When I was planning my wedding I realized that there would be MANY children at my celebration and I absolutely wanted it that way! Prior to being a wedding coordinator, I was a Foster Care Coordinator for the County of Orange and many of my friends were dedicated Foster Parents. Since most of our guests were traveling over 400 miles to be with us, I wanted to be sure that parents and children alike had a great time. I think we succeeded.
We chose a very kid friendly hotel to recommend to our friends (Embassy Suites) where at the time children stayed Free and their free breakfast buffet and indoor pool was a hit for family life. We had family oriented gift baskets in each of their rooms that had very specific books and toys for each child that attended our wedding. The basket also had a list of kid friendly activities that were within 10 miles of the hotel and of course a map with all the locations highlighted.
For our wedding and reception we hired professional certified nursery school teachers. I asked my neighbors with children for their favorite nursery school teachers and met with several before hiring two wonderful young women who did an amazing job for us! With their professional help, we prepared many activities for the children to enjoy. The kid’s area was in view of the adult area (this was all held at a regional park) so everyone felt safe, but it was far enough away that the parent’s could enjoy some quality adult time. However, the children’s reception was so much fun that I went over and played for about a half hour with all the children, as did the majority of our guests.
During the ceremony we planned quiet activities. One of the teachers was reading to one group and the other nursery school teacher was managing arts and crafts with the rest of the children. We made wedding related coloring books for each child and the teachers helped them make my Husband and I congratulatory greeting cards.
The children had their own buffet that was filled with kid friendly food; bite size fresh fruit with lemon yogurt dip, veges with ranch dressing and a cheese platter with the always popular cheese fish crackers in the middle. The heart shaped crustless sandwiches were pretty tasty too. The guitarist we hired to play during our ceremony went over to the child’s area to serenade them while they ate.
The “kids” had a hula hoop contest, played a mini game of T-ball, and made wedding dresses out of Crepe and Toilet Paper. I remember looking over and seeing my beloved groom hula hooping with the biggest smile on his face and all the children falling down laughing. And of course there were bubbles, lots and lots of bubbles.
For dessert the children decorated their own cupcakes with candy hearts and they all left with goody bags that included a heart shaped cookie lollipop.
Later in the evening we brought in many pizzas to the extra “Hospitality Suite” we rented at our guests’ hotel and family and friends of all ages enjoyed talking about the day’s events before having to get the kiddos ready for bedtime. I heard that many people stayed in the hospitality suite till 4 in the morning but I was already snug as a bug with my hub far away from the hospitality room!
Two weeks later, a Friend called laughing hysterically, saying they had just gotten home from another wedding. When their child was trying to sit quietly during the ceremony (truly impossible for most 3 year olds) he yelled out “Mom this is not a wedding! This is boring! Where are the hula hoops?”
Not all weddings are intended to be so kid friendly but do consider hiring professional babysitters or teachers to help with any children that may be in attendance or traveling to your wedding with their parents. Have a supervised kids’ table at the reception that is filled with fun activities or have them stay at a family member’s home or another reserved room at your venue where they can have loads of (professionally supervised of course!) fun.
If you are as lucky as we were (and planned as much as we did), memories of children at your wedding will be some of your fondest.
*******************************************************
Are there any EBs out there that would like to share their ideas for Kid Friendly Weddings?
