KIDS ?!?!?!?!

shanfletcher1029

Are you ladies having children at the reception? Our reception will start around 7:30pm and we cannot decide if we want children to come. HELPPPPPP

FutureMrsN3312

The only kids we're having at the wedding are the ones that are a part of the bridal party. 

Jr Bridesmaid-9.5 years old
Ring Bearer-6.5
Flower Girl-3.5
Flower Girl 7

We made it very clear since the beginning that it would be a no kids event because:
1-For me one of the most annoying things at a wedding is kids running around.  Running thru the dance floor.  Worrying about them knocking into the cake etc.
2-Adding kids to the guest list would mean we had to start cutting back on friends and coworkers.

It's definitely a personal preference.  But once you make up your mind stick to your guns.

dluberts

We're allowing kids. I find it rude to not invite them if they're fmaily. It's like saying to the parents, Hi I want you to come to my party but your kids aren't welcome. So find somewhere for them to go." But that's my opinion. What we're doing is having our reception start at 3:30 and it will go until about 9 or 10pm. Then we will have the all adults party afterwords at the bar.

tammym1001

We are inviting children to our wedding, but we are older so most of our friends are older and their kids are already out of the house. The total children came to 5 and 3 of them are my friends and she said she isn't bringing them, so we will have 2 children there. If it would have been a ton of kids we might have had to talk a little more about it.

Kristen625

I am also in the No Kids boat.  We have friends who don't parent their child, and he of course is a nightmare because of that.  (it would not surprise me if this kid was running around through the people screaming during the ceremony, he is THAT bad) So we are making it an across the board no kids because its really rude to invite some kids but not others.  Also, I'm not a huge kid fan to begin with.  I like kids on an individual basis and my thought is, its a party and if people have to watch their kids, I don't think they will have as much fun.  We don't even have a flower girl or ring bearer.  And like FutureMrsN3312 said, once you have made a decision, stick to your guns.  If people call and say "oh well, if we cant bring sally we won't be able to make it" you can just say "well that is a shame we will miss you then."  Don't get suckered into it.  And good luck!

pumpkinsandturkeys

Our wedding is going to be almost entirely family, and adults-only. All of the kids who are close to us are 5 and under, and we're having an evening ceremony (5:30pm) followed by a dinner reception, both at a winery. A couple of our siblings said right off the bat that they're leaving the little ones at home, and that gave us the momentum we needed to leave kids off the list altogether. We want all of the parents to be able to have a night off and not worry about whether their child is entertained or happy, and not have to worry about rushing home to get them to bed. Plus, we're not having dancing (super small venue), so there would literally be nothing for the kids to do!

sarahsmiles326

At first we had said only bridal party kids. Then this Thankgiving with the extended family, I realized there were a few who probably wouldn't come if their kids couldn't because of single parent custody battle situations/out of towners with young kids, etc. So we're going to invite them on a situation by situation basis. Normally I know that's not recommended because others might be upset their kids weren't invited, but we'll deal with that if it happens.

klburke88

@sarahsmiles326 - Same here. The rule we are using is, if the child is a first cousin of either myself or my fiance, they're invited. My fiance has quite a few first cousins under 12, but I don't. I only have 1 cousin with children, and she has 3! I'm leaving it up to her if she wants to bring them or not. 

We have a lot of friends and family with really young children (like, under 2!) and almost across the board the responses have been, "We'd love a night to ourselves, away from our kids"!

shanfletcher1029

Thank you all I will talk to FI and let you know what we decide

Tho127

After torturing myself about this very subject, i agreed with my FI to go with Adults only. Our venue limit is 250. When I made MY list and it was 197 ppl, 55 of which were under 15, that made my decision easier. I came up with a note I will post on our website, then each invitation will direct them to the website for RSVP and directions. "In an effort to include and accommodate all of our family friends, we have opted to celebrate our day with adults only." Maybe people will understand and not be offended. If they love us, they will be there.

vmj23

just the ones in the bridal party..which are just my niece and nephews. 

MalMondo1020

We're having some kids, but we're still trying to figure out a way to invite only those that really need to be & should be there. FH & I have a 4-year old daughter, and she's going to be our flower girl, along with FH's God-daughter (who is also 4), and her 5-year old brother (who will be our ring bearer). Besides those three that are in the wedding party, there are 12-15 other children under the age of 10 that are in our close family/children of our friends. So, we're having a really tough time deciding where to draw the line. We can't have 15 extra guests of only children, though...that's crazy. I'm still figuring it out