by: Sonya

I agree with you completely. Your mother-in-law should have told you that the shower is going to be at a restaurant, and that the guests will have to pay for themselves. But, since you did not find out until after you invited out of town guests, your mother-in-law should extend the courtesy of paying for the out of town people. You are right; it is not fair to ask someone to travel hours away from home for a few hour long celebration, and to pay for their own food. If your mother-in-law refuses to pay, I would suggest you pay for them yourself (even though you should not have to do that since it is your shower), instead of asking them to pay. Some/all of them may just tell you that they will go ahead and pay, just to be nice, but try to find a way to cover their expenses.