This is sort of a cross post from my month board (with mixed reactions there), but we've hit a slight snag with our wedding plans. FI and I are marrying in his mother's backyard. It's a beautiful yard, but it's not childproofed: there's an in-ground pool and a pond, no gates/fences around either. It's not practical to fence or block off either. In fact, the current plan is to have the reception on the deck near the pool. My FMIL laid down the law the other day that guests with young children must have their kids use high chairs or booster seats during dinner to avoid any risk of little ones falling in the pool because their parents are distracted for whatever reason.
A couple of my friends have said their kids absolutely will not sit in high chairs or booster seats, and they'll just keep a close eye on them. I think they're missing my FMIL's concern which is that with food, alcohol, and conversation, it's really easy to get distracted and not notice a little one slip away and into the pool. So I'm thinking about setting up a kid's room in the house and hiring a babysitter to keep the kids entertained, get them fed. The babysitter I have in mind is a licensed teacher with a Master's in Early Childhood Education.
Im curious as to what your experiences have been with kids' rooms/baby-sitters at weddings. Did the parents like the option? How did the kids handle a strange sitter? What did you pay the sitter? Or if you're a parent, would you use a service like this at a wedding? Most of the guests with children are traveling 6+ hours to be here. Any thoughts or advice are appreciated!