Children At Weddings

Yesterday I posed the question of children being invited to weddings on Twitter after reading a post on Celebrations At Home about this very topic. Many people welcomed children at weddings, whilst there were stories of vicars suggesting the couples own child should not attend the ceremony and that guests were asked not to bring their children.  As a mother I think children should not be hidden away and allowed to attend important parties and events such as weddings. 

image source ~ Celebrations At Home

When inviting children to weddings it is important that you consider certain things in your planning.  Even the most well behaved children will not want to sit through long wedding speeches so perhaps you could arrange for them to play outside in the venues garden, supervised by organised, hired childcare or arrange for a face painter or juggler or other entertainer to keep them busy while the best man cracks a few jokes!  Another option is to hire a childrens party organiser to ensure the children are looked after and entertained for the wedding breakfast and possibly in to the evening aswell. Les Enfants creche service offers a fantastic solution by providing various options to keep chidlren entertained and full supervised at your wedding.

Face painting by Snapdragon Face Painting

Another consideration when inviting chidlren to your wedding is that their tastes can be quite simple, although my own children are encouraged to try many different foods.  When planning your menus for the big day it is worth planning a seperate menu for the children, which could be sausages and mash or a selection of tea party food followed by fairy cakes, jelly and ice cream.  Chidlren eat less than adults and by choosing a seperate menu you can reduce your costs significantly. 

Cupcake fondue sounds like such fun!

image source ~ Pinterest

One idea I loved from Cute As A Button is that her nine year old daughter will be hosting the childrens table and will be choosing the menu too.  As long as you plan properly for children they will make great guests!