Wedding readings perfect for children of all ages
Having children read a poem, an excerpt from a story, or something they’ve written especially for your wedding day is a guaranteed way to bring even more joy, laughter and tears to your ceremony.
Over the last couple of years, I’ve witnessed many of these gorgeous moments - through misty eyes and with a huge grin on my face (as you’ll see below!) - swooning at the cuteness and at how precious the words are and at the courage of the children taking part.
I’ve put together 9 readings that I love, that I’ve either heard performed at ceremonies I’ve been the celebrant at, or ones I’ve found online that I think would work really well.
Photo by Anne Walker
Us Two – by A. A. Milne
Wherever I am, there’s always Pooh,
There’s always Pooh and Me.
“What would I do?” I said to Pooh,
“If it wasn’t for you,” and Pooh said: “True,
It isn’t much fun for One, but Two,
Can stick together, says Pooh, says he. “That’s how it is,” says Pooh.
Oh the Places You’ll go – by Dr Seuss (short version)
“Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the couple who’ll decide where to go.”
Dr. Seuss
“We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.”
Photo by James Green Studio
On Your Wedding day by Anon
“Today is a day you will always remember
The greatest in anyone’s life
You’ll start off the day just two people in love
And end it as husband and wife
It’s a brand new beginning, the start of a journey
With moments to cherish and treasure
And although there’ll be times when you both disagree
These will surely be outweighed by pleasure
You’ll have heard many words of advice in the past
When the secrets of marriage were spoken
But you know that the answers lie hidden inside
Where the bond of true love lies unbroken
So live happy forever as lovers and friends
It’s the dawn of a new life for you
As you stand there together with love in your eyes
From the moment you whisper ‘I do’
And with luck all your hopes and your dreams can be real
May success find its way to your hearts
Tomorrow can bring you the greatest of joys
But today is the day it all starts.”
Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.
Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. ‘Pooh?’ he whispered.
‘Yes, Piglet?’
‘Nothing,’ said Piglet, taking Pooh’s hand. ‘I just wanted to be sure of you.’
‘We’ll be friends forever, won’t we, Pooh?’ asked Piglet.
‘Even longer,’ Pooh answered.
‘If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together… there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you.'”
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
I will love you forever; whatever happens.
Till I die and after I die, and when I find my way out of the land of the dead, I’ll drift about forever, all my atoms, till I find you again…
I’ll be looking for you, every moment, every single moment.
And when we do find each other again, we’ll cling together so tight that nothing and no one’ll ever tear us apart.
Every atom of me and every atom of you…
We’ll live in birds and flowers and dragonflies and pine trees and in clouds and in those little specks of light you see floating in sunbeams…
And when they use our atoms to make new lives, they won’t just be able to take one, they’ll have to take two, one of you and one of me, we’ll be joined so tight.
Photo by Anne Walker
This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen
No relationship is perfect, ever. There are always some ways you have to bend, to compromise, to give something up in order to gain something greater... The love we have for each other is bigger than these small differences. And that's the key. It's like a big pie chart, and the love in a relationship has to be the biggest piece. Love can make up for a lot.
The Recipe for Happy Marriage
Combine two caring hearts
Melt into one
Add a lot of love
Mix well with respect, and trust
Add gentleness, laughter, faith, hope, and joy
Pour in lots of understanding (Don’t forget patience)
Sprinkle with kisses, and a dash of hugs
Bake for a lifetime
Result: One Happy Couple
Getting Married Means You’ll Have by Nicholas Gordon
Getting married means you’ll have
Someone’s hand to hold,
Even when you’re feeling sick,
Even when you’re old.
It means when you sit down to eat,
Someone will be there,
So you won’t have to tell your day
To an empty chair.
It means that you can have some kids
Just like a mom and dad,
And play with them all afternoon,
Except when they are bad.
It means that when you need some help,
Someone will help out,
Someone always near to you
So you won’t have to shout.
But best of all is when it’s time
To turn out all the lights:
You won’t have to be alone
Those long and scary nights.
So even though you don’t have toys,
You don’t have to care:
Once you’re married you can be
Each other’s teddy bear!
Photo by Anne Walker
And with thanks to Carly for her picks and inspiration….
Tangled
“And at last I see the light
And it's like the fog has lifted
And at last I see the light
And it's like the sky is new
And it's warm and real and bright
And the world has somehow shifted
All at once everything looks different
Now that I see you.”
Finding Nemo
“Please don't go away. Please? No one's ever stuck with me for so long before. And if you leave... if you leave... I just, I remember things better with you.
I do, look. P. Sherman, forty-two... forty-two... I remember it, I do.
It's there, I know it is, because when I look at you, I can feel it.
And I look at you, and I'm home.”
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nanna came to tidy the room.
“Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”
“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.
“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”
“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”
“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
Photo by James Green Studio
Toy Story
“You’ve got a friend in me,
You’ve got a friend in me,
When the road looks rough ahead,
And you’re miles and miles,
From your nice warm bed,
You just remember what your old pal said,
Boy, you’ve got a friend in me,
Yeah, you’ve got a friend in me,
You’ve got troubles, and I’ve got ’em too,
There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you,
We stick together and can see it through,
‘Cause you’ve got a friend in me,
You’ve got a friend in me…”
Frozen
“We need each other to raise us up and round us out.
Everyone's a bit of a fixer-upper
but when push comes to shove
the only fixer-upper fixer
that can fix up a fixer-upper is
true, true, true, true, true, true, love.”
Quotes by Olaf, Frozen
“Love … is … putting someone else’s needs before yours.”
“Some people are worth melting for.”
(These short ones are perfect for older Frozen fans for adding into vows!)
Olaf: “Hey Anna, I just thought of one thing that’s permanent”
Anne: What’s that?
Olaf: Love.
Family Comes Together, by Glaedr
Family comes together
For always and forever
In sickness and in health
In poverty or in wealth
Family comes together
For always and forever
Without any reason
Anytime or any season
Family comes together
For always and forever
In death or in life
In happiness or in strife
Family comes together
For always and forever
In anger or in kindness
Whether all seeing or in blindness
Family comes together
For always and forever
Whether for work or for play
They somehow find a way
For family to come together
Because families are forever