Cathleen & Andrew | an intimate restaurant wedding at Peter Pan

May 21

With so much shifting in the wedding community/ industry amidst the changes covid-19 has brought on, my heart has been rocked, but I do hold some hope because, despite the changes, and the shifts, weddings will still take place.

Love isn’t cancelled, celebrating isn’t cancelled, and starting new chapters of your life isn’t cancelled.

I’ve been chatting with my couples about the shift. And while so many couples are postponing their weddings, there are a lot who still want to get married this year. For some of these couples, their date has special meaning. For others, they just have waited too long and want it to happen already.

For others, they’ve come to realize that big party, elaborate plans and all those things really aren’t the thing that matters like it once did, because for them, just being able to say their vows and exchange rings and seal their love with a kiss - well, that’s really what matters most. For a lot of these lovers they are starting to really lean into the shift. They are adjusting their plans to hold an intimate and smaller in scale celebration now so that they can enter that next chapter (safely) and later, when its safe, they can still celebrate (and celebrate hard!!) with all the loved ones they originally planned to celebrate with.

And, I love that.

Why not take advantage of covid if you can and hold two events to celebrate a love that has already existed for so long and will continue to exist for generations to come. I mean, love really is THAT BIG!

And, you don’t have to go all out or break the bank, it can be as simple as vows in a park or on the water with your officiant, your photographer (me!) and a few loved ones at a safe distance. Or, it can be a little bigger while still keeping things safe. And your original plans can still stand just bumped a year for safety. And this is all so beautiful if you ask me. Just making some darn good lemonade out of lemons!!

One thing I know is that sometimes these more intimate, smaller events can hold even more meaning than you imagined. I’ve seen them first hand over the years and each year that I am asked to be part of an intimate wedding like the one I’m describing (or the one I’m about to show you!) well, my heart just skips a beat.

I realized the other day that I never had the chance to share this beauty of a wedding that was Cathleen & Andrew’s wedding. I photographed this one at 36 or 37 weeks pregnant, then delivered the wedding to them just before delivering my own baby, and then, well then was being a mama while running her own business plus all the things, and time just passed too quickly.

I’m thankful now, with this time, I can share this wedding because it was one to remember. And the feelings I feel looking back through the photos just make me feel all the happiness all over again. To Cathleen & Andrew, thank you for inviting me into your day, your love story and your beautiful wedding. It was more than an honor.