No. Unless your children are explicitly invited to participate in the wedding, children are not invited and should not attend the wedding events.
Cocktail attire is requested. Not sure what cocktail attire entails? Here's a quick guide on the dos and don'ts of cocktail attire: https://www.theknot.com/content/cocktail-wedding-attire. Think medium to full length dress, pantsuit, slacks, dress shirt, blazer, suit, and ties, but no shorts, jeans, or sneakers. Our ceremony will take place outside (weather permitting) in Chicago August heat, so please keep that in mind! The venue is across from the lake so hopefully "cooler by the lake" will stay true for us.
Unless your invitation explicitly states +1 or guest, we ask that you do not bring any additional people with you to the wedding events.