It’s totally up to you whether you decide to invite children to your wedding – and if you decide on an adult only affair, then a polite ‘we’re sorry, we can’t accommodate children’ on your invitations is perfectly acceptable. However, if mini-guests are going to be joining in with your special day, then a little forward planning will go a long way! Here are our top tips when it comes to wedding planning for younger guests –
Important jobs
Children love to feel important – and getting them involved is a great way of making them feel included in what has the potential to seem like a boring day for them! Delegate little tasks like handing out confetti or collecting cards and gifts to eager helpers.
Fussy eaters
Whilst it would be great if all the children attending your special day happily tucked in to your planned menu, now simply isn’t the time to be a culinary snob. Keep everyone happy and avoid dramas by providing some simple, child friendly options. You don’t have to compromise on style (gourmet pizza anyone?) and you’ll save yourself from hearing a lot of moaning from grumpy, hungry children. If you’re organising an intimate wedding with a relatively small guest list, then you could always discuss food options with the parents beforehand to inform your menu decisions.
Child friendly zones
Having an area specifically geared towards your younger guests is a great idea. If your wedding venue incorporates an outdoor space, then provide some outdoor activities – this is often a big hit with competitive older guests too! Wedding hire companies have a great range of games to choose from – from giant Jenga to classic croquet. At Treseren, we have an organic play area complete with rope swing and also offer the option of putting up our bell tent to create a child friendly zone with cushions and toys.
As the evening celebrations continue, a sleepover den with films, popcorn, and story time for all the little ones so parents can stay late and party with you guilt-free works wonderfully. Partied-out children curled up together are a sure-fire sign of a successful wedding!
Age appropriate
Don’t make the mistake of grouping teenage guests together with younger children – they will not be impressed! If there are only one of two then categorising them as adults will be much more favourable, but if there are a larger number then consider providing some extra touches just for them – like a teen friendly chill out area or age appropriate mocktails.
Let us know if you’ve got any great tips for keeping children entertained at weddings!
