tens of thousands of dollars, not great, but like, but like that versus, divorces are more expensive, first and foremost. Yes. If you, if you have something worth losing and also like, just don’t, if you have the Ability to stop the train.

Stop the f*cking train.

Christa Innis: Yes.

Saron Olkaba: Yeah. As quickly

Christa Innis: as possible.

Saron Olkaba: Okay, like, don’t wait to get so far down the road.

Christa Innis: Yeah, did you see the girl who went viral because she was left at the altar? Like, literally the most terrible, like, humiliating thing, right? But she turned it into, like, this fabulous party and they documented the whole thing and I was like, you go girl.

Like, she like I don’t even know, like, she went viral of, like, sharing this, like, amazing video of herself dancing at the wedding, and, like, I was like, yeah, you know what? That’s what you do. You turn up, you have a great party, that’s what you gotta do. I saw

Saron Olkaba: That, and you’re 100 percent correct. She is, like, the strongest.

She’s, like, an inspiration. She completely turned it around, um, and, like, when something that, like, that happens, Like, two months before, like, with me, devastating day of, I can’t even f*cking imagine, I can’t imagine, and to be able to, like, to find some joy in that day, and like, actually Realized that, oh, there are a bunch of people here that really love me.

And this is like a very sad or scary moment for me. And I could either isolate myself and, and kind of immediately start dwelling in it. Or I would like to try and make the best of it with all these people who adore me and want to see me happy. And it was just, it was incredible to watch. And she’s an inspiration.

Christa Innis: Yeah, I love that. I’m like, I don’t know. I don’t know how it acted at something like that. But I’m like, she’s yeah, definitely an inspiration in that aspect. Um, well, that is all I have planned for today. Thank you so much for coming on. It was so fun chatting with you. Um, I love your content. I love all the stuff you talk about.

Like I said, I feel like I get all my like pop culture, like what’s going on in the world from you. Um, so can you share with everyone where they can find you any fun things you’re working on and all that good stuff?

Saron Olkaba: Yeah, um, you can find me at saronthings, S A R O N, things, um, on TikTok and on, uh, Instagram.

I’m going to be starting a YouTube series soon, um, two 30 minute pop culture breakdowns a week, so stay tuned for that, but yeah, I’m mostly on, uh, Instagram and TikTok.

Christa Innis: Awesome. Well, thank you again so much for coming on. Yeah, it was so fun. It was so great chatting with you. Right. Awesome.those, and hopefully those will come out sometime early 2025.

Christa Innis: Oh, that’s so cool! How awesome. You, like, you do it all. You’ve got a lot of projects. My brain doesn’t stop.

Cassie Horrell: It’s like I have an idea and I’m like, yeah, I’m just going to go for it. have no clue what I’m doing out here.

I’m just having fun and going with the flow.

Christa Innis: I love it. It’s that like planner mindset where you’re just like, okay, let’s just do it. Let’s get busy and find something. I love that. well, when those are available, definitely send me links and stuff and we can get it in the show notes. Well, thank you so much for coming on.

That was so fun having you react. Like I said, had some people tag you in like comments and stuff and now I follow your stuff and I like I love your content because you’re so involved in the wedding stuff that you’ve got stories for days so yeah

Cassie Horrell: but I feel like we have a very similar audience because we’re storytellers and like my whole page isn’t storytelling but Usually one a day, I try to tell stories and I get the same, like, people will be like, Did you see her story? And they’ll tag me, and I’m like, Oh, I saw it. That’s a juicy one. Yes.

Christa Innis: Yeah, it’s so good. I, can’t stop watching the, drama stories. They just, those ones just get me. Like, I love it.

Cassie Horrell: I feel like they’re like, a little bit of, like, reprieve from people’s everyday life.

Like, they come and they watch our stories, and it’s like, a minute and a half of like, totally Drama that they’re not in.

Christa Innis: Yes. And they get

Cassie Horrell: their little fix for the day, and then they’re like, Okay, I’ll come back tomorrow, like, see the next part, or whatever’s going on.

Christa Innis: Yes, yeah, it’s a good little, little break from reality, I think.

Yes. Awesome. Well, thank you so much again for coming on. It was awesome chatting with you. Thank you so much.

All right, guys, that was my interview with Cassie. I love chatting with her. It’s so fun to hear from someone that is so involved in the wedding industry. She’s got a lot of hot takes and she has. Honestly seen it all. So, thank you, Cassie, for coming on. Just a reminder, guys, if you love this episode or loving this podcast, please leave a review on Apple podcast.

It really helps more people hear the podcast. And helps me create more amazing content for you. so I really appreciate all the support that this podcast has gotten so far, and I can’t wait for more people to hear it and to create some more content. If you also have suggestions of who you want to see next on the podcast, feel free to send me an email, send me some submissions.

I cannot wait to share more stories with more people. All right, guys, thanks so much for tuning in and I will see you next time.

by Christa Innis

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