'I’m so glad that we went ahead, it was just a beautiful day'

Like many couples when Jaime and Michael Carolan were planning their wedding for August 2020 they could never have imagined how different their big day would actually turn out to be.

Despite reducing the guest list from 120 to just 25 close family members and cutting back on frills, favours and all of the extras bride Jaime says “she couldn’t have imagined a better day".

She added: “I’m so glad that we went ahead, it was just a beautiful day. I don’t think anyone I have talked to who has had a small wedding regretted going ahead with it.

“It was originally booked for August 23rd last year and it just poured down from the heavens all day long. This time we had a beautiful sunny day.”

Jaime and Michael would have had a restricted guest list had they gone ahead with the original date but in fact that number halved this time around!

“We would have only been allowed 50 for our wedding last August and we said ah no we’ll change the date and we will be able to have more in June and it ended up that we only had 25!

“But I said we have to go ahead with it we can’t put it off again because we don’t know what’s going to happen but we are so glad that we went ahead with it.

“We didn’t have a band or a videographer, wedding singer Tina Lynagh sang at the ceremony so it worked out really well.

“The hairdressers had reopened two weeks before. I had my make up done but I had no trial done because it just couldn’t be done with covid, the hair was the same, it was a case of arrive on the day and hope for the best!

“I completely thought at the end of it, I didn’t need all of that, I would have stressed myself out. You need the frills, you don’t need 300 guests, all you need is your family and the person that you are marrying they are the memories for me.”

“It was heart breaking initially, every girl looks forward to that day and you are like why me but you do have to say to yourself look there are bigger things going on, it was stressful but you knew it would happen eventually.

“You are thinking of everyone else, you are thinking I want to give everyone a fabulous day and then eventually you think you know what I’ll be really happy if it’s just me and my family.

The couple who have been together for five years and got engaged two years ago on a romantic trip to Krakow for the bride’s birthday said not having the option of going abroad on honeymoon was “a blessing in disguise”.

“We had a mini moon and ended up going to the Monart in Wexford for a couple of days which was absolutely gorgeous, then we went on to Killarney and from there we went to Doolin, so we had a little road trip.

“We had originally booked Vietnam and I kind of thought after, it was really stupid booking a honeymoon and doing a trip like that because we were so exhausted after the wedding. I just wanted to lie down in a spa and get a treatment and someone to leave me alone!

“Imagine I had had to get on a plane, go to Vietnam and go travelling I would have needed a holiday after it.”

Jaime said the way Castle Arch Hotel in Trim took care of everything set their mind at ease and took the stress out of planning “two weddings.”

Another bride and groom from Ashbourne who had to scrap their dream wedding due to coronavirus vowed to find a way to keep their date and get hitched despite the mass cancellation of events.

Gary Naughton (30) and Fiancé Megan Carroll (28) were due to get married on 2nd May 2020 in Ashbourne Church with a reception in Clonabreany House in Kells but the reception had to be postponed until later in the year.

Determined to keep their original date, the couple made enquiries as how they could become husband and wife despite the restrictions to gatherings and events.

The Groom’s mum Susan Naughton explains how the impromptu nuptials came off.

“They really wanted to keep their date 2/5/2020 and get married in the eyes of the church so we enquired with the parish priest in Ashbourne and set about making it happen keeping in line with government guideline we could have ten people in the church.

“So on that Saturday morning Gary was picked up at the house

in a Red Ferrari driven by his cousin Cian Carey who is an F3 racing champion and on to the Church.

“Megan Arrived looking stunning and walked up the aisle with her dad Tony to the beautiful voice of Jacinta McIntyre and together with the rest of the families became the new Mr and Mrs Naughton.

“So even covid wasn't going to stop their special day.”

Even though it wasn’t the day they had planned, they had a ball, according to Susan.

“That was their wedding date and they didn’t want it to go by without getting married, they said they’d go ahead with it without the fills apart from the Ferrari of course.

“They enjoyed the day and the weather made it. We came out of the church and there were a few friends outside that were standing at their cars and gave them a cheer.

“We came back to Ratoath to our own house and we just had a few drinks and LeBucca delivered platters of food to us and we had a few bubbles. It was a gorgeous day.”