Alternative Wedding Options

Today's couples have many more options when it comes to ceremony details and styles. No longer are you stuck with the "have to do's", and you are free to indulge in the "want to do's"! More and more couples are coming to realize that a big production wedding places an aura of (fill in the blank) over their ability to have a simple ceremony that should be all about love, laughter, more love, and a host of other needs that are better addressed in a simpler context. This Wedding Minister is very interested in seeing your once in a lifetime event be very special, intimate and romantic! To help you to keep a sense of romance, uniquely human spirituality, (and fun), I have a few novel ideas to suggest. ( If there are fees involved with any of these ceremonies, you'll find them on our Ceremony Extras page.)

What better way to inform 'ole King Neptune, all those nosey beach crabs, the patrolling pelicans and seagulls, (and Uncle Joe who fell asleep in row 7), and all the rest of your wedding guests as well- that you are now officially and truly married! The minister will announce you by blowing on his conch shell and proclaiming that this newly married couple wants the world to take notice...We're Married so watch out! (There is an optional matching certificate available with this ceremony!)

How's that for a novel and nautical idea? After those vows are spoken, the rings are exchanged, the sand ceremony is done and the end is in sight, why not have the officiant announce you with the ringing of an authentic looking ship's bell? And if that isn't enough, you can even purchase the actual bell that announces you (I'll give it to you right after the wedding), and you can have it engraved with your names, the location, and the date! Contact us for details and prices.

This is my personal favorite! With this ceremony, we will all jump in the ocean after your ceremony is finished! Yep, you read that right... the bride can wear a bathing suit under a colorful sarong or wrap, and the guys can wear a nice shirt with a plain colored or beige colored set of bathing trunks.... and it's off for a dip to "baptize" your new union. (And to cool off in the process!)

This is great for fun and exciting post ceremony photography , and a great stress reliever as well. Highly recommended by the Old Beach Crab!

Now that might seem strange at first thought, but consider... for a small an intimate wedding, (and especially for an elopement), by sitting down on the beach on a beach blanket or directly on the sand and forming a circle, we can let go of the formality, the stiffness, and the obvious fact to all within view that a wedding ceremony is taking place! We can relax and be our true selves, relating to one another in a completely different context. The words will be quiet and peaceful, for quiet and peaceful is the language of love. We can play some quiet music as a backdrop. Your guests (if you have any) can sit in a circle around us.

This will be an unstructured ceremony, and most likely very different than anything you've ever seen! It will be unscripted and informal, and we will talk about how you first met, what your lives were like then, how your proposal happened, and how the love of the other has changed your lives. You can write each other's names in the sand and then scoop them up for a sand ceremony. You can speak your hearts to each other, read your own prepared words, or use vows that I offer you. It will be relaxed, sweet and personal. It will be fun and human. And very spiritual...

The more clearly you understand yourself and your emotions, the more you become a lover of what is.
Baruch Spinoza

Most people have heard about sand ceremonies at the beach, but we do ours a little differently! Rather that using the pretty colored sand from the local craft store, I will ask you both to reach down and grab a handful of the sand that you are standing upon, a then have you mix the your sand together in a sea-shell (from our local beach... it's married quite a few couples over the years!) Of course, I'll have something to say about the significance of this ceremony during the process, and besides ending up with sandy hands, you'll end up taking home the very sand you were standing on when you said your vows together, placed in a heart-shaped bottle for you to keep. This is included at no cost for your beach wedding ceremony!

While not for everyone, (but it should be), drumming provides an intense spiritual connection with the earth and our inner bohemian! It also seems to align our brainwaves and our spirits. Recent biofeedback studies show that drumming along with our own heartbeats for 15 minutes alters brainwave patterns (increasing alpha) and dramatically reduces stress. So drumming actually "meditates" us!

We have some very nice sets of bongo or frame drums for your use. They are very easy to play and are easier for us to transport than 3 djembe drums! So we can stand (the drums have straps), sit down in the sand or on beach chairs, and have a drumming circle wedding! See this page for more drumming information, and our Drumming Circle Wedding page for more details and prices for this exciting option.

