So of course you had to get married in 2020, in the midst of an unforeseen pandemic. Has the stupid corona virus officially messed up your original wedding plans? We are SO sorry this happened to you, but we’re here to hopefully give you some ideas and still make your original wedding date special. Before we get started though, we want you to know that although changing your wedding plans might seem like “First World Problems,” we want you to know that your feelings of grief and sadness are still valid. Feel those feelings and let out your frustrations. It’s totally okay. Just don’t stay in that sad place, because LOVE is not cancelled.

Here are 7 ways you can still celebrate your love on your original wedding date:

1. Find an officiant/celebrant that can still marry you and sign your marriage certificate on your original date. You can still legally get married on your original date if you’ve already picked up your marriage license. Here are just a few of our favorite local celebrants that might be able to help you out: Donna Forsythe, Alisa Tongg (she own’s an elopement venue), Lois Heckman and Julie Cassidy of Storied Celebrations. Don’t let corona steal your date!

2. Host a virtual wedding! The first step is choosing your platform. You can use Facebook Live, Google Hangouts, or Zoom. If you subscribe to Zoom for $14.99/month, that’ll allow you to add up to 100 people and a call time of up to 24 hours. You can always cancel your subscription afterwards. Get creative with it! Coordinate with your vendors so that you can still have a cute little ceremony in your backyard or on your porch with the two of you (and a socially distancing celebrant). Plan on telling one of your virtual guests to take screen shots from the zoom call. Utilize the grid view and you can see everyone’s faces. You an also record your screen to have a video clip of the call.

3. Book a FaceTime photo session. There’s no reason to sit around and be bummed out the entire day. Give yourselves an excuse to get out of those sweatpants, put some makeup on and feel good with your boo. Make a new memory at home and get some cute photos. Read more about FaceTime Sessions here.

4. Once the “stay at home” orders are lifted, downsize your wedding and celebrate with a big party at a later date. Elopements and micro weddings are trendy anyway! Read more about the benefits of elopements and intimate weddings on our blog post here. Plus, you now have an excuse to wear your wedding outfits again and celebrate twice. And if you do it on a weekday, chances are most of your favorite vendors will be available. Don’t forget to let us know (your photographer/videographer) your date and we’d love to be there to capture the special moment. Your small wedding is just as important as your big wedding.

5. Replace the meaning of the date with a new life milestone or memory. Adopt a pet! This suggestion might not be for everyone, but we’re dog lovers soooo…. Now you’ve got all the time in the world to train that puppy you’ve always wanted right? If you don’t want to commit THAT much, then start a new project. Home renovations are now possible with your free time. Tackle that new project as a couple and have fun with it.

6. Book a really cute Airbnb near you, have a little getaway and exchange your vows there. If you want, you can even get your vendors together to have your elopement/micro wedding there. Note: Check with the Airbnb owner if that’s okay. And of course, make sure to only do this if the “stay at home” orders have been lifted.

7. And last but certainly not least, ask all of your close friends and family to write a letter to you two. Then on your wedding day, spend time together opening the letters and feeling all the love. Another alternative is for you and your partner to write a letter to each other for you to open that day. We suggest keeping things light and fun. Remember these letters are meant to cheer you up, not meant to make you more sad.

We hope these gave you guys just some ideas on how to make your day special. We know it is so tough to have to move your wedding plans, but when that day finally arrives… it will feel so much more amazing.

Stay safe and be well. <3

-Kristen and Christian