My Wedding was Cancelled due to COVID-19

Check on your bride friends - we are not OK right now!

Hi, my name is Maddie and I was set to marry the love on my life on April 18, 2020.

For a year now since our engagement, I've planned every detail of our big day -- down to the napkin color. My dress was bought and altered, groomsmen were fitted, and my fiance even had his bachelor party last weekend. I have a day counter app on my phone that alerts me every day how close we are to our wedding. When I downloaded it, we were over 200 days away. I watched it tick down and down until it hit 32 days. Holy cow. ONE MONTH away from our wedding. It was so close it's like I could taste the gluten-free cake.

As the spread of COVID-19 has worsened within the last week, I assumed some of my wedding plans would be impacted. When I learned it hit Nashville, I knew my bachelorette party would have to be postponed. I was OK with that, especially given that I had no control over it. I started thinking of other plans and destinations to celebrate, but things only got worse.

Next thing you know, Ohio was on lock down. Then Illinois. Then Kentucky. I knew it was only a matter of time before Indiana followed suit. Even as the surrounding states starting taking precautions, I still assumed that by April 18, things would be back to somewhat normal. I was wrong.

Monday morning I started getting calls from my vendors. For the most part, they all agreed to proceed with ordering and planning as normal until told otherwise. I was OK with that. The news and other social medias really enforced a "two week" rule, and since my wedding is in four weeks, I figured we were fine to carry on. However, by Monday afternoon Indiana announced a shutdown.

Then, I got the worst email I've ever received. My heart sank as I read:
"Maddie, we are sorry to inform you that all of our upcoming weddings for the next two months have been cancelled. We have a few dates open this year that are available. If you're interested in rescheduling, please call."

Worst. Day. Ever.

For some reason, had my wedding been months away still, it wouldn't have mattered to me as much. But the fact that I was SO close and now it isn't happening is devastating. Although I'm sure it goes without saying, I was heartbroken.

Ever since I was a little girl, I've dreamed of my wedding day. And now it wasn't going to happen.

I didn't have time to feel sorry for myself though. I found at in this moment that I am fight and not flight. I immediately called my venue and asked which days were available for the rest of 2020. There were only three dates left in August. That's when I really started to panic. There are a lot of moving parts that make weddings happen, and it's important they're all available at the same time. It's like putting together a puzzle -- sometimes the pieces don't fit and you have to try another. Basically, I was planning my entire wedding all over again in one day.

In a scramble I called my vendors back, hoping and praying they were available on the same dates in August. Before I could even make a phone call, my venue called me back and said another bride had taken one of the dates. Now I was down to two dates to choose from. I threw the dates out to my vendors and began building my puzzle.

By the luck of the Irish, most of my vendors were able to reschedule for August 8, 2020. Thank goodness.

The scary part is how many things I have planned for this weekend that I'm remembering I have to reschedule. Of course I called my vendors such as my caterer, my DJ, and my photographer, but there were so many other small details that I'm remembering as time goes on. Remember, it took me an entire year to perfect this plan, and now I'm almost starting from scratch again.

I have custom coozies made for party favors that have our original date on them. I have a block of rooms reserved at a local hotel to accommodate out of town guests. I will have to move that reservation and hope they have a block available in August. I have a gift for my Dad with the date engraved on it. I will have to order a new one. I wasn't even thinking of my hair stylist and her availability to do 8 up-dos on that day. She isn't sure if she can get us in that day, and she's a dear friend of mine who has done my hair for years. There are so many tiny, intimate details that my brain hasn't even had the time to process during all of this.

Since then, I've read several news articles that say COVID-19 might last throughout July and August. So, while I have a new date and almost everything worked out, there still isn't total security that my wedding will happen then either.

Of course I'm sad and mad, but I find a little comfort knowing that I am postponing for the greater good. While it was beyond my control, I'm proud of my venue and all the other moving parts in this situation for adapting and playing it safe. There is no doubt that April 18 will be a sad day for me, as it's been a day I've looked forward to for a year now, but all I can do is move on. The world keeps spinning, right?

I've waited over six and a half years to marry my fiance, so whats a few more months?

My advice to you during this time is to listen to our governors and healthcare workers. If I can reschedule MY WEDDING, you can miss your workout class or work from home for the day. If we all do our part, the outcome will be what we are aiming for. If we continue to disregard and be selfish, there won't be weddings for a very long time.