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Spontaneous Weddings

I absolutely love being spontaneous! And, an added bonus, it takes the edge off of planning for months and months for an extravagant wedding. As a Justice of the Peace I have been asked to officiate many small, intimate ceremonies, especially during COVID. Many couples need to switch gears and do not want to wait.  Frequently, it is a last minute decision. They prefer to keep their original date, and have the ceremony at an uncrowded, open space location. The trick is to be flexible. You are with your love, so just make sure it’s a legal ceremony (don’t forget […]

Six Degrees of Separation

2020 Spring & Summer Weddings Even with these challenging times, your wedding can still be intimate and memorable. With beautiful green lawns, and flowers exploding with color, spring and summer offer a wonderful wedding backdrop. Things to keep in mind… With many businesses and town halls closed to the public, be sure to check out our tips on navigating marriages during the pandemic. This will help expedite the process. Location, Location, Location If you’re thinking about a spring or summer wedding, one of the best venues can be your own home. It’s easy to control social distancing and other safety necessities. In […]

What Wedding Size is Right for You?

Image of large wedding party at outdoor wedding ceremony

Big venue or microwedding? Or, something in-between? Recognizing the pros and cons of different size weddings helps couples decide how they should proceed with their ceremony plan. It’s a balance. Many couples today want to move forward with their lives as a married couple as soon as possible. However, they also wish to have a wedding where they can celebrate their marriage with their loved ones. As a couple, they need to figure out what wedding size is best for them. Medium and Large Weddings Having a medium or large wedding creates opportunities for families to come together to strengthen […]

Backyard Weddings

So should you do it? There are many good reasons to marry in your backyard, including the special memory that will come to mind every time you look at the place where it all happened. Before you decide, consider this: Weather Warm weather Position chairs in the shade for the ceremony. Provide water packed in ice buckets in a few key places. Use fans Hand-held can do double-duty by printing your programs on cardstock and giving them a wooden handle. Large fans (with misters?) can be rented for the day. Obtain enough of them to place strategically in each corner […]

Surprise Your Guests: Get Married!

After living together for 14 years, whenever we talked about getting married, the biggest obstacle was the wedding itself. My  kids were teenagers, his were married with young children of their own. After all this time living like an old married couple, we were embarrassed to make a big deal of it. Yet we wanted our friends and family to be present. On the Friday before a planned party to celebrate his 60th birthday with all the kids and a few friends coming, I had a light bulb moment. Here was the perfect opportunity to have it both ways! (He […]

How Small Was the Wedding? Only Thee and Me!

With the pandemic, tiny weddings are increasing in popularity. That makes this throwback even more relevant for today ~ editor, July 2020. My favorite (actually, only) weddings are the smallest possible: only the couple and me, the officiant. In my years as a Justice of the Peace, I’ve only officiated at two weddings but I’ve married three couples. Yes, one of the weddings was a double ceremony. (And one other thing made this event unusual: they were all women.) That wedding took place at the home of one of the couples. The four women had created a moving ceremony in which […]

I Love Small Weddings

I’ve married people in all sorts of places – from town halls to “posh” venues. Yet so often the weddings that move me deeply are the small, unassuming affairs. They are the kinds of weddings that I think about again and again, over a cup of coffee the next morning or the next year.  These lovely little weddings occur in the corner of someone’s living room in front of a china cabinet or in a back yard under a blossoming apple tree. The bride is always beautiful in a freshly ironed dress. The groom is always handsome in a freshly […]