Flower Girls?

I want my niece and my cousin's daughter (what relation would her daughter be to me, btw???) to both be my flower girls. When I get married (December 20 2008), they will both be almost 3 years old. I'm not sure if they'll be up to the task of walking down the aisle and scattering flower petals. Will they be old enough to be my flower girls???
Flower Girls?
I am unsure what relation she would be, I think your 'first cousin once removed' that you researched sounds right. makes sense.





Anyways, I am getting married next August and my niece will be 2 and she will be my flower girl. A lot of people think im crazy, but I have helped raise her since birth and it really means a lot to me to include her.





Her daddy is the best man, so he will either escort her down the aisle, or just encourage her to walk down towards him.





She is still so young now, but once it gets to a few months before the wedding we are going to practice walking in a line down an 'aisle' with a basket.





The biggest thing is, if your a bride that wants and expects everything to be perfect-you should go for an older child.





I understand that she is young and may throw a tantrum and not want to do anything! And I realize and accept that. Things may go great, she may do something silly, or she may do nothing.





If you go into in expecting them to be perfect angels you may be dissapointed. But as long as you realize they are 3yr olds, and may have other plans of what they want to do....I think they will be great!





And if they do do something funny/silly who cares?! There 3! Its adorable! Makes it that much more memorable.
Reply:I have a 3 year old as my flower girl, she's my cousin. the way I got her use to being around a lot of people is I invited her to the bridal shower, and she met a lot of the people that will be at the wedding. She feels really comfortable with all the people that will be at the wedding. One thing you can do is have them walk down the aisle, and when they reach the front they can go and sit with their parents, this is so they won't feel aquwards standing with the other people in the wedding party, but remember, if they do mess up, don't worry.....they are just kids, and kids sometimes throw tantrams and are shy around people.
Reply:I think the girl is your second cousin once-removed. I'd just say cousin.





The kids are really cute and add a precious element. My sister had 5 nieces and nephews under 6 in her wedding. She had bell ringers. How cute is that? But 2 of her flowers whined out during the ceremony and ended up sitting down.





Three is kind of young. Be sure to plan for them. Make sure they each have a person who is ONLY taking care of them. So their mother's are out if they are in the wedding. It should be someone seated who can guide or direct them if needed.





You may want to have them sit down after they scatter the petals rather than making them stand up there during the ceremony. It can be long and boring. Make that an option by having your child attendants (who should also be listed in you program and thanked with gifts) sit in an easily accessible spot.





Also, an old wedding coordinator gave me some good advice about little kids in weddings. She said you should only count on them for the pictures OR the ceremony.





I had my little nieces in my pictures, but not in the ceremony. They got the pretty dresses and no stress. I found out later my niece who'd been in my sister's wedding the year before was quite relieved I didn't want them in the wedding.





Be sure to ask the girls and their parents advise before you decide.





December weddings are magical.
Reply:Too young. My flower girl was about 4 when she bawled her eyes out and ran over to her mother. n
Reply:I have a 3 yr old for my flower girl next month, but I also have my 7 yr old daughter walking with her, and If all necessary I'll stick my 11 yr old sister in there to walk with them both, so they go in the right direction and not running off to play (we are getting married at a park on Lake Michigan)


3 yr olds are cute If you just give them something to go to, or walk to You'd be fine! But dont expect a 3 yr old to walk down the aisle by herself or with someone she doesnt really know willingly,.
Reply:Yes. I think they will love it. I was about that age when I was in my aunts wedding. I remember alot of it, and the pictures were so cute - oh, and your cousins kid is your second cousin (or cousin twice removed). i like the former
Reply:Your cousin's daughter is your second cousin.


Three is really quite young, but as long as they have someone right there to guide them, they should be alright.
Reply:shes your 2nd cousin, sometimes called once removed but that all gets tooo complicated in big families like mine to explain, if that little girl grows up and has kids, her kids would be called your 3rd cousins or cousins twice removed, whatever you prefer, I have heard it both ways. Anyway, I think they would be fine at 3, if they seem to be outgoin children that is, if they are more reserved it may take a little more to get them down the aisle....really try to judge if the kids love an audience, or if they prefer to stick with mommy, that would give you a better idea...good luck with it tho!
Reply:I had 2 flowergirls and 2 ringbearers. They were 3, 3, 4 and 5. They all did great! They were SO cute. It depends on the child though...if she tends to be a shy girl, she might be intimidated by all the people.
Reply:my niece is 3 and she is going to be my flower girl. she's really excited about it. she's always talking about it. lol. And I also know that since she is 3, that she might end up just running to her daddy or that she might dance down the aisle or start singing in the middle of the wedding, but ya know what? i really don't care..lol I love her to death and if she feels like getting up during the ceremony and singing twinkle twinkle little star, then i wont be upset or anything. I think weddings are too stuffy and they should be more relaxed. Ive never seen a wedding where everything went perfectly..lol.
Reply:Yes they will and they will do just as you wish.~~
Reply:your cousins daughter is your like 3rd or possibly 4th cousin..still a cousin...=) and omg..3y/o's Girl..since you have this much time b4 your wedding I would work with them calmly what you need and want them to do and tell them it's a big special day for you and you need them to help..and a small gift for them being in it...All sounds great!! Congrats btw!! Good Luck w/ the flower girls!! %26amp; your Future!!%26lt;3 %26lt;3 ;)


~peace~
Reply:Some 3-year-olds could do it perfectly, others, not so much. I wouldn't stress about it too much. Everyone will be commenting on how cute they look walking down the aisle, and no one will think badly if one of them forgets to scatter petals or decides to dump them all out at once, in fact, it makes it all the more endearing. Let them practice before the wedding and they should be fine. If they do dump the petals out at the end, you will have a lovely bed of petals to stand in.





Good luck and congrats!
Reply:Your cousin's daughter is your first cousin once removed. Your parents' cousins would be your 2nd cousins!





Three years old is definitely old enough to be a flower girl. My friend got married recently and her 2.5-year-old niece was in the wedding. She didn't walk down the aisle, though - she ran! Dad was waiting at the end to help her be calm while she walked but she just ran right into his arms! It was actually a pretty cute and funny part of the wedding and the bride didn't mind at all! Her neice sat in the front row with the mom and dad because she was too fidgety to stand.





So, I do think that age is old enough, but it may just be a symbolic thing because they won't have the patience to stand up at the front or may be too shy/scared to walk nicely down the aisle. I personally would go without a flower girl.
Reply:What have you got to lose? So they don't spread the petals evenly or have a break down right before the ceremony? What does it matter? Flower girl is a position for untrustable young children! :) Worst case scenario you have no flower girl....not really huge. But as a bonus you have two just in case one does have a major tantrum there is still another one there to fill the space.
Reply:My neice was almost 3 at my wedding. I was concerned about the same thing.





I found this awesome book that explained to her what a wedding was and what her job was (they have tons on amazon http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search...





My sister in law and brother read it to her and talked to her about it. They even made a game of practicing it. She was so excited and was perfect on the day.make up