Although some brides have opted out of inviting children to their wedding (to give mom and dad a night off, or because the venue is not children-friendly), if you have invited children to your wedding, have you considered providing a little bit of entertainment for them?

Children can get fidgety when asked to sit still for very long, especially when Uncle Bob has gotten hold of the microphone and is really drawing out that story of you when you were 6 years old (heck, even we get fidgety during a speech like that!). Combine that with buttoned-up, fancy clothes and the larger-than-usual crowd of adults, and you may just get restless kids that need something to hold their attention.

One of the things I like to suggest for brides that have invited young children to their wedding is to create a children’s activity kit. These kits can include some (noiseless) toys, stickers and other little treats to engage the children and even make them feel like a part of your wedding…and it may take the onus off the parents to provide any sort of entertainment to keep the children quiet and entertained during a quiet time in the reception.

I was flipping through an issue of Martha Stewart’s Living and came across a great photo shoot of a cheery, spring time picnic. Inspired by the editors’ use of little metal buckets to hold things like cutlery and napkins, I decided to make a sample children’s activity kit:





This kit is geared towards a little girl and is filled with pretty stickers, colouring sheets, crayons, as well as a small bag of marshmallow treats!

I really like tying in the wedding stationery and theme into the kit too so that the bucket is appealing for kids yet looks lovely enough to blend into a beautifully styled table. For this kit, I tied the theme elements together by using the same colours and decorative stamp motif in the custom crayon bag and custom treat bag.





Remember, wedding activity kits for kids don’t have to be complicated: children just often love playing with new things and are excited to be given a “gift” from you, the happy Bride and Groom. Parents will also love your thoughtfulness and the fact that you went an extra step to make everyone feel included on your wedding day!