My Parents have offered to help. Well first they offered to pay for the reception, until she realized that I wanted more than a barbeque with 25 guests. Her, their offer then went down to help pay. She hasn't given me an amount but I'm assuming she has about one or two thousand dollars that she wants to contribute to a $20,000 wedding. She is getting very controlling criticizing all of my plans, guess she feels she has the right since she's paying. I think we are not going to accept her help.

If I let them help my Mother will try to get away with paying as little as possible then she will walk around my gorgeous wedding that we planned and payed for ourselves and act like she did it all single handedly. This has been a pattern throughout my life. Whenever she does something kind $$$ she reminds you about it for the rest of you life, every time you talk to her.

I see it like this, if you wanted to buy a nice car worth $20,000, and somebody asks if they can contribute $1000 or 2 and they act like the whole thing belongs to them. You would never allow somebody to contribute a small amount of money to a house or car purchase, so why I wedding.

My Mother is a very difficult person and our relationship is strained at the best of times.

My parents could afford to pay for the whole thing if they wanted too. My Mom spends at least $200 dollars a week just going to bingo but if they don't want to, I'm OK with that. I'm not OK with somebody trying to put in there .02 and run the show. In other words a small gift with big strings attached.

I showed her my bridesmaids dresses, she said "they look expensive." I told her I was having 150 guests, she said 100 will do. I told her I wanted my sister to sing twice, and Mom said she should sing more as entertainment throughout the reception. I have never been to a wedding reception where somebody kept singing, two songs is enough. My sister is a good singer but this is my day not a talent show for her. The list goes on. Sorry for going off topic but I just wanted to say, in my case, financial help will not be helpful at all.