Baby Shower Drama: My Husband’s Female Friend and the Reality Check She Needed

My Husband’s Female Best Friend Insisted on Hosting My Baby Shower – I Gave Her a Reality Check

Avery, my husband’s female best friend, has been showering us with unsolicited advice ever since we revealed my pregnancy. The final straw was her insistence on organizing the baby shower! I decided to give Avery a memorable lesson since I was tired of her domineering behavior.

Avery is my husband’s best female buddy. Since they both work in the health industry—Scott as a food safety auditor and Avery as a nutritionist—they hit it off when they first met at work.

She and I got along great at first too.

She soon joined our social circle after we grew close over music and our own occupations. Everything was good up until I revealed that I was expecting.

Avery was one of the first people to text Scott when Scott and I broke the news on social media. “Well done! She wrote, “You two are going to be incredible parents.”

It looked enough real. That is, until the unwanted counsel began to come in. She would text Scott every day with nutritional suggestions and baby goods we “had to” acquire. It was too much.

“Jean, take a look at this,” Scott handed his phone to me one evening. “Avery sent us yet another shopping list. She suggests that we convert to using only organic products.

I looked down at the phone, a growing annoyance inside of me. “She’s going too far, Scott. She doesn’t need to advise us on how to get ready for our child.”

He let out a sigh. “Yes, but she’s merely attempting to assist. Should I make a statement?”

I told him to “just ignore it” and set his phone down. “She’s not the one having the baby; we are.”

However, that didn’t seem to work with Avery. Her texts increased in frequency and intensity. She seemed to be carefully considering each choice I made.

Avery would publicly compliment me on my social media posts, but behind closed doors, she would give Scott a ton of advise.

If I uploaded a photo of my lunch, she would text him, saying, “Jean shouldn’t be eating that.” “She needs more folic acid.”

She sent me a rather bothersome message one afternoon: “Jean needs to completely avoid caffeine.” Scott handed it to me. It’s harmful to the unborn child.”

“Can you believe this?” With a hint of annoyance in his voice, Scott enquired. “I don’t know what’s gotten into her!”

“I can’t deal with her constant nagging,” I said. “This is getting out of hand.”

I concentrated on organizing my baby shower with my mother and sister as the weeks passed. It was to be a modest, private party attended only by close friends and family. I was finishing up the guest list one evening when I got a text from Avery.

“Hi Jean! I’d be delighted to throw your baby shower. I’m full of amazing ideas,” she wrote.

I inhaled deeply before typing a courteous reply. “Thank you, Avery, but my sister and mother are taking care of it already. I’m grateful for the offer.

There was a knock on the door the following day. When I opened it, I saw Avery standing there with her arms full of decorations and a comprehensive menu.

“A revelation! Pushing past me into the home, she screamed, “I brought everything we need for the baby shower!”

Trying not to cry, I responded, “Avery, I told you, my mom and sister are taking care of it.”

“However, I have everything ready! It will be perfect,” she said in a patronizing tone. “Trust me, I know what’s best for you and the baby.”

As she began to arrange the décor on my dining table, she made a list of everything she had made. “I’ve planned a sugar-free, gluten-free cake, and I discovered the cutest environmentally responsible party goodies. For the infant, I even have a playlist with calming music.”

I was astounded by her excessive invasiveness and pushiness as I stood there. “Avery, I appreciate your effort, but this is really something my mom and sister want to handle.”

With her eyes narrowing slightly, she replied, “Jean, you have to understand. All I want is for everything to be perfect for you.” The best is what you deserve.”

The final straw was that. I made the decision then and there that Avery needed a dose of reality. I feigned agreement as she described her idea for the shower, nodding and grinning.

However, I had already made up my mind to hold my mom and sister’s celebration somewhere else.

When the shower day finally came, I was so excited that I had trouble controlling myself. There was also a simmering sense of curiosity regarding the details of my strategy.

I will grant Avery that she had done a fantastic job decorating our apartment. I could watch her working hard through a phone app that was connected to our home security cameras.

With pastel streamers, elegant floral arrangements, and a painstakingly made, sugar-free, gluten-free cake proudly displayed in the middle of the room, she had truly gone all out. However, it was all in vain.

Nobody was present. Except for the faint murmur of Avery’s carefully chosen music, the space was deathly silent.

In the meantime, warmth and laughter filled the small but pleasant cafe where we were sitting. My sister and mother had surpassed themselves. Everyone I held dear was present, partaking in our joy and bestowing upon us their affection and well-wishes.

I started by taking a Polaroid picture of each of us, putting it in a box with one cupcake, and having a delivery man deliver it.

I pretended to be going to the restroom at a certain time, but in reality, I really wanted to see Avery get the special delivery I had planned.

I watched the delivery man enter through the app; he was carrying a little package with a note in it. When Avery opened it, the cupcake and our group photo from the celebration were visible. “We know you’re enjoying your dietary options, just wanted to share,” was the message written on the paper.

Red in the face was Avery. Her exasperated scream was almost audible.

Before long, my phone buzzed to alert me to her upcoming call. I chose to ignore it and continue having fun at the party for a short bit longer.

The doorbell rang later that day when Scott and I were tidying up. When I opened it, I saw Avery standing there with a look of rage on her face.

She cried, “How could you do this to me?” and barged inside the house without asking for permission. “I put so much effort into that shower, and you just… abandoned it!”

I inhaled deeply, prepared to defend myself.

“Avery, you went too far. This was not meant to be about you running everything, but rather about us celebrating our baby. Although we value your intentions, please respect our boundaries by not sending us any more SMS offering assistance.

Avery appeared astonished. She stumbled, “Scott, you told her about all the messages?”

“I did, of course,” Scott answered. “Why would I keep something like that from her?”

As Avery’s expression fell, she whispered, “I thought it would work…”

“You thought what would work, Avery?” I enquired.

With a broken voice, she said, “I thought if Scott followed all my advice, it would make you agitated.” “I assumed it would cause a rift between you two.”

Scott’s face changed to one of disbelief. “Why would you do that?”

With a sagging of her shoulders, Avery blurted out in a desperate moment, “I’ve been in love with you, Scott, for years! I reasoned that if I stuck close, perhaps eventually…”

Scott gave her a pitying but determined gaze.

I apologize to Avery, but Jean has my heart. It has consistently. You have the right to meet someone who values you as much as I do, Jean. However, I’m not that someone.”

She started crying uncontrollably and broke down. “Please just give us a chance, Scott! It bothers me so much to watch you with her.”

“Avery, you have to let this go,” Scott stated sternly yet compassionately. If you cannot respect our connection, then we cannot have you in our lives.”

Avery staggered out of the house, her sobbing growing louder, her cries resonating behind her.

For a few while, Scott and I stood silently, processing the seriousness of the situation that had just occurred.

“Are you okay?” Scott encircled me with his arms before asking.

With tears of relief running down my cheeks, I nodded. “I am right now. I appreciate you being there for me.”

He gave me a forehead kiss. “You can always count on me, Jean. I adore you and our child above all else.”

We talked for the remainder of the evening, reiterating our love and mutual trust. We were committed to establishing firmer boundaries because we believed that doing so would safeguard our relationship.

Avery left our lives a few months later after I gave birth to a healthy baby. Together, Scott and I anticipated a brighter and more cohesive future than before.

Although the experience had put us to the test, it had also strengthened our bond and increased our appreciation for what we had. And as I held our child in my arms, I was confident that we would overcome any obstacles that came our way.