Throwing of stones into the sea with Celtic Blessing
In this ancient traditional Irish ceremony, the couple and their guests all throw a stone into the sea as the the blessing is read, as we all offer our best wishes that your marriage have the strength of the elements of the earth! (The couple must provide the stones!)

May you both be blessed
with the strength of heaven,
The light of the sun and the
radiance of the moon
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of earth,
And the firmness of rock.

At the western end of Sunset Beach in North Carolina is the Bird Island Nature Preserve, with nary a beach house in sight, and nothing but sand dunes, sea gulls (a few nudists) and an endless procession of waves washing onto a mostly deserted beach. Reachable after a moderate walk, or a shorter cruise on beach bikes, (your own or a rented one from the various bike rental places at Sunset Beach), you can have a very private and intimate ceremony at the rising or setting of the sun! The very western end of Bird Island Preserve is actually located in South Carolina, so you have 2 options for your license. Contact me for details.

With several miles of secluded beach at the south end of Ft Fisher that is accessible by 4x4, we can circle our mondo 4 wheeler beasts on the beach and have us a beach wedding! There is a permit required to drive your vehicle on the beach. See below for contact information for Ft Fisher, or visit their website .

Fort Fisher State Recreation Area
U.S. Hwy. 421 S., Kure Beach • (910) 458-5798

Miles of white sandy beach, salt marshes, tidal creeks, mudflats and wildlife habitats make the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area a true treasure among the state's park offerings. Located on the southern tip of Pleasure Island, with the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the Cape Fear River on the west, this well-maintained park offers visitors a wide variety of pleasurable activities. Swimming, sunbathing, strolling and shelling are among the favorites for beachgoers. Fishing, hiking and birding rank high with many folks, along with boating or canoeing through shallow bays and channels. Loggerhead turtles and other endangered species make nests in the park's protected areas. Park staff offer interpretive and environmental education programs as well as surf fishing clinics; call for availability. If you're interested in driving your four-wheel drive vehicle out onto the beach strand, please contact the park for fees and regulations.

Facilities include a Visitors Center, concession stand (10 AM to 6 PM, Memorial Day through Labor Day), restrooms and outside showers. Park hours are: November through February, 8 AM to 6 PM; March and October, 8 AM to 7 PM; April, May and September, 8 AM to 8 PM; June through August, 8 AM to 9 PM.

The Cove at Fort Fisher State Historic Site (Ft Fisher Museum)
U.S. Hwy. 421 S., Kure Beach • (910) 458-8257

The Cove is a beautiful getaway about 6 miles south of Carolina Beach. Bordering the beach and a rocky sea wall, a grove of windswept live oaks provides shade for the picnic tables and grills. Come to fish and sunbathe but don't swim. Dangerous currents and underwater hazards make swimming extremely hazardous. Parking is available south of the area near the Fort Fisher Memorial and at the Fort Fisher State Historic Site museum across the road.

How about scrounging around for some old fashioned or themed clothing for your wedding? Find something colorful and comfortable, with flower bedecked hats and lacy old fashioned dresses, or simple loose fitting shirts and a neat vest for the groom! Sandals, flip-flops, or bare-feet are strongly encouraged!

To realize your true nature, you must wait for the right moment and the right conditions. When the time comes, you are awakened as if from a dream. You understand that what you have found is your own and doesn’t come from anywhere outside. Buddhist Sutra

Weddings are powerful events, and are the most important milestone in the cycle of human life. That cycle begins with a new dawn, and rests at the mellow time where the sun bids farewell to a day well lived. We can connect with this cycle by having your wedding take place at either of these times. You will also escape the Carolina heat, (and the beach-goers as well)!

With a sunrise ceremony, you don't have to spend the whole day stressing and pacing the floor, and can have the whole day to yourselves afterwards! While it might be tough to consider getting up so early, there is something peaceful and new about watching the sun launch itself up from the sea, while everyone else is still snoring away. You can go out for a great breakfast or brunch, and spend the day soaking up some rays.

