Having Children at Your Wedding Reception

Children can be a welcome addition to any wedding. Aside from the fun of having them play roles such as that of ring bearer and flower girl, they can make your entire wedding have a family feel. As a result, many couples decide to have children at their wedding. However, should you do so, there are a number of things you should consider so that children and their parents can feel more comfortable.

Activities: If you’re planning to have children at your wedding, remember to make your wedding fun for them as well! Of course, parts of the wedding will never be especially entertaining for children (“Mommy, when will they stop talking?”), but that doesn’t mean that children can’t enjoy many parts of the wedding. As part of the “activities” section of your wedding reception, meaning the section where people have set dances, it’s a great idea to add some games that children will themselves enjoy. This can include things like some sort of ball-rolling game. In addition, for some reason that will only be explained at the end of time, most children love the Chicken Dance. By having activities that children can actively enjoy and are a part of the reception, children won’t feel excluded and you’ll be able to bring their special charm to your reception.

A Play Room: Some wedding halls will have a room that is converted into a play room when needed. You’ll either need to hire at least two adults to watch your children, or have the wedding hall do so. Note that it is never safe to leave a child or children with only one, unknown adult. If the reception hall doesn’t have such a place, there are companies that will actually come and make a make-shift play room for your children, even out in the hallway by the main reception hall. These people bring toys and activities for the children, so they can play and not be bored.

Dinner: Wedding dinners are long. They are three times as long when you are small, as patience is inversely proportional to age. As a result, you should give the children something to do during the lulls in the dinner. One of the best activities was discovered by restaurant ages ago: coloring books. Give a coloring book plus some crayons to each child at the wedding, and they will occupy themselves during the toasts and between courses. Remember to check with the reception hall about crayons, as not all permit them. In addition, remember to put something on your menu for children. Almost all reception halls will include some sort of children’s option.

Alexander Rorty, M.A., has been writing content for the internet for over a decade. He lives in Toronto with his wife, Janet, and their two children. His latest site is called Double Wall Ovens, and it has an article on double convection wall ovens.