babysitter @ the wedding?

[SkippyNXC]

Has anyone done this?

I'm working on getting someone to like be in a hotel room w/the younger kids (they'll be like 4 kids that are like under 7....) but there's also a handful of like older kids that are like 10, 11, 12... like old enough that they can entertain themselves but young enough that i could see them getting tired of the wedding and wanting a place to chill or lie down while mom and dad party...

i've asked my cousin who's bringing 2 of the 4 younger kids and she said she'd prolly use them

my biggest fear is payin someone to do this and having NO ONE use them but i'd rather have it than not i guess...

anyway the question would be... if u had a babysitter... how'd it go? did ppl use them? anything you'd wish you did? and how much did you pay them? (i'm gonna offer the sitter from like after dinner on so i figure the babysitter can sit at the kids table... if i have one.... eat dinner then bring them over to the hotel room)

[yam102284]

FH's sister did this at her wedding. Granted her wedding was at her parent's house, but it still worked. It was mainly used for the 3 younger children, all under 5 at the time. The babysitter just sat in the house with them, while they watched TV, that way FH's other sister and her husband could enjoy the wedding. It was a night time wedding, and the babysitter *tried* getting them to bed. Yeah, that didn't go too well, but at least there was a place the kids could go when they got tired.

I think it's a good idea, if you are having a night time wedding. My wedding is a lunch reception, ending at 4 p.m. I'm not having one, because I don't really see the point. We are not having that many kids, those 3 plus maybe 4 or 5 more. My feelings, for my day time wedding, is the parent's can watch their children. It's going to be interesting though since we're having a candy buffet, and FH's nieces and nephew sneak stuff all the time. I think we're going to carefully mention to FSIL to make sure the kids are watched because of the candy. FMIL asked if I was getting a babysitter; I politely said no, that the parents can watch their own children.

I think people would use a babysitter if you had one. Especially if they have younger children, and probably the older ones would like someplace to relax if they get tired. Maybe get some kid friendly activities for them at the hotel room, so they can have their own mini party?

[bright_eyes]

my fiance's sister had a babysitter. I think most of the kids used it. They had a "kid suite" set up in the hotel with X-Box (one of the GMs loaned it), kiddie pool, PS3 and they ordered bunch of pizza.

[KatrinaP]

I would say go for it. What could it harm especially if they said that they would use it. Make like a little kid party for them so their not bored, and they can have something to gloat about to their parents afterwards. It's like the best of both worlds parents are happy and kids are happy. I know that I will probably have one at my wedding, and i will be having my own son join in the babysitting activties.

[NOTKT]

I also think its a great idea. We didn't have too many kids at our wedding or I would have done the same thing. Most parents would enjoy having free babysitting for the wedding!

[WeddingAdvice]

That is such a great idea and I am sure guests will really appreciate it. I wouldn't worry that people aren't going to use it, better safe than sorry.

[amjhdrummer]

If you still can't decide, maybe call the parents and ask if they'd be interested! you can easily find someone on www.care.com that's also CPR/First Aid certified which would be a good plus and might make the parents feel safeer...

I think it's a good idea- I'm planning on having a couple people come babysit (haven't RSVPd yet, but about 20kids under the age of 10/11/12), but then my reception/ceremony venue is a YMCA camp and it's all outside, and within 50ft of the tables outside is a playground, so it shouldn't be too hard to keep them entertained!

I'm also using activity place mats- something similar to this;

http://cgi.ebay.com/36-Wedding-Child-Activity-Place-mat-favors-decorations_W0QQitemZ380159766724QQcmdZViewItemQQp tZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item588349b0c4

And for the kids tables I'm considering using some fun little game boards as the centerpieces instead of the glass and candles and flowers and such...

[WeddingAdvice]

Someone approached me to do a guest post for my blog on this exact topic this morning. Here is the post on what to do with kids at a wedding (http://weddingplanningadvice.net/guest-post-kids-wedding/). I think he offers some good tips.

One idea is to pay a responsible teen aged guest or have someone in your family that doesn't mind watch them.

Again, I think this is a really great idea.

[MrsDM]

I didn't, but my boss was recently at a wedding that had a babysitter (in the area that they had the reception, not a seperate room) and they had a table with crayons/markers with color books, some building blocks (I'm sure you could get some good deals off of Craigslist) and I think they had a craft project if I remember correctly. Anyways, the kids had a blast, I think its a great idea! :)

The only thing I'd be concerned about is if the kids are in a room with a sitter and they need to come down or want to come by their mom/dad, you'd have to figure out a way to get in touch with the parent without leaving the rest of the kids up there alone.

[fireprincess2009]

I considered this for my wedding. There were plenty of kids aged 2-15 and kids aren't really my thing. The wedding was at my home outside though and there was enough for them to do running around the yard that I decided that we didn't need it.

I do think it's a great idea though. If possible, I'd try to get them away from the main wedding party/reception area though. Otherwise I can see the kids wanting their parents and still being a disturbance.

[WeddingAdvice]

I agree, kids can be risky. If you're having a laid back wedding and there will be a lot of kids there that's one thing but if you're trying to have a beautiful and sophisticated event, kids screaming and crying can ruin your wedding.

Just imagine your maid of honor or his best man getting up to give a speech, everyone is quiet, and all of the sudden crying and screaming.