I asked this question on Yahoo Answers and I got several
very rude and cynical answers like “why bother, all weddings end in divorce”
and “back to the planning board, get real Brandi.” So I deleted them and came here. I’m planning
my wedding for April 25, 2015. We have already picked out a venue. It’s at
Andover Central Park in Kansas. I have always dreamed about having a night time
wedding and reception. The projected sunset time is 8:14 PM. I wouldn't mind
having an evening wedding, with the sun about to set and that glow that comes with
it. Someone had said that having a night reception and ceremony was a bad idea
because all of my pictures would be at night. Not true, we have decided to do a
first look photoshoot with my FH and Maids of Honor. YES, I don’t have just one
MOH, all of my girls are MOHs. They have all been there for me at one point in
my life and I don’t believe on giving just one of these amazing women the
title. Anyway, the first look will be later in the afternoon and the wedding ceremony
will be right after. The ceremony, I believe will last about 30 minutes or so
and then the reception will follow immediately at the Lodge at the park. One of
the factors that determined my decision for a night reception is my budget. My
FH and I are paying for it all ourselves and we are expecting about 175 guests.
Give or take. These are mainly family members (close cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents,
great grandparents, biological family members, etc.) My family is huge. So we
changed our mind to do an evening party so we could serve dessert that we will
prepare ourselves along with the help of my mom, grandma and future mother in
law. Cake, candy, cookies, cupcakes, etc and maybe some heavier appetizers. We
will not be serving alcohol for three reasons. (here comes the “cynical” part)
1. I have diabetics in my family, myself included. Having a dessert bar is bad
enough. However, I will be providing sugar free/Splenda desserts. 2. Neither my
FH nor I drink. And 3. My family tends to go overboard when it comes to
drinking. And since my family has to drive 1 hour ++ to get home, I don’t want
to risk the chance of something happening to any of my family members. I would
feel terrible. (THERE WAS ME BEING CYNICAL I GUESS!)
If we have the ceremony around 7:45, that means that by the time
the ceremony is over, the sun will have set (or just about.) And before I get
to my question, just know that family is very important to me. The reasoning
behind some of my decisions are what were deemed “cynical.” There are 30 kids
on my side of the family that are currently under the age of 12. And the
youngest is going to be 2 this year. And
my side of the family lives in Blackwell, OK and OKC. Blackwell is about an
hour away from Andover and OKC is even further.
The reception, which isn’t five minutes away, is also going
to be outdoors. Probably starting around 8:30, that way we can get several more
pictures of my FH and wedding party.
My idea was to buy a huge camping tent and have the kids
bring pillows and blankets and I’ll provide a projector and some Disney movies
that way after the ceremony, if the kids wanted to, they could go hang out in
the tent and watch movies. And hey, if they got tired, they could try to sleep.
(which is probably not going to happen)
MY QUESTION: I know that this is late for young children to
be out. What do you suggest we do?
P.S. Sorry for the novel. And PLEASE no rude remarks. If you
have any criticism on my idea, please be as kind as possible.