Reception Games

Anton and Kayla were playing the shoe game Saturday night at their engagement party. During the game, the betrothed (or newly-marrieds if played at a wedding reception) hold their own shoe in one hand and their beloved's shoe in the other. They sit back to back and answer questions about each other. The questions include:

Who is the messier?
Who said 'I love you first?
Who is the better driver?
Who spend the most money?
Who's the more likely to be running late?

It is a sweet game for guests to get to know the couple better and to see how well the couple knows one another. Anton and Kayla did pretty well and agreed on many of the questions. One they disagreed on - and the one that got the most "awww"s - was "Who is the better looking?" Without hesitation they both put up their betrothed's shoe. It didn't even look like they thought about it. It was a sweet selfless response and showed the love they had for one another. Ayla said during the game, "I wonder how Rob and I would do at that game?" And plans were made to have them possibly play it at the rehearsal dinner.

When you get a group of folks together who may not know one another at an engagement party or reception, having fun games like this can liven up the party, get folks to mix and mingle and keep guests entertained. Your typical reception has the same elements: dinner, toast, dancing, cake cutting and bouquet/garter toss. So to have other things for guests to do makes the evening memorable. Ayla and Rob will be having several activities available for guests to do, like table games, guest book signings and the selfie station.

Here are some entertaining ideas for the reception:

1. Mad Libs or in this case, Wed Libs. Create your love story and eliminate names, verbs, nouns, adjectives and adverbs. Let guests ask other guests at their table for suggestions for the blanks, fill out the Mad Lib and place it in a box for you to read later.
2. If there is room, corn hole or the bean bag toss. It keeps folks busy and is a hit at any party. You can even special make the game in wedding colors or each representing the bride or groom.
3. Giant games like Checkers, Jenga, Kerplunk, Yahtzee, Scrabble and Connect Four. Again you need room for games like these.
4. Photo I Spy. Give guests a list of things to get pictures of: the cake cutting, first dance, table guests, the couple kissing or even specific things like a picture of someone you've never met, the youngest guest, the oldest guest, etc. Then give your guest a hashtag to link their photos so you can view them later. You may get good pictures of different events with a unique angle or perspective.
5. Questions. Leave blank cards on the dinner tables and ask guests to name your first child, create bucket list items for you and suggest date ideas. The cards can then be placed it the same place as wedding cards for you to read later.
6. We talked about the piñata Daddy and I had at the wedding on Feb. 10 of this blog. It was a fun diversion for children.
7. For a destination wedding or wedding where folks are coming from all over, put a US or world map on the wall and ask guests to put a pin in the location they are visiting the wedding from. It will be fun for them to see where guest are from and give you a nice remembrance.
8. Who said what? Get interesting sayings from the bride and groom and have guests try to guess who said the quote by circling the bride or groom's name. Have guests turn the cards in where weddings cards go.
9. A dance off or sing off - girls against the boys. For the sing off, come up with themes each team will sing a song about until one cannot come up with an idea. Love songs, for example.
10. A dance chain. Like any game where one person starts and each subsequent guest adds something after repeating the items already said. You get an original dance by the end.

There are many other party games played for different holidays or birthdays which can be tweaked to make them about the couple or weddings. Find ways to keep the guests entertained, make a new memory and have fun!

Discussion: What is your favorite party game? What is the most unusual thing you've seen played at a wedding reception? What is one of the most fun things you have done at a wedding reception?

Prayer: Thank you, Father, for the guests who will attend these weddings. We pray we can perhaps have something uniquely fun for our guests to learn, do and enjoy. We thank you for the precious memories to be made. In Christ, Amen.