The Big Bang Theory' recap: Sheldon and Amy find their wedding venue

As wedding bells continue to ring for everyone’s favorite difficult couple, the age old issue of finding the perfect venue loomed its ugly head on “The Big Bang Theory” Season 11, Episode 17.

Amy and Sheldon are hard at work trying to find the perfect place to have their wedding. She suggests the Athenaeum club, where none other than Albert Einstein was a member. Sadly, Sheldon isn’t optimistic about their ability to get a spot given that Leonard tried several times only to be turned away from the highly-exclusive membership pool. However, Amy manages to easily get an invite to check the place out.

While they’re there, they spot none other than Leonard and Penny having dinner. Penny immediately blurts out that Leonard is a member, forcing him to admit that he’d been lying to Sheldon in an effort to keep him away from the club. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Sheldon turns to see that his nemesis, Barry Kripke, is also a member of what is apparently a not-so-exclusive club after all.

Despite his misgivings, Amy is sold on the place. While Sheldon weighs the pros and cons out loud, she gets to work booking the place. Eventually, he softens and admits that being able to lord it over Leonard in the very place of his betrayal has a “beautiful symmetry” to it.

“Then again, it is our wedding day. Maybe it shouldn’t be all about revenge,” he said.

Sadly, when Amy gets off the phone, she reveals that Kripke has booked their wedding date at the venue. Sheldon suggests they change the date, but she’s not on board.

“It took you nine months to pick that one, I’ll pick a different husband first.”

Meanwhile, Howard and Bernadette are grappling with a couples conundrum of their own. Now that their second child is born, he’s thinking that one of them should stay home full time. He wants to do it, but is aware that Bernadette is a better solo parent than him. He floats the idea to her and she’s not thrilled about her options. Either she abandons her career, or allows the kids to bond more with Howard than her. Additionally, she questions whether Howard could actually handle the exhaustion of full-time parenting.

In order to prove he’s got what it takes, he wakes up extra early and takes the kids for the day. He puts all his energy into it before Bernadette is awake at 8 a.m. She suggests that he’ll be passed out from exhaustion by the afternoon, leaving her with all the work. She goes to visit her office and it’s later revealed that Howard had to call Raj for help while he took a nap. In that moment, he realizes that he absolutely can’t be a full-time dad.

Meanwhile, Bernadette is considering staying at home, but falls right back into her rhythm as soon as she gets back in her office. She too understands that she simply can’t be the stay-at-home mom type.

While Howard and Bernadette are figuring out their parenting issues, Leonard steps in to help. He feels incredibly bad that he hurt Sheldon’s feelings by keeping access to the club something for only himself. He approaches Kripke, who is in the middle of some dirty work cleaning out potentially hazardous material. When asked if he’ll give up the venue, he agrees, with some conditions.

Later that day, Sheldon and Leonard go home to Amy after finishing Kripke’s dirty work to announce victory and explain his terms. He wants to sing a song, as well as be invited to the wedding with a date.

“And if she charges by the hour, we have to cover it.”

The terms are a dealbreaker for Amy, who offhandedly suggests the Planetarium for their venue, which Sheldon loves. Just like that, they’ve found the new location for their nuptials.The episode ends on a sweet note, with Bernadette and Howard agreeing that they’ll both work and taking a much-needed nap on the kitchen table.

Read More About Sheldon and Amy's wedding