Frequently Asked Questions About Getting Married in Florida

Frequently Asked Questions About Getting Married in Florida

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

Getting married in Florida is pretty easy! There are some steps to take but for the most part there’s not much to it. We work with a lot of couples, both in-state residents and out-of-state residents, and get asked a few of the same questions over and over again. So here it is!

Clearwater Wedding Officiant and Tallahassee Wedding Officiant answer
Frequently Asked Questions About Getting Married in Florida

Is there a waiting period?

  • Florida residents have a three day waiting period. Which means after you get your Florida marriage license you must wait THREE days before you can be married. Note: If both parties are Florida residents and both attend a premarital class and present completion certification of the class to the clerk at the time of application the waiting period us waived.
  • If both parties are out of state residents, there is NO waiting period. Which means you can get your marriage license and be married on the same day.

We don’t want to see each other before the wedding ceremony, can we sign the marriage license after the ceremony?

This is so confusing! You and your partner don’t sign the marriage license on the day of your marriage. When you go to get your Florida Marriage License you and your partner will sign the marriage license at the Clerk’s Office. This is the ONLY time you will sign your marriage license. On the day of your marriage, we will sign and notarize your marriage license. So you don’t have to see each other before the wedding ceremony. Some couples like to pretend to sign the marriage license so they can get a couple pictures, but that’s totally up to you and your partner 🙂

Do we need witnesses?

No! On the Florida Marriage License there is a spot for two witnesses which lead a lot of couples to think they have to have two witnesses present at their marriage ceremony but you don’t. Witnesses are OPTIONAL!

What Is This Going to Cost?

This is the question no one wants to ask.  How much is my Florida Wedding Ceremony going to cost?  It really depends on what type of Florida wedding ceremony you want to have. We want you to have exactly what is right for your ceremony, so we customize all of our wedding ceremony packages to met your needs and budget. We are happy to work with you on a small intimate elopement ceremony, notarizing your Florida marriage license, planning the entire ceremony with chairs, arbor, photographer, and more…Contact Us so we can help you plan your perfect wedding ceremony.

For more information check out our Resources page: https://abeautifulweddinginflorida.com/resources/ or feel free to Contact Us; we love wedding talk!

St. George Island Surprise Vow Renewal Ceremony

St. George Island Surprise Vow Renewal Ceremony

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

I LOVE being a wedding officiant. I get to see SOO many beautiful weddings, meet the most amazing couples, and help people on the happiest day of their lives….WIN WIN WIN! Last week, I got to do something SUPER awesome! I helped Jessica organize, plan, and officiate a St. George Island SURPRISE vow renewal ceremony.

Jessica and her husband, Billy, were visiting St. George Island, Florida to celebrate their 10 year wedding anniversary. They had talked about renewing their vows in the future but never made a final decision or planned details. So Jessica thought for their 10 year anniversary while on beautiful St. George Island it would be the perfect time to renew their vows. So she hired me to make it all happened as a surprise to Billy! After about 80 emails, we had come up with a surprise plan that we both loved!

On October 9, 2014 I drove to St. George Island. When I arrived, I sent Jessica a text message and she met me in the bathroom near the lighthouse (her and Billy were walking around taking pictures around the lighthouse). Jessica gave me her video camera so I could capture his reaction. I told her that I’d text her when I was setup on the beach and ready for them. I had wrapped a BIG box with a bow on top. Inside the box were three balloons- two white ones (one for Billy and one for Jessica) that would fly away once the box was opened and one red heart that would pop up once the box was opened.  The outside of the box had a sign that read, “Bill, Open the Box”.  I walked out to the beach and found a spot for the box. Then I walked about 100 yards away to pretend that I was talking pictures of the beach. I texted Jessica that I was ready for them.

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She got Billy to go for a nice walk along the beach (secretly leading him to the box). I saw them coming towards the box and got so excited! Billy saw the box and Jessica said “Look it says for you to open it!” and he said “What did you do? Haha!” Confused and stunned he walked over to the box and opened it. The balloons popped up and the red heart read, “Welcome to your Vow Renewal”.

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I then went over and introduced myself and welcomed him to his St. George Island Surprise Vow Renewal Ceremony. He was so shocked and loved it! We proceeded to have a beautiful ceremony on the beach. A kind beach goer even videoed the ceremony for them. After the ceremony I presented them with a commemorative certificate and took some pictures of them together on the beach.

Me with Jessica and Billy at their St. George Island Surprise Vow Renewal Ceremony

Me with Jessica and Billy at their St. George Island Surprise Vow Renewal Ceremony

It was a beautiful day for a St. George Island Surprise Vow renewal Ceremony. Billy and Jessica are a wonderful couple and I feel so privilege to have been a part of their special celebration. I love helping couples create the ceremony of their dreams…and if that includes a SURPRISE I’m totally in and would love to help you too!

 

 

St. George Island Wedding Ceremony Packages

St. George Island Wedding Ceremony Packages

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

St. George Island is a beautiful paradise on a barrier island, surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico and the Apalachicola Bay.  St. George Island is in Franklin County, Florida. It’s about 85 miles from Tallahassee so we travel to St. George Island for a lot of beach weddings. We have officiated small beach weddings and large ceremonies. Ceremonies on the beach and in the houses along the beach. Whatever you want we can work with you to make happen.

Walk way to St. George Island wedding

Walk way to St. George Island wedding

We know that St. George Island is a small area, it’s only a 28 mile long island, so it is sometimes hard to find affordable available experienced wedding vendors. We offer complete St. George Island Wedding Ceremony Packages including, but not limited to, wedding ceremony officiant, chairs, decorated bamboo arch, rose pedal heart in the sand, photographer, day-of-coordinator, and sand ceremony setup.

Rose pedal heart in sand

Rose pedal heart in sand

 

4 post bamboo poles with decorated wtih sand ceremony setup

4 post bamboo poles with decorated with sand ceremony setup

If you’re looking for someone to help you create your St. George Island wedding ceremony please contact us.  Many couples travel to St. George Island and rent a big house then have to coordinate family and friends, reception, and putting the ceremony together. Hiring us to be your St. George Island wedding officiant and setup your wedding ceremony will relieve a lot of the pressure and allow you to enjoy your day much more. We’ve love to create a St. George Island Wedding Ceremony Packages that fits your needs 850-322-0911. We can help you arrange a big ceremony, small, surprise, elopement, or just couple ceremony.

 

Please note- We are happy to offer these St. George Island ceremony packages and more as a way to make your planning easier AND allow you to truly create your own ceremony. We do NOT charge additional fees to officiate ceremonies that include sand ceremonies, unity candle ceremonies, readings, and etc. We only charge for those additional items if you ask us to supply the materials — couples that supply their own items and setup will NOT be charged.