Alternative "Reception"

There's nothing wrong with a fun, casual, laid back backyard wedding. I've been to plenty, and some were very nice and memorable.

A couple outdoor games like Cornhole, Croquet, or Horseshoes would be fun for everyone, but also having mini golf, board games, and crafts are too much. It's beginning to sound more like Chuck E Cheese. Crafts, unless it was crayons and coloring for the littles, would be totally out of place for your adult guests. Adults like to visit and mingle with others at parties over food and booze, not be overwhelmed with activities. If you have room for a Bon fire, that would be cool.

I also would not make it an open house, if that's what you're going for. I know you want something different, but that would seem odd to your guests.

I hear "grad party" and think two things:

1) Trying to sneak out of a townhouse that was being busted for an unregistered party and noticing denim stains on the wall thanks to the swarm of public safety officer flashlights. Ew.

2) National Lampoon's Animal House

I think if you combine alcohol and crafts, you're going to get a whole bunch of macaroni dicks left behind by their makers...

If I was invited to something like this and knew what it was going to be like, I'd decline. The marriage has happened, so there's no wedding, and it definitely doesn't sound like a good time.

We have discussed doing an "open house" reception because we have both been married before, we did the big wedding thing and would rather spend thousands of dollars on other things! We are thinking of doing a small (family and 5 close friends each) wedding and then an Open House Celebration afterwards. The invite would indicate a private ceremony is being held and we are inviting friends and family to join us in celebrating our marriage by joining us for an open house beginning at 2pm. We will purchase the alcohol in advance and for food we are looking at heavy appetizers.

I guess coming from a large family who always had open house parties, this does not seem odd to me, especially when you are looking at such a huge cost for food and alcohol alone if you were to do a sit-down or more formal reception. This is not ideal for everyone, however, if you want to have an open house and that fits your personality as a couple, go for it! Your guests can come and go as they please and you get more of an opportunity to mingle with your guests than you would with the formality of dances, food, cake cutting, etc.