Especially witb 37 days? I havent even gotten all our rsvps back. And who REALLY goes by ettiquette anymore? Seriously.
If you thought the Jersey board beat you up, be glad you didn't post this "lovely" comment on the etiquette board!
Proper etiquette is what lets your guests know that you appreciate/respect/love them. Keeping them comfortable, informed and entertained is key. You are the host, they are the guests. Try and think about this on a small scale first....if someone came over to your house you wouldn't have them sit all alone with nothing to do for 4 hours right? That is exactly why you should do everything in your power to not do it on your wedding day either.
That being said, it's sounds like you have at least tried to come up with some ways to fill the time. My suggestion is to do a bit more. Call your guests, get it on your wedding website, you could even send a secondary invite (to everyone on your guest list!) informing them about the pre-reception/bowling thing going on. Please don't wait until the day of your wedding, I imagine you'll have a lot of frustrated guests if you do!
I believe I've said it a few times, our immediate families (mom/dad/siblings/aunts/uncles) will be the only people at the ceremony (per the rsvp's so far). They are all well aware of the events. Those in the bridal party and their dates/so's all know about it as well. I don't have the TIME to create additional invites and mail them out to 140 guests. That's just extra money, on top of all the extra money that I'm already paying, to add to the budget. I don't have the extra money - I've tapped all my resources and I would rather not put it on credit as I don't want to be in debt because of it. Everything that we have paid for has been saved. We've skimped in a lot of places and saved in a lot of other places. The wedding is going to be beautiful no matter which way we put it together. I thank everyone for their words of wisdom. I plan to notify everyone, be it on our website (which most of our guests are older and don't have the inter webs) and/or on our programs.
140 guests and you only have immediate family attending the ceremony? That should be a clue. Perhaps the reason you don't have more ceremony attendance is because people realize there is a large gap!
I would be VERY concerned about .....your guests are trying to tell you something! I could understand a few might have commitments, but not the vast majority.
I do think you need to spread the word any way possible before your wedding that there is drinks and food and bowling between the ceremony and reception My DH and I would NEVER bowl in our suit and cocktail dress, but if you're hosting drinks and food, we'd definitely attend. Who knows, you may even get a better attendance at the ceremony!
So much this! Most of the time I would say it is rude for guests to only attend the reception but wth the gap I imagine most of them are just unsure what to do for all that time. I sincerely hope if you get the info out to everyone before hand you'll have some guests decide to come to your ceremony, since in the end that is what the day is all about. Your wedding...not the party after!
3 hours is a long time. I recommend finding an entertainment or something fun for your guests to visit. Try a local museum or something. Give people an activity!
Re: OMG! I just got ripped a new one...(vent)