#MRANDMRSSMITHWEDS: We have a wedding date!

You may or may not have forgotten that we got engaged at this point, haha. I’ve been a little radio silent on wedding details because we’ve been going back and forth on plans. Alas, we have a wedding date!

With my family being in West Virginia and Jared’s family mostly being here in Texas, we knew at least one family would have to travel no matter where the wedding was. We also knew we wanted it to be small. Though we may live most of our life online in the public eye, we both are private people. We don’t really do PDA very well (aka we’re not smooth at all), and we also wanted the day to be authentic, not a show. I love Pinterest as much as the next girl, but I don’t want to have to compete with it.

I know, I know, we’re all used to seeing over-the-top flowers and parties here, but we’re actually low-key about those things when it comes to our personal life. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about bringing the prettiest gift wrap to the birthday party, or throwing the cutest bridal shower around. I just prefer to be the person dropping the gift and running, instead of the person being gifted. I swear this makes sense in my mind, so stick with me here!

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Alas, we decided to have a destination wedding on a quiet little island in the Bahamas— Harbour Island— with only our close family and friends. On top of it being the perfect middle ground for PDA’s sake, it was also important to us that we spend money on the memories and not the decor. So in lieu of a fancy reception with 200 people, we opted for casual and small. This way we’ll be spending (even less) money on an entire week with friends and family instead of one elaborate night. Needless to say, we are so, so excited.

Now for the candid part, we did have about 10 meltdowns over trying to organize two families living in different parts of the country for a beach wedding in February 2017…which might as well feel like next week. And by “we”, I mean me. I cried once…or twelve times.. over the dates, travel details, you name it. We’re trying to make the wedding as inexpensive as possible, which means we’re left planning it ourselves. We knew it would be challenging, but I’m no travel agent or airfare guru, so it’s been a steep learning curve when it comes coordinating a group.

The reason we chose the Bahamas is because it was our first real vacation together where we were able to totally relax. We visited Exuma and LOVED it. We also tried to make sure we were avoiding Zika areas, too. That left us with the Bahamas outer islands, and we fell in love with the charm and laid back vibe of Harbour Island itself. It’s also a quick 45 minute flight from Miami, so though it seems very international, it’s still relatively painless to get to.

Plan to see LOTS more sneak peeks as we’ll be traveling to the island in early November for more pre-wedding planning, and I have plenty of other inspiration to share with you all! xo Ash

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33 Comments

  1. i looooooove the bahamas! especially the quaint outer islands! such a great choice! if i could redo my wedding (11 years ago) i’d elope or do exactly what you are doing. good choice! xx – meg

  2. Congrats!!! That must feel so exciting to have everything coming together! My fiance and i just opTed for a destination wedding after dealing with 6 months of Trying to plan a “traditional” wedding. All the personal touches got lost in translation and politicS of decor and guest lists. So much better to opt for the smaller, more intimate wedding!

  3. Congratulations! That all sounds just lovely! One little note, I believe you’re using the word “ALAS” incorrectly. Alas is an exclamation of sorrow, as in “Alas, someone has eaten the last cookie.” Congrats again on the fun news! :)

  4. As a Destination wedding planner and Just coming off mt biggest wedding of 70 guests at sandals whitehouse jamaica, i strongly recommend using one of Us! It will make your life so much easier, tremendously reduce the planning stress and Our planning services cost you nothing extra! If i can be of any help, please do not hesitate to contact me. I wish yOu the best and know it will be beautiful!

    1. Thanks so much for the encouraging words and advice, Debbi! We’ll definitely keep this in mind moving forward! xo

  5. That’s totally the way to do it! i never really understood the desire to be in a hotel ballroom that you have to transform and do the same thing as everyone else — and spend an ungodly amoutn of $$$ to do so for one day. i’m sure an island wedding is going to be so fun, memorable + charming!

  6. many congratulations to you both on this exciting new chapter of your lives! All the emotions & discussions you haVe gone through and will continue to go through together while planning a destination wedding is extremely normal and definitely requires a lot of compromising on everybody’s part. remember the most important thing is that you both do what makes the two of you happy.

    My hubby and I also did a destination wedding on a beach in Mexico and wouldn’t change a thing. We had a wedding planner help us throughout the process and Appreciate her help and understandInG. She didn’t chaRge us a thing but rather she is paid by the hotel groups they have contraCts with around the world. Feel free to contact her and ask questions – she lives near Pearland and is stellar!! She is an angel. Her name is Cari hicks of paradise weddings and travel :: cari@paradiseweddingsandtravel.com

    Best of luck on this exciting adventure for you both!

  7. Congratulations for the engagement! and also for finally having a date and destination!
    i felt totally identified with what you describe! i am also planning my small wedding in beach away from our city or family cities, and could not agree more with what you said about being “low key”, and regards the “meldowns” is soooo true!! and nobody talks about it, and totally happens! hahaha thanks for sharing!

  8. Love this! I think that is incredibly special that you are staying true to yourselves and keeping your wedding intimate. Bahamas sounds fantastic!

  9. i love that your personal life is low key and simple and YOU!! Thrilled for you guys, no matter.

  10. Congrats!! Its good to hear about other brides to be having wedding planning melt doWns! I’m getting married in may and Can totAlly relate. we are also planning something small and simple. :)

  11. So exciting!!! Congrats again! And I totally get what you mean about preferring something low key – I love going to weddings and showers and helping friends make their days look beautiful, but I’ve started to realize I might not want to be at the centre of it all myself! It’s hard to explain, but I think I get exactly what you mean. :)

  12. Yay! THat sounds so magical, congratulations to you both! That sounds like a perfect way to celebrate your wedding.