Just who is breaching wedding etiquette?

DEAR AMY: I was shocked at a recent wedding to see that the groom's stepmother and her daughter were both wearing solid-white and cream-colored dresses. Call me old-fashioned, but I was taught by my mother that no one wears white to a wedding. It is the bride's special day to shine and that color is reserved for her, right? Has this etiquette changed? Everyone sitting at my table seemed equally horrified. I was even more shocked when I learned that the stepmother is a knowledgeable event planner. If it was a deliberate attempt to show up the bride, it failed miserably.Shocked in Seattle

DEAR SHOCKED: To answer your queries: This should not rise to the level of "shocking," much less horrifying.

A basic etiquette rule has been broken, however. By you.

It is unkind, ungenerous and -- yes -- rude for you to judge what color clothing family members choose to wear to a wedding at which you are a guest. Leave the unkind fashion assessments to Joan Rivers on the red carpet. She wears this sort of mock horror well.

You? Not so much.

I can't brand you "old-fashioned," because I associate old-fashioned people with more positive qualities and values than you display here.

DEAR AMY: "Going Solo" was reconsidering her life without children, and I liked that you offered foster care as an option.

I work in the foster care field and know a ton of wonderful kids who need good homes with parents who are in it for the right reasons. So many of these kids need to know what a family looks like and know that someone will have them for the long term and not be just another stop on the road.Lynne

DEAR LYNNE: According to the most recent government report, 400,540 kids are in foster care in this country. This staggering statistic should inspire "Going Solo" to go less solo.