How To Engage Kids On Your Big Day: New Ideas For Modern Weddings

Weddings = excitement for the adults and yawns for the kids. And the last thing you want at your wedding is a group of crying, cranky kiddos who, as cute as they are can tend to put a dampener on the spirits sometimes. So, how do you make your special day fun for the little ones in attendance? With some carefully planned kid-friendly festivities, you can turn that frown upside down!

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Hire a Professional Why not entertain the tots with a professional performer? Hint: If you have a bit of money left over, you can consider getting a party planner (a kiddy one) to figure out a few ideas for you. If not, consider hiring a bag piper, clown, comedian, caricature artist, face, body and/or fake tattoo painter, fortune teller, impersonator (think Batman, Cinderella, Mickey Mouse, or Frozen Princesses), karaoke, magician, mime, mystery theatre, story teller, ventriloquist, hypnotist, or tarot card reader. It's an easy way to keep the kids happy and the adults off the hook. Of course, all this can happen if you can have a kids corner at the wedding, so create one! Naptime Ideas If you're expecting very young children, chances are they'll be asleep before the function is over. Accommodate their fatigue by setting up a quiet nap room where they can rest comfortably. With a little creative planning, you can make sure the kids -- and the adults -- enjoy your wedding almost as much as you do. Just find a cozy corner and get the decorator to throw in a few nice blankets and toys and big cushions. Nanny Love  At a destination wedding I attended recently, the organisers at the hotel had a nanny or two on call for hire. You can be rest assured they come with the hotel's recommendation. So these trained nannies can take your kid to play or sit down with them at the pheras etc if you are caught with the wedding by any chance. Arty Crafty Occupation Kids love to make and do, so a mini area with pots of crayons and craft supplies like stickers, crayons, play dough to get creative with will go down a treat. Wedding themed crafts like decorating a cake, making cards for the bride and groom or even making DIY masks for a photo booth would create hours of fun for little hands.

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Kid-Friendly Food Serve at least one appetizer that appeal to kids or have a candy bar. We are sure that even the adults would love this one! Or let them have their own bar: Mini dosa bar, Mini smoothie bar, Mini Doughtnut Bar or even a "Make your own ice cream" stall where you give ice cream and put in 10 varieties of toppings - gems, bananas, Oreos, sprinkles...you know! Let loose in a bounce house Just hire a bounce house and let them loose. You just have to make sure that you have enough space for one and an adult to keep an eye on all the crazy kids! Bounce houses will always be a big draw. Include them in the ceremony Having some sort of responsibility will often give kids something to look forward to (and encourages them to be on their best behaviour). Frame it as a “kid parade” and have let them carry balloons, pinwheels, and toy musical instruments below you walk towards the mandap or your entry into the reception hall. Give them bubbles to blow and a board to hang on their head. Treasure hunts If your venue allows it, entertain the children by putting together a pirate-themed treasure hunt. It will be great for burning off energy and with a bit of savvy shopping at your local shops, it can cost next to nothing to create.

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Lego Land  Throw a mat, a few lego boxes and lots of Barbies, you're done. Get a toy rental to come there for a day - it's a great idea. And get a few toys that are unique thrown in. Play-doh is a big puller - it can make any kid happy. Tents and More As your planner creates tents for adults, let her/ him create a cute one for kids too. Cute, cozy ones that they can hang in all day long! Have a kids-only photo booth ...or get some props that are quintessentially kiddy - maybe a few so they can keep posing away with their new-found stuff. Include Avengers, Super Hero props or even Frozen or Tangled props. Create a Fun-fair You know those sweet rustic village fun fairs? With cotton candy and pinwheels and small ball pits? You can recreate it at the wedding so kids can go there and go gaga.

• By Apoorva Pagar