Mes Invités Children at weddings: meals, tables and childcare
Decide early whether children are invited and say so clearly on the invitation. If they come, ask their age: it determines the menu, the seat at the table and the need for childcare. Beyond a few children, having someone in charge of looking after them changes the evening for everyone.
Inviting children, or not
Both choices are defensible. What creates tension is vagueness: name the people invited on the invitation, children included, or state that the evening is for adults only. If you make exceptions, for close family for example, own them simply.
The meal
Ask each child's age in the reply. Most caterers offer a children's menu up to ten or twelve, served earlier and faster. Toddlers are generally not counted, but need a high chair and sometimes somewhere to warm up a meal.
Where to seat them
- Under six: next to their parents.
- From six to twelve: a children's table works well, close to the parents, with something to keep them busy.
- Teenagers: with their cousins or at a table of young people, not at the children's table.
Childcare
From five or six children, one or two dedicated people let the parents enjoy the meal. Provide a quiet corner for games and, if the evening goes on, a room where the youngest can sleep. The person looking after the children dines on site: count their meal.