Sunsets are magical in their own right, with spectacular colors, cool evening breezes, followed by dinner (and drinks) at any of the great (and romantic) restaurants all over our area. Sunset on the Carolina shore is a mellow time, with a good possibility of seeing a line of playful dolphins cruising the offshore sandbars, and romantic golden reflections for some photos in the surf after your ceremony!

"Look to this day for it is life

The very day of life in its brief course

Lie all the varieties and realities of your existence

The bliss of growth

The glory of action

The splendor of beauty

For yesterday is already a dream

And tomorrow is only a vision

But today, well lived, makes every yesterday a dream of happiness

And every tomorrow a vision of hope

Look well, therefore, to this day." (Sanskrit)

For all you Jimmy Buffet fans, click on the parrot and visit our webpage devoted to all pirates, two hundred years too late, The cannons don’t thunder, there’s nothin’ to plunder, I’m an over-forty victim of fate..." Find links there for a huge collection of beach-Buffet paraphernalia to make your beach wedding better than a cheeseburger in paradise!

In this ceremony, each of you present 3 shell adorned necklaces to each other as cardinal virtues...gifts of the sea! We have the gift of patience, the gift of playfulness, and the gifts of freedom, love, forgiveness, and eternalness. With each gift from the sea, accompanied by you both reading from scripted and romantic ocean oriented nautical language - a necklace is presented by each of you to the other. There is a small fee for this ceremony, ($25), but look at the bright side... you get to keep the 6 shell necklaces! We offer this as a ceremony add-on, or as a complete and stand alone ceremony!

Now this doesn't sound all that novel an idea, but read on! Are you frustrated with guest lists...who to include, who to exclude...and just prefer no guest list at all? Why not get married on the beach-just the 2 of you- and have our photographer video tape your vows. Then invite everyone to a wedding when you return home, and even have them show up dressed for a wedding. (You both get dressed up as well.) Little known to them, they will see you exchange your vows on a large screen TV! Instead of being stuck in row 37 at a wedding ceremony, they will all equally be right up close and personal via your taped wedding, and you can even read a pre-written statement at the ending to address your friends and family, saying you love them and missed them on your special day, (not!), but wanted to share with them anyway in a better and more unique way! And then it's party time! We can video your ceremony for a fee of $100, or if you hire our photographer, she can set the camcorder to run on a tripod for as little as $50. For this price it will be unedited video that will be handed to you after the ceremony is concluded. And coming soon will be even more video options as be work to upgrade this service to include edited and creative videos on DVD! ( See our upcoming news page for details!)

In this ceremony, I'm going to ask you both a series of questions as you hold hands, such as "Will you make her angry"? , or 'Will you honor him"?, and with each question answered, I place a small decorative rope across your hands signifying the binding of your vows. It can be a very deeply emotional and colorful ceremony...and fun while being full of meaning.

I want to offer a handful of them to you this morning. Each moment you are alive is a gem, shining through and containing earth and sky, water and clouds

It needs you to breathe gently for the miracles to be displayed. Suddenly you hear the birds singing, and the pines chanting, see the flowers blooming, the blue sky, the white clouds, the smile and the marvelous look of your beloved.

You, the richest person on Earth, who have been going around begging for a living, stop being the destitute child. Come back and claim your heritage.

Cherish this very moment. Let go of the stream of distress and embrace life fully in your arms."

A popular choice for many couples is my Dr. Seuss wedding ceremony adapted from "Green Eggs 'N Ham"! We can wear some costume options, like a "Cat in the Hat" top hat, available online. We will all be reading from a script, so no memorizing is required...just a desire to have some fun. I do encourage you to have a serious moment to say some vows that are meaningful to you both, and you can write your own, speak from the heart, or I can offer suggestions! Of course, a ring exchange is included with this ceremony, but in a uniquely Seussian way!