Today I should have been photographing Caoibhe and Colin's wedding at one of my favourite venues, Castle Leslie in Monaghan. Instead I'm staring out through a wet window pane writing about it!
Not everyone understands the disappointment and roller coaster of feelings that comes with having to reschedule a wedding. Nor do they consider the financial loss or the fact that someone special may not be able to attend on the new date. From chatting to my brides and grooms I understand that it's not just the wedding being put on hold but also important life decisions like buying their first home or starting a family. The implications of rescheduling a wedding are H U G E.
You may remember Caoibhe and Colins epic Just Us Session at the majestic Slieve League Cliffs in Donegal last Autumn. Little did any of us know that their wedding would actually be almost one year to the day of this shoot not the couple of months they were already excitedly counting down. Today Caoibhe has been kind enough to share her thoughts about the last few weeks rescheduling their wedding, her feelings today and advice for the future in the hope that this will help anyone else going through a similar experience.
I first met Caoibhe when she was wedding coordinator at Lough Eske Castle. She's obviously seen lots of weddings during her time there and helped couples reschedule dates due to unforseen circumstances but she never thought it would happen to her.
How have you been getting your head around having to reschedule your wedding?
Your wedding day is something you plan for many months or years. If someone was to tell you that your wedding wouldn't go ahead on the original date you would automatically assume the worst but a global pandemic would certainly not come to mind. I suppose the only consolation for couples like us is that you know your not alone in this. As the saying goes - there is strength in numbers. Something like this happening definitely puts everything into perspective. We allowed myself to feel all the feels and have a pity party (or ten) for ourselves. But then we set a new date, a new goal and new plans. We were very lucky all our vendors were available on our new date which is now a Thursday. Before all of this, we would never of considered a midweek wedding and now we would happily get married any day of the week as long as we are husband and wife in the end.
How did you feel today when you woke up?
Excited because Colly had woke me up telling me he had a surprise for us and I needed to get ready to go somewhere. We have had 10 weeks to deal with the disappointment and sadness that all couples are experiencing so I would actually say we are lucky in that sense. Over the last week our family and friends have been amazing and checking in with us daily to make sure we are okay. So I would say today we feel extremely grateful that those nearest and dearest to us are still here and everyone is healthy.
Have you anything nice planned for today?
The plan for today is to get dressed up, pop an expensive bottle of Champagne and toast with our immediate families.
What are you finding most difficult about today?
Not getting to see everyone that we love and celebrate with them. We had planned a wedding of 300 people so it would have been one big party. We accept that whatever wedding we will be allowed in October will be drastically smaller than the original plan but in one way a smaller wedding will just be as special to us.
What advice would you give to any other couples in a similar situation?
Our advice would be to do whatever makes you happy and try not to let other people influence your new wedding plans. Some couples will still want to have their huge wedding party next year while others will be content with a wedding of 100 or less. For your original wedding day, buy yourself a nice outfit, get some delicious food delivered and crack open them bubbles. Your wedding day will come and everyone will be even more excited than before. And if your anything like us, a second wedding date every year is just another reason to celebrate.
Thank you Caoibhe. Roll on October! x
Share this story
