The Etiquette of Having Children at Your Wedding

Decide Early

Unlike decisions about menus or music, those related to children should be handled quickly to avoid awkward questions from parents who need to make plans.

Is It Appropriate Not to Invite Kids?

Yes—especially if the wedding is in the evening or is very formal. "It may be more of a challenge to restrict children during a daytime or casual wedding without people feeling offended," says Joyce Scardina Becker, a San Francisco-based wedding designer and planner. The no-kids rule works best when the majority of the families are local, which means that parents can leave their children with familiar babysitters for the entire day or drop them off between the ceremony and reception, adds Karen Kaforey, a wedding planner in Nashville. If you're hosting a destination wedding, it's harder to not invite kids.

Address Your Envelopes Explicitly

Address your envelopes properly. Becker says the traditional way to indicate whether a child is invited is to include his or her name on the invitation. If your card will have both an outer and inner envelope, the child's parents' names should appear on the outer envelope, but on the inner, the name should be written beneath the parents' names. (If you're using just an outer envelope, of course, the child's name should also be on it.) If the child is over age 18, he or she should receive a separate invitation, even if he or she's still living at home. Becker feels that it's "generally not in good taste to address an envelope to 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Family,'" since the wording can be vague. However, Kaforey says that the phrasing's okay as long as you write the names of those invited on the inside envelope.

Call All Guests with Children

After your invitation is sent (or better yet, before), make a call to your friends and family who have children to explain that your wedding is or isn't child-friendly. "If you're willing to invite this person to your wedding, you should be willing to pick up the phone and have a conversation with him or her," Becker says. This is an especially effective approach if you're worried about a stubborn friend or flaky relative bringing children against your wishes. Becker adds: "And, if you're arranging for childcare services, a telephone call is a great way to let the parents know that their children will be well taken care of at the wedding."

Will It Look Bad If You Invite Some Children and Not Others?

Opinions vary, so it's best to choose a clear rule and stick to it. Kaforey suggests drawing the line at immediate family, since most children who have wedding duties are close relatives, such as a niece or stepchild (but even these children don't necessarily need to stay for the reception).

"If there are just a few children from different families, an age cut-off can work because older kids are more likely to behave," says Becker, adding that children's manners are as important as their numbers. "But the more youngsters you have, the more their behavior will change. If you're inviting 150 guests, and you have only two little girls that are 10 and 6, it's darling," she says. "But if you have 20 children that are 10 and older, you could end up with a playing field—and that might not be ideal."

What About Flower Girls and Ring Bearers?

Your sibling's children should usually take priority over, say, a friend's, but if this rule of thumb still leaves you in a fix, consider traditional etiquette, which limits your choices for flower girls and ring bearers to children between 3- and 7-years-old. "Younger children simply don't make it to the end of the aisle" without some adult intervention, says Becker.

She adds that an 8-year-old can be promoted to junior bridesmaid, a title she can hold until her 18th birthday, when she's finally allowed to lose the "junior" label. "On the other hand, boys are usually retired from the wedding business from age 8 until they're old enough to be a groomsman, at 18," she says. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule. Kaforey once planned a wedding in which a toddler was pulled down the aisle in a wagon by a little girl. "It was adorable," she says.

Are There Other Duties for Children?

At the ceremony, children can act as ushers, hand out programs, circulate mass books or yarmulkes, distribute exit-toss packets, and more, depending on your specific event. At the reception, kids can contribute by doing things like managing a guest book or passing out favors in a basket or on a tray. Becker has also seen children (well rehearsed, of course) perform a group reading and young boys act as "train bearers." Just be sure to match the job to the kid's personality; if a child is introverted and prone to hiding behind Mom's skirt, that kid most likely isn't going to love giving a public performance, no matter how talented he or she is.

Do You Have to Invite the Flower Girl and Ring Bearer to Your Reception?

There's no rule that says you must, but think of the bad feelings you'd engender if you didn't invite them. It's not an easy task—both emotionally and logistically—for parents to dress up kids in fancy clothes, prod them to do their given jobs, then tell them that they have to miss the party. The thoughtful thing to do is to invite them to the reception. If you're really intent on having a purely-adult reception, though, at the very least allow the flower girl and ring bearer to attend the cocktail hour and offer to find them babysitters for the rest of the night.

Do Kids Need a Special Menu?

When it comes to food, children's meals make kids happier and are often less expensive. Becker suggests a small buffet or individual meals with kid-friendly foods (we recommend options that aren't messy!). Kaforey adds that children 13 and up should be able to eat adult fare, though you may want to ask parents about this ahead of time.

Where Should the Kids Sit?

Donnie Brown, a Dallas-based celebrity wedding planner, recommends seating kids aged 7 to 14 at a separate table, but he suggests seating those under 7 in another room entirely, with childcare provided; children this young, he says, will likely want to be near their parents and won't sit still for long if Mom and Dad are within eyesight and earshot.

If you'd like children to be in the same room as adults, Kaforey suggests designating an area off to the side that both feeds kids and keeps them busy. She likes mini-tables, small buffets, and kid-friendly décor, like tables peppered with coloring books and crayons organized in galvanized buckets. If it's in your budget, hire a babysitter. If you suspect that a guest will need a high chair, ask the venue if they can provide one; if they can't, tell the parents so they can plan ahead.

What Should Be in a Kids' Room?

If little guests are going to be in their own supervised room, experts suggest filling it with easy-to-coordinate activities—including board games, kid-appropriate movies, and simple art projects. Even better, create a "Kids' Club," says Becker, and hire insured childcare providers to act as counselors who set up themed activities. During a beach wedding, for instance, she suggests painting shells and reading stories about sea creatures. For couples with big budgets, consider hired entertainers such as balloon artists, magicians, and puppeteers.

Entertain Them

Even if you don't have a children's room, you should try to keep kiddos occupied. "I'd always planned on children being in and at our wedding, so I had to think like a kid when it came to distracting them," says Jane Bliss. "My favorite part of the wedding was shopping for the kids' table!" During the reception, her young guests sat at one table for both food and crafts, with art supplies and picture frames, as well as trinket toys. "They had a blast, and they made things that had to do with the wedding, which was not a requirement," she says.

Can Caretakers Come Too?

A lot of parents prefer to leave their child with a familiar caretaker, says Kaforey, so this isn't an unusual scenario. If it's in your budget, by all means include caretakers; not only is it a generous gesture, but it'll give the invited parents peace of mind. Seat caretakers wherever you're seating the children—at the parents' table, a children's table, or in a separate room (be sure to include them in the head count for an adult meal). Also, remember that they'll require escort cards and place cards. That said, you're in no way obligated to include them. Your guest list is your guest list, and you shouldn't have to invite someone just because someone wants you to. This is especially true if you're having an intimate affair with only your family and close friends in attendance or if you're on a tight budget.