Often on your wedding day, each of your immediate family members has a role to play. Your parents are likely escorting you down the aisle, your siblings are often in your wedding party or helping to usher your guests in, and even your nieces and nephews are put to work as flower girls and ring bearers. Grandparents are often invited as honored guests and included in the wedding processional, but that is often where their role ends. If you have an especially close bond with one or all of your grandparents, you may feel like this short role doesn’t accurately portray that closeness. Well, we’re here to tell you that there are other options! You can easily find ways to include and honor your grandparents in your wedding in ways that will better reflect the influence they have had in your life. 

Include them in your ceremony

Including your grandparents in your ceremony is one of the easiest ways to reflect your bond with them on your wedding day. While grandparents of the bride and groom are usually included in the wedding processional, that isn’t where their role in your wedding has to end! On the contrary, you can include your grandparents in any role that you feel accurately reflects the relationship you have with each other. Is your grandparent your role model, the one you always look to for advice and wisdom? Ask them to act as your officiant. Do you look up to your grandparent’s youthful nature and positive outlook on life? Let them prepare the way for you as a flower grandma or grandpa. Have you always considered your grandparent one of your best friends? Let them stand beside you as a bridesmaid or groomsman. Your wedding party is your own, so include your grandparents wherever you feel they most belong.

Capture priceless photos

Another great way to honor your grandparents on your wedding day is to include them in your photos. We’re not just talking about your family portraits or reception candids. We’re talking about celebrating your family bonds by planning special multi-generational photos with your parents and grandparents. Capture the examples of love and commitment across the generations by taking close ups of your wedding bands together or coordinate a first look with your grandma or grandpa. Alternatively, include your grandparents in your getting ready photos. If your “something old” or “something borrowed” is from your grandparent, such as an heirloom necklace or tie pin, have them put it on you and capture the moment with photography!

Accept their gifts of service

There is no greater gift than your own time and effort, so if your grandparents ask how they can help with your wedding, accept their gifts of service! Include your grandparents in the planning process, whether that looks like bringing grandma along for the dress fitting, letting grandpa cut the wood rounds for your centerpieces, or asking your grandparents for general planning advice. You can also include them in the wedding itself. If your grandparents are musically inclined, consider asking them to play an instrument as you walk down the aisle, or have them sing a sentimental duet at your reception. If you are including speeches in your itinerary, ask them to share the wisdom behind their own lasting marriage. At the end of the day, most people just like to feel needed, so letting your grandparents help where they can is a great way to reflect their own love.

Honor their memory

If your grandparent is no longer with you, you can still find meaningful ways to include them in your wedding. Save them a seat at your ceremony to honor their absence or set up a table of photos dedicated to those who are present in memory. Carry them with you down the aisle in the form of a locket looped around the base of your bouquet, a patch of their clothing sewn into the lining of your dress or jacket, or a sentimental jewelry piece that reminds you of them. Include elements in your decor that evoke their memory, such as their favorite color, their favorite flower, or decor items that feel like them.