...with 6 month daughter at wedding?

[Dreemagurl]

My DP and I are getting married soon, and I'm getting concerned about what to do with our 6 month old DD in the evening of the wedding day. We want her to be involved on the day, but as she usually goes to bed about 6.30 - 7 (and is a bit hit and miss with self settling etc) we're really wondering what the best thing is to do with her in the evening. Both sets of grandparents will be there, and I don't feel right asking them to miss the 'fun' in order to put DD to bed and then babysit her whilst DP (DH by then!) and I bop the night away. Where the reception is held there isn't any where she can settle down in a travel cot away from noise etc for a sleep (something we should have thought of at time of booking but stupidly didn't and it's a bit late now) so really wondering what to do? Advice please! WWYD??

Could you hire a babysitter? Call a local agency. Ds was six months when dh and I got married but we didn't have an evening do as I was too knackered.

Ha, good point! As DD still requires night feedings, I'm still a sleep deprived mum so will probably be ready for bed before she is! Was thinking about a child minder etc but then my overworking brain was asking questions like, do they take DD back to their house or ours? And the logistics of both.... Aargh. Wish we'd waited longer before planning the wedding now but at the time we thought, 6 months? DD will be sleeping through, on 3 meals a day and just put herself to sleep. Once she's driven herself there :)

Don't know if this will be any help but I once went to a wedding in rural France. The dch sort of vanished during the evening, and then I noticed that they'd been put to sleep in sleeping bags, under the tables that had the food on them!

Could you relax designate a grandparent to take care of her, and let her fall asleep from tiredness? (sorry, my dch are 17 yo now, it's been a long time since I had to deal witha baby)

If DD wasn't such a monkey bright interested-in-everything overstimulated little thing then we'd do that or something similar but she'd just get overexcited and overtired until she ended up having a meltdown. Think maybe we'll have to try a childminder. Thanks for the replies. Any other ideas welcome...

We got married when DD was nearly 2. We wanted her there for the day but gone for the evening! A friend dropped her off at our childminder, & then my parents fetched her from there at 11 when they left the reception. I would have preferred to have someone look after her at home but there wasn't anyone she knew who was able to do it (childminder wanted to do it in her own house).