My Fiance really wants to do a brunch on the morning after the wedding. I have never, ever done this or heard of this? Is this a family tradition or is this a tradition I am just not familiar with? I have heard that this was common many years ago for buffet weddings, but we are plated and unable to take food home. Thoughts? Anything would be helpful!
Re: Family Brunch AFTER Wedding?
It's not required, but a lot of times it gets done because many family members and friends have assembled from near and far to attend the wedding, and this is a way to extend the family reunion aspect of the wedding festivities.
May 2013 February Siggy: Invitations
I know you didn't say that FI wanted a gift opening specifically, but that might be what he's referring to. Everyone gets together at your parents' house, and eats/socializes. Inevitably, someone will ask you to open your gifts, even if you don't want to.
It's probably best to talk with both sets of parents as to what their expectations are for the morning after. In some families, the tradition of having a brunch/gift opening is incredibly important.
**Disclaimer** I in no way support gift openings, I just come from a traditional Midwestern circle, and that's what is expected here.
In my experiences, gifts have never been opened - it's just a way for everyone to say their congratulations & goodbyes to the couple.
We're doing one-a BBQ at FSIL's house.
All of the family pretty much stayed at the hotel the reception was at (as did we), so the next morning, my parents texted me and asked if I would like to join them for breakfast/brunch. It was SO nice! We ate at the hotel restaurant, and relaxed with just them, 3 close friends, and an aunt and uncle. I'm so happy it worked out that way, it was lovely to relax with them after the frantic activity of the previous two days.
Then we had plenty of time to hit the airport by 1pm and it was off to our honeymoon! Perfection.
I think it's a great idea if you can plan it/afford it/and want it. We live far away from all our family, and see them maybe once a year if we're lucky. We wanted to spend more time with them. If you can't manage it, or don't want it, I wouldn't worry. I don't think it's expected of many weddings, unless it's already been implied. You are responsible for hosting your guests on your wedding day. the next day is just a bonus if you do.
With a friends' wedding last year she had a brunch the next day to visit with some of her closer family/friends with left overs, opened some gifts and did some final cleaning. It wasn't necessary but it was a nice gathering.
[QUOTE]We hosted an informal breakfast the morning after the wedding. Pretty much everyone was from OOT, so we thought it would be nice to host another opportunity for people to meet, mingle, and catch up with each other before checking out of the hotels and going their separate ways. We reserved a conference room at the hotel that most people were staying at, and brought in bagels with a few different kinds of cream cheese, cinnamon rolls, fresh fruit, juice, and hot beverages. The overall cost was pretty low (maybe $100 for 60ish people). Everyone who was invited to the wedding was invited to the breakfast, whether or not they were staying in the hotel.
Posted by Avion22[/QUOTE]
That's a good idea - reserving a conference room. How much did you pay for that? Frankly, it had seemed out of our budget to manage a day-after brunch but we're also having about 80 people come from all over the U.S., so it is nice to think we could have this kind of informal 'thank you' brunch, if we did decide we'd like to.
My fiance has been saying he wants the moment when we leave the reception to be the last people see of us, as we're doing a mini-honeymoon and he's generally a fairly shy, borderline antisocial guy - so the weekend is way more socializing than he tends to prefer. What we might do (if we can afford it and he agrees we should) is have a 2 hour brunch/drop-in thing, THEN begin our 48 hour honeymoon. Part of our hesitation was also the blended family issue that I am sure many people have - i.e. my mom does not at all like my stepmother.
Any other thoughts on the 'conference room' brunch idea, Knotties?