1st wedding with a child ( 1st time around )

When you are pregnant you can find so much information, from bump to birth and then on to toddler age you can find countless books, guides and helpful information. I have found that once your child gets to nursery age this help and information drys up! As a 1st time mum to a now 4 1/2 year old who has just started  full time school in September i thought i would share my views/tips on all the things you will face 1st time !

So this time its Weddings! now we have been to x3 wedding this year but only one of them we took Bodhi with us, the 1st one we only went to the reception and both felt it would be nice to go as a couple rather then a family ( it was one of Chris's friends getting married ) the 2nd wedding we went to was my best friends but the invite was adults only so this meant Bodhi couldn't come ( we had a amazing time with both myself & Chris on the dance floor till gone 1 am ! ) so moving on to the last wedding of the year this wedding was for Chris's younger brother so we knew that Bodhi would want to go and also we knew lots of other couples going with children. Now the bride & groom go married 3 weeks before the reception on a beach so the "wedding" was really a reception but we all talk about it as a wedding.

This was also Bodhi's 1st time staying over in a hotel he was super excited about everything ! on the day of the wedding he woke up at 6:15 am ( ouch ! ) chris had work in the morning so rather then sitting around waiting we popped to IKEA ( as you do right? ) we had hot dogs for lunch ( not a super good idea would have been better off with something more filling but never mind )

The hotel was also a spa so we planned to go early help set up then go for a swimming then party from 6:30 , We got to the hotel and checked in now we paid to have a bed added in the room for Bodhi and as it tuns out all of these room where at the very back of the hotel and a good 5 minute walk from the party room. At check in we also found out that children couldn't go in the pool after 3pm so we helped set up then went back to the room had a few snacks ( that i took with me ) and got ourselves ready for the party. We had a super good time and Bodhi was happy dancing away and playing with the other children at around 11pm he started to flag tho and he asked me if he could go to bed. I took him back to the room and we watched a few cartoons then went to bed around 11:30pm.

TIPS 

* Take your own snacks for not only you child but yourself 

* take own drinks for in the room and at the wedding ( we didn't do this as thought we could buy him fruit shoots no such luck ) 

* let your child have cake/sweets/drinks etc it isn't worth the fighting

* dance with your child if they want to ( Bodhi was on the dance floor for most of the night )

* get someone else to take a family photo of you early on in the night 

* take a family selfie / loads of photos 

* don't worry about bedtime just roll with your child

* talk to your other half about who it is that will take child to bed when bedtime does roll around, as it was Chris's brother i said it was only fair that i would take him.

* speak to the hotel ( if staying over ) About when and if children can use the pool 

* Enjoy it  !