Any tips on a courthouse wedding?

My stepson had a courthouse wedding last December, and it was beautiful! The Mayor of the town actually performed it. The room was lovely, it was intimate and wonderful. I would start with calling the clerks office in your city and asking them what you need to do since each city has it's own things that need to be done. You can even try the Mayor's office and ask

I would just do something small and intimate. Call your local courthouse & see how they do marriage ceremonies (can you meet the judges or pick which one marries you, when do they do ceremonies, can you pick where in the courthouse you do them, etc.). Then schedule a date & let your immediate families & close friends know. Maybe make a large dinner reservation after or host a small reception at your house?

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I was thinking of taking everyone to dinner or something after. There would only be about 15-20 people if we bump it out to grandparents and close friends

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If you can afford to host that many, I'd include them! You could send out invites & all that too, I would just treat it like a micro wedding and still do wedding things (toasts, maybe father daughter dance, etc.) so you and your father get the full experience. If you can, do a first look with your dad. I did one and I'm so happy I did, it was such a nice moment!

So sorry about your dad! 🙁 Unfortunately tomorrow is not promised for any of us. I’m sure it would mean a lot to you to have him there on your special day. Who’s to say that you can’t have two special days?

Love the courthouse idea before the actual big wedding! My husband and I did this exact thing this past August. Kept it simple and sweet. I wore a shorter white dress but it wasn’t a bridal gown. I held a small bouquet of flowers from the local farmer’s market. I did my own hair and makeup. We invited our parents and siblings to the courthouse to watch us marry. Afterwards we went out for a nice lunch. You can do all of that or none of that and completely make it your own. Just don’t forget to take lots of pictures 🙂 You’re going to want to look back on those years to come. Good luck!

My sister had a courthouse wedding and it was quite nice.

She still wore a white dress and my BIL wore a suit. Immediate family attended the ceremony.

My mom got a bouquet of flowers for my sister. All of us then went to a restaurant for dinner. We were placed in a private room and my mom brought a wedding cake for them to cut.

It was perfect for the two of them and still really nice.

I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. I hate to even say this but I would recommend moving up the legal side sooner of you're able to. I've lost people to cancer, and I've worked with cancer patients, and sometimes they go a lot faster than what a doctor gives them. Like 2 weeks instead of 6+ months. I'm not trying to be a downer or say anything like that will happen, I just wanted to give you a heads up on my experience as something to think about. I hope your dad fights through this and can be there for you. Again, my condolences

Oh, to answer your question. You can have a nice courthouse wedding, wearing your dress and everything, with your parents and a few other people if you want. You could also have a nice dinner afterwards to celebrate, or even take a vacation/minimoon.

View Quoted Comment He’s starting chemo on Monday, and they said if he wasn’t going to do chemo then we would be looking at about 6 months, and at that point I could have seen us moving things up even sooner. If it gets to that point and we have to move it up, then we have to move it up. They said they caught it at the point that it was too late to cure it, but soon enough that he wasn’t feeling the symptoms of the cancer.

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Hey Tiffany, sorry to hear - that's actually the form of cancer that my mom had. I'd echo the woman above and also hate to chime in on the grim side. It moves swiftly (for the few people I have seen) - even with chemo, and the shift from "still can get around and participate in activities" to "not really a coherent person anymore" is horribly sudden.

Maybe don't mention it to your dad in this way, but if you want the person that you know and love to see and enjoy your wedding day with you - you may want to speed things up drastically. My mom passed maybe 2 weeks after I met my current partner, about 9 years ago - so that was certainly not a thought or an option. But if I were in your shoes back in that time of my life, knowing what I know now - I'd go for it quite soon.

Based on the season - maybe a Thanksgiving weekend thing with family? Enjoy the time you all have. Best wishes to you and yours.