Some brides and grooms are lucky enough to have more special people in their lives than they do spaces in the wedding party. If you have a close friend or family member that will not be asked to be a bridesmaid or groomsmen, there are still ways to include them in your wedding. There are a number of other ceremonial roles at weddings that can be handed out to those you love.
There are any number of reasons why you might want to include someone in your wedding without having them as a bridesmaid. Often the reason is age. Bridesmaids should be reasonably close in age to the bride; at the minimum, they should be of the same generation. Many brides are lucky enough to have a grandmother or aunt to whom they feel very close. Although it would be odd to have your grandmother as a bridesmaid, there are still other ways to honor her with a role in your wedding.
Age is not the only factor. You may have a dear friend who will be nine moths pregnant at the time of your wedding. It would be understandable if she did not feel up to being a bridesmaid, with all that that entails. This does not mean that she can't be a part of your special day, though. You can choose a special job for her to fulfill on the day of your nuptials.
One of the traditional roles to give to a family member is to be in charge of the guest book at the reception. This is a great job for a grandmother who is outgoing, or who is looking forward to seeing a lot of relatives who have come in for your wedding. She can sit by the guest book as the guests enter the reception, greet them, and ask each guest to sign your memory book. This is also a wonderful ceremonial task for anyone who would have trouble standing for long periods of time, like the pregnant friend or the cousin with a broken leg.
Passing out programs at your wedding ceremony is another excellent way to involve a loved one. As the guests arrive for your ceremony, this person can serve as official greeter, and hand each guest a program. This could be a nice job for a younger relative, like your favorite teenage niece or nephew.
Asking someone to do a reading at your wedding is another way to show them how much they mean to you. When I was married, I had my close girlfriends as bridesmaids, but we also wanted to find a way to include my fiance's two sisters in our ceremony. The perfect answer was to have each one do a reading. It required minimum effort on the part of the sisters (each of whom had a newborn baby), but still allowed us to let them know that we valued their participation in our wedding day.
In addition to finding a ceremonial role for a close friend or family member, think of other ways that you can include them before the wedding. When the person you wish to honor is your grandmother, you might choose to give her a special piece of jewelry that she can wear to your wedding. This wedding jewelry does not have to be overly expensive; something like a silver locket with a photo of the two of you together would be ideal.
You can also include your readers, guest book attendants, and so on in the pre-wedding parties. Invite them to events like the bridal shower and rehearsal dinner to make sure that they know how important they are to you. This is a great way to surround yourself with all those that you love, both in the time leading up to your wedding, and most of all, on your special day.
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