Chances are that you might be having some kids at your wedding reception. There’s always the Flower Girl and the Ring Bearer. If you are looking for some creative and fun ways to entertain your little guests (and help their parents have a good time at the party without having to worry about them) try these ideas:

Jumping Castles

If you are having an outdoor reception or in a large hall, you can devote one corner entirely to a Jumping castle. Kids of all ages will get busy playing and jumping on it. You can rent one from Birthday Party supply stores. You will also need to make sure that someone will supervise the kids when they are at it. Usually, an older kid or a teenager will be glad to oblige.

Professional Entertainers

A magician, clown or other type of children’s entertainer can provide youngsters with a very welcome distraction for a couple of hours. Another good option is a balloon pump and modeling balloons, which can be made into hats, animals, and other fun shape.  If you want to go all out for your little friends, professional crèche organizers can cater for children up to 13 or 14, providing entertainment from dolls and ball pits to dance mats and Playstation games.

Candy Toss

Kids will line up when the bride is ready to toss her bouquet and neither the bride, nor the bridesmaids or the kids’ parents will like it if the kids attempt to get hold of either the bouquet or worse, the garter. Solve the problem creatively by having a Candy toss for the kids first. Buy assorted soft and hard candies and toss them for the kids to collect. Provide for little bags for the kids to take home their loot.

Outdoor Sports

Outdoor weddings can accommodate some more things for the kids. You could choose some kind of sports like croquet, beach balls, kite flying etc. to keep the kids busy. Choose a far end of the reception venue for the purpose and once again, make sure that everything is supervised by an older kid or an adult.

An Activity Table

Devote one table to the kids and give them a lot of activities to keep busy with. Coloring books, washable crayons, stickers, legos, jigsaw puzzles, piñatas, board games etc. Be warned that kids can get messy so keep the table in a separate corner of the room and have someone to supervise them.

Flower Girl Doll

Give your flower girl the sweetest memories for a lifetime by gifting her a doll who wears the exact same dress as she herself is wearing on the wedding day. A fashion doll like Barbie will be a good choice for this idea.

Kiddie Food

Think about your kid guests when planning the menu. Include some fun kid’s food in the menu. Or you can also order some fast food for the kids. McDonald’s kiddie meals are a great choice for kids as they have their complete meals along with toys which act as favors for them. Keep bowls of candy on the kids tables, or make a lollipop “topiary”. Insert round, colorful lollipops into a floral foam base form the local craft shop. It looks pretty and the kids will enjoy it more than the flower centerpieces!

Put Them to Work

Kids are amazingly capable of rising to the occasion — especially when they have an “important” job to do, like passing out wedding programs, manning the kippah station or ushering guests to their seats. And they needn’t clock out after the ceremony. At the beginning of the party, give each child a disposable camera labeled with his or her name and explain that they have been hired as a junior photographer. In doing so, you’ll not only keep little hands snapping and out of trouble, you’ll capture unique, child’s-eye-view imagery of your celebration that you wouldn’t otherwise have.

Wind Them Down With a Video

If your wedding celebration will last into the wee hours, arrange for your event facility to set up a television and DVD player in a nearby-but-out-of-earshot-of-the-party spot. As the bewitching hour draws near, have your counselors invite all of the children to watch a G-rated late-night flick. Supply pillows, blankets and a couple of bags of popcorn and — with a little luck and a well-chosen movie (nothing too peppy or scary) — your crowd will be crashed by the closing credits.

The bottom line

Kids seem to have fun at weddings, regardless of whether there are bouncy castles or coloring books or assigned jobs to keep them busy. The novelty of the experience, and the obvious enjoyment and happiness that the adults are having, will keep most of them in good spirits.

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Categories: Features, The Big Day, Wedding Planning
Tags: activities, bouncy castle, candy, children, clown, crafts, crayons, enetrain, fun, games, job, kids, movie, wedding