WWYD- Wedding Ceremony or Reception

My late DH's nephew is getting married in July. The ceremony is at 2:30 and the reception is not until 6:00 and goes until 1:00 a.m.

My boys NEED their sleep. At 29 months they sleep 12 hours at night and take, on average a 3 hour nap (sometimes 4) a day. DH's nephew lives in my town so the church and reception are about 10 minutes from my house.

I'm trying to decide if I should have them skip the ceremony and take their nap at home (I would have my sister come over so I could go). Or have them go to the ceremony, be VERY crabby for the rest of the day, and then bring them home at their normal bedtime of 7:30. I would put them to bed and again, have my sister come over and then I could go back to the reception.

There will be a lot of family from out of state that have not seen them in a long time so not having them go to either is out of the question.

I'm leaning more towards them having their nap and not going to the ceremony. I would most likely be spending most of the time in the crying room or hallway since they would not sit still for an hour.

With them having their nap, they could stay up longer and we can visit with family.

Today we went out to lunch with DH's family and it was during their naptime. Around 3:00 they both started acting up and the meltdowns started. We got home at 5:30 and by 7:00 I could not take it any longer and put them to bed a 1/2 hour early and they went right to sleep.

So what would you do.....ceremony or reception?

 

I would let them have their regular nap at home and then go to the reception. Besides the fact that it will allow them to have as much sleep as possible and be as happy as possible, all of the relatives will actually get to talk to them, interact with them, and have fun seeing them at the reception versus just getting to admire them from a distance at the ceremony!

Enjoy the wedding!

 

I would lean toward skipping the ceremony (if they are not in it) and doing the reception.

We just did my sisters wedding 2 weeks ago...the girls were IN it so we had to do the ceremony at 5:00 and the reception at 6:00. They normally go to bed at 7:00....they made it to 7:45ish and all heck broke loose. We took them back to the hotel and someone stayed with them....they fell right asleep!!

They do not nap much anymore (one DD occasionaly does), but still they could have used a 'rest'.....also consider when they would eat. We fed the girls at 4:30 quickly so they made it through the ceremony (dinnertime is normally around 5:30)....I knew they could not wait until food was served around 7pm!!

Have fun!

 

Definitely the reception... Because it will be loud during this time with everyone gabbing away and lots of music and laughter...so if there were a meltdown, it would be totally okay. No one would even hear it, much less pay much attention as they are all mingling, eating and drinking!

I dont know what your bedtime for the kiddos are, but if you stay for only an hour or hour and a half, it wouldnt affect your bedtime much at all if they go to bed pretty early.

 

I vote for the reception as well, skip the ceremony (because no one will get to play with them then anyway) and let the kiddos sleep. Then take them to the reception and stay for as long as they are cooperative, then once they get crabby (or perhaps even 30min before if you are psychic!) take them home and put them to bed. Honestly, no one wants to talk or play with kids that are whiny, tired and crying anyway! Have fun!

 

I would do the reception as well. There the family can interact with them, the boys can dance and play...plus they will be well rested and in good moods after their naps. Good luck and enjoy the wedding!

 

I agree with the pps! Let them get a really good nap (maybe even put them down a little late) and go to the reception. If you can arrange it, have someone pick them up after an hour or two and take them home to put them to bed then stay with them while you have fun.

 

When my girls were flower girls at around 18 months, we did the ceremony and they just couldn't make through the reception. I would definitely opt for the reception, because the kids don't have to be quiet and there's more action going on. I actually took a teenager with me and she played with the girls outside for the ceremony after their part and then we took them into the reception..but like I said, they didn't last long and I ended up taking them home and missing all the fun stuff.​

 

As everyone else has said, I agree w/going to the reception. And I know you said a lot of family is coming in from out of town, but there will more likely be more people at the reception that will get to see the kiddos as well. Enjoy!

 

I agree with everyone else, let them nap through the ceremony and just take them to the reception. Much better to have well-rested happy kids at a reception, where they can run around and family can talk to/play with them, than tired grumpy kids at a ceremony, where they need to be still and quiet and family won't be able to interact with them anyway.

 

I too would skip the ceremony. It's not like you get to talk to anyone and really see them during the ceremony. It's beautiful and meaningful, but you'll really be able to talk with everyone during the reception. With cranky kids, it's nearly impossible. So, with them well rested, you'll be able to concentrate more on chatting with family, and everyone can enjoy happier kids. They'll be up later, but you can always leave early if you need to. People will understand. You have young kids, and their schedules are necessary to stick as close to as possible at this age.

 

Yep, my vote would be go to the reception...skip the ceremony. Reception is a bit louder. They wouldn't have to sit perfectly still & quiet. Plus, they would get their nap in. :good: