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Just Said Yes October 2024

Multiple roles for one person (child)

Jen, on March 26, 2024 at 1:09 AM Posted in Wedding Ceremony 0 5
We are having a destination wedding and it will be very small. There won’t be a wedding party except we would like to use our daughter who will have just turned 9. Is there a way she could sort of be flower girl, ring bearer and kind of my maid of honour all at once?


My partner and I are planning to walk down the aisle together and thought she could go down ahead of us. We could give her the rings to hold on to. I said she could drop flower petals and initially she didn’t want to, but now I think she likes that idea. I also thought she could be my bridesmaid because I realized that I would need somebody to take my bouquet during the ceremony and I read that the bridesmaid does that.
I’m really clueless about weddings so I hope you guys can clarify a few things for me. If my daughter carries the rings, what does she do with them when she gets down the aisle? Does she give them to the officiant to give to us when the time comes to exchange rings? Does she hold them until it’s time? I’m really not sure how anything works. If she decides she wants to sit after going down the aisle instead of stand next to me, do I just give her my bouquet when I get down the aisle and then have her sit?
Also we are planning to write our own vows and read them from little books I got. What do we do with those books before it’s time to use them? I won’t have pockets, so does to officiant have them to give to us; do we have our daughter hold them?
As you can see I don’t know a lot about the logistics of weddings. Is having my daughter basically playing multiple roles silly or weird? We’d really like her to be involved in some way.

5 Comments

Latest activity by Andrea, on March 31, 2024 at 9:01 PM
  • Jasmine S.
    VIP May 2022
    Jasmine S. ·
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    I think it's fine to have your daughter do a couple things, as long as she doesn't have too many things to hold at once. I think the rings (in a box) would be good, maybe a pomander ball if she wants to hold something small that's flower-related: https://somethingborrowedblooms.com/Products?productTypeFilterId=13


    She could also wear a flower crown and/or wrist corsage.
    If she sits during the ceremony, yes she would have to give the rings to the officiant or someone. Most weddings I see have a small table or podium at the altar for these kinds of things. As for the vow books, your officiant or your partner should have pockets and can hopefully hold them until it's time.
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  • Andrea
    Rockstar January 2024
    Andrea ·
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    It’s not silly or weird, but I’d be wary of giving a 9yo too much to do. You don’t want her to get stressed or overwhelmed, or to forget something important. I would say to find out what she’s most interested in doing and stick to two things max. If you want her to carry the rings or hold your bouquet, she’d need to stand up with you or add a bunch of extra steps on what she does with each thing when. So find out first if she wants to stand up there the whole time or not. If she doesn’t, I’d have her as just flower girl. If she does, she could carry the rings and hold your bouquet, etc.

    For the things she doesn’t end up doing, there are lots of alternatives. You could always have a little decorative table or stand near the officiant where you could set your bouquet and/or the vow books. The officiant should have pockets and can carry the rings and your vow book. And while dropping flower petals is in everyone’s head as The Thing, they can be a royal pain to clean up afterwards so lots of people skip that.
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  • C
    CM ·
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    You can obviously do whatever you like and no, it's neither silly nor weird in any way. I just wouldn't have her carry both flowers and rings, or rings and bouquet at the same time so it may make more sense to have the officiant hand over the rings. Then she'd be free to hold your bouquet. I don't see a big issue with any of this considering she'll have you or the officiant there to remind her what to do when.

    Your FI or the officiant can hold onto the books.

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  • Michelle
    Rockstar December 2022
    Michelle ·
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    The ring bearer is ceremonial and they don’t carry the actual rings. Be aware that you will need a legal witness for the paperwork who is 18+. In most situations that is part of the maid of honor’s sole responsibilities, beyond buying the dress and showing up for support at the rehearsal and wedding day. But you will need an adult backup in this case. Beyond that, ask her what her comfort level is. Only the children in question know if and what they are up to doing, so they need to be approached directly.
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  • Andrea
    Rockstar January 2024
    Andrea ·
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    The witness signature varies state by state, so always check your own state’s rules. We not only didn’t have to have a witness signature, we didn’t even sign it ourselves! We signed something when we applied for the marriage license, and the only one who signed the marriage license itself was our officiant.
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