First of all, congrats on the birth of your baby, and congrats to your aunt. On giving her a gift, you need to take your personal situation into account. It seems to me that a reasonable person would not expect a new mother to travel halfway across the US with a newborn to attend a wedding. So, I don't think she sent you the invite to obligate you to attend, it's an invitation. If you can't make it, you can't make it, and I'm sure she'll understand completely, especially if she has children. There are times when an invite is sent simply because the bride and groom are more worried about offending someone than not, and generally people tend to get offended when they DON'T get an invite than when they do, especially family. I'd say that's the case here--she sent an invite so that you'd know you're invited, but she certainly wouldn't expect you at drop everything and attend.

On giving a gift, again, it's not mandatory--regardless of what you'll read here. Here's an answer to your question from theknot.com. http://wedding.theknot.com/wedding-questions/bridal-registry-advice/qa/how-much-to-spend-on-wedding-gifts.aspx If you can't afford to send a gift, and don't feel you're close to your aunt anyway, then that issue's solved. Send a card expressing your congratulations and best wishes, and end it there.

Good luck to you and your family!

Powered by Yahoo Answers