How We Made Our Original Wedding Date Special

As most people know, I got engaged two days before the world shutdown because of Covid. Being engaged during a pandemic is not easy. All of the celebrations you normally get to have are either non-existent or very different from what you envisioned. Being a “Covid Bride” forces you to make sacrifices, alter your plans and to spend a lot of time simply hoping that you get to have a wedding at all. And I’m luckier than most.. I got engaged right as the pandemic happened so I knew to ask the right questions on what happens if we needed to postpone our wedding when talking to potential vendors. I didn’t have to postpone my wedding after spending over a year planning it. All of my planning involved a little voice in the back of my head saying “What if nothing changes by our wedding day and we need to move it?”. In a way, it was a blessing because I wasn’t getting my hopes up.

We set our wedding date for April 9th, 2021 thinking that the world would HAVE to be back to normal by then. But as the months went on and the second wave hit, we started to get nervous and set New Year’s Day as the day we would make a decision on if we would postpone the wedding. New Year’s came and we decided to postpone to October 15, 2021. The rationale being that Sean’s family is in Ireland and we didn’t think the international travel ban would be lifted. Our thinking ended up being right.

So, how were we going to make our original wedding date special?

We had already begun talking with my family about potentially going to the Bahamas that week. I made sure everyone packed a nice outfit so we could party the night away. April 9th came and we spent the day at the pool. Sean surprised me with a bottle of champagne delivered to our hotel room. Right before sunset we all met on the docks of our resort where Sean surprised me with a vow ceremony. My dad officiated while my brother and his girlfriend were our witnesses (along with being on picture and video duties). We did the Irish traditional Handfasting ritual where our hands were tied together to symbolize the binding of our two lives. It was everything we could’ve hoped for the evening to be.

After the ceremony, we had cocktails at one of the fancier bars in Baha Mar and then the group split off for separate dinners. Sean and I went to Carna which is the steakhouse at Baha Mar. We ordered the three course menu where each person gets a salad, filet, a side and dessert for $100 each. Definitely worth the deal. The steaks were perfectly seasoned and probably the best steak I’ve ever had! The rest of the food was absolutely amazing and everything we could have wanted for that special meal. Highly recommend if you are looking for a fancier meal while staying at Baha Mar.

Overall, April 9th, 2021 will always be a day we cherish even if we didn’t get to have our wedding as originally planned. We found ways to make the day one that we will never forget.

Now we get to look forward to our new wedding day, October 15th!

xoxo - Kim