Tips for Entertaining Kids at Weddings
Penelope C. Paine
In the next year, at least 10 million young children will participate in weddings. At these events, they experience one of life's happiest rights of passage, and they are learn the rituals and the traditions that they will most likely carry on. Yet kids at wedding celebrations can pose a real challenge for parents, brides and grooms, and wedding coordinators.
Easily bored and full of energy, we all know how hard it is for children to be quiet for the long periods of time that are built in to weddings. These concerns, along with the high costs associated with nuptials today, cause some couples to specifically exclude children, although it is not a popular thing to do.
There are many things that parents, couples and planners can do to make sure that children at weddings-whether taking part as flower girls, ring bearers, blended family in a second marriage or simply attending-have an enjoyable time and "behave". The answer is very simple: Keep them occupied. From my own experience and observation, the wedding day is too disjointed and too long for children, so finding things children can do during those slow periods is the answer to surviving the day.
Here are some suggestions for keeping children happily occupied at wedding events:
- Provide on- or off-site childcare throughout the day
- Create children's tables with coloring activities, toys and favors
- Offer kid-friendly menu items and fun food
- Special entertainment like a magician or mime
During the more solemn and more formal parts of the wedding day, it is better to have activities that the children can do themselves. I also think it is a good idea to find activities that help explain the celebration and incorporate the many symbols and traditions we all bring to weddings. It is a way to capture a teachable moment. Some suggestions for children at these times are:
- Provide self-contained wedding kits with activities that don't involve anything messy
- Provide wedding coloring books with non-toxic crayons
- Provide Flower Girls and Ring Bearers with books that explain their role in weddings
Of course, once the formalities are over, the dancing and music at the end of the day almost always revives the youngest guests, who happily will join the grown-ups to dance the night away.
In very early times children, were required to attend the weddings in their community because as the youngest members they served as the witnesses for each union. Today's children have a more decorative role in the marriage ceremony, but they can still learn a great deal from participating in and attending weddings. With more multi-cultural weddings happening each year, this also is a great way opportunity to build understanding about different cultures and religions.
Weddings are about love, about making a commitment, and celebrating that commitment with family and friends. Adding children can enrich the event. The key is to keep the children busy, and then everyone will have a great time.
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Penelope Paine is the creator of Paper Posie's line of products designed for children at weddings.