The presence of children at a wedding can give it an additional atmosphere of joy and love, so if you have decided that you want your own children, as well as those of your friends and relatives, to participate in your wedding celebration, do not be afraid of it. But in order to avoid unnecessary anxiety and be prepared for different situations, LĪGAVĀM offers several tips that will help to successfully integrate the smallest guests into the wedding.

Art is not to invite, but to entertain

In order to understand how to involve children in the wedding process, you must first be aware of how they perceive the wedding process in general. Most likely, in their minds, the wedding party is a very fun event where they can run around and have fun with other kids longer than usual, cuddle with their favorite uncle and eat sweets. On the other hand, in reality, they may perceive the wedding ceremony and the celebratory dinner part as boring, where adults just talk and talk.

That is why the first prerequisite when inviting children to a wedding is also to ensure that entertainment that is understandable and suitable for them is provided.

When starting to plan them, you should answer the question of what kind of day you want for your youngest guests - it is definitely recommended to consider both the age and interests of the children invited as guests, as well as the opinions of their parents. If everything is carefully planned, the wedding day will be stress-free for both the couple and the parents of the children, and no less important - for the other guests as well.

What responsibilities should children be entrusted with?

You can prepare not only various entertainments for children, but also entrust them with such duties as:

• carrying rings to the altar or scattering petals, for younger children;

• and doing readings during the ceremony or giving a performance (such as a song) during the evening celebration, for older children.

Most children will appreciate such tasks and, as long as the assigned duty is appropriate for their age, they will fulfill it with care.

There is one thing that children of all ages (and adults too) absolutely love and do with joy - throwing confetti into the air - this task can also be entrusted to the smallest wedding guests.

Even the most open-minded children can get confused

Children are emotional, and if they don't feel safe in a situation, mess something up or don't know, they may start crying or react in some other way.

That is why adults, on their part, must do everything necessary to prepare children for the responsibilities assigned to them. If one of the small guests is entrusted with scattering the petals before the ceremony, then a rehearsal should be held in advance so that the child is familiar with the process. It should be understood that even the most open-minded children, when they are in the center of attention, when all the guests' eyes are on them, can get confused and forget something, therefore, if they have tried this process, it will be much easier to remember what to do next, even in a nervous situation.

Knowing that children can become unpredictable in different situations, it is recommended to also think about plan "B", for example, which child could "take over the baton" in scattering petals if the sister's daughter suddenly refuses to do it at the last moment.

Smart decision – to hire a nanny or animator

Children, of course, should not only be entrusted with various responsibilities, but also ensure that they are fed and entertained until bedtime.

You should definitely think not only about a separate table for all the smaller wedding guests, but also a menu created especially for them, which would combine children's favorite dishes - for example, macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, French fries, of course, not forgetting healthy but children-friendly alternatives and snacks.

The smaller guests will also be pleased with a gift prepared for each of them - it can be a coloring book and pencils, a game, a puzzle or something that they could already use on the given evening.

Of course, children know how to entertain themselves perfectly and are probably one of the best dancers, but the decision of the young couple to hire a nanny or animator, who will keep the younger guests busy and make sure that the parents can relax and enjoy the festivities during the evening celebration, is becoming more and more popular.

PHOTO: JURGIS RIKVEILIS , LINDA LAUVA , MIKS SCHELS , OLIVIER DE RYCKE