Congratulations and welcome to your first full day of married life! After all the planning, smiling, meeting, greeting, laughing, crying, dancing, adrenaline-filled culmination of months and hours on hours of planning and effort for yesterday, it’s totally acceptable to be exhausted.
And while I fully encourage you to get some rest, I wanted to share some fun things to remember and do the day after your wedding.
You Will Be Waking Up As A Mr. & Mrs.
Waking up the day after the wedding is like “That was fun, good morning husband!” It’s all very surreal feeling and strange to think that something that took so many months and hours of planning is simply over. Don’t let these newlywed moments slip away. Snuggle in bed. Chat about your favorite moments from the night before. Wear those Mr. and Mrs. shirts you bought on Etsy, this is their time to shine!
Do you remember as kids right after New Years Eve everyone would try and do the first whatever of the new year—first kiss of the new year, first game of Uno of the new year, first meal of the new year, first scooter ride of the new year…Maybe that was just something we did, but newlywed life kind of felt like that.
After our Maui destination wedding, we hosted a brunch for our guests and my dad wrote “Mrs. Trotz Premo” on my mimosa-filled solo cup. That was the first time I saw my new name in writing.
Can We Do It Again?
Leading up to your wedding everyone (and I mean everyone) will tell you that your wedding day will go by in the blink of an eye, and unfortunately it is true. We woke up the following morning and were happy-sad that it was done. Focus on the excitement of your first full day as a married couple and remember that photos and videos will have captured the day so you can relive it over and over again. And technically it’s not over yet if you have planned a day-after event, see next tip!
Host A Day-After Event
A great way to spend time with out-of-town family and friends that you may not have gotten to mingle with much during the reception is to host a small day-after event. Many couples choose to do brunch (mimosa, please!), but since our event went into the early morning we hosted a lunch, getting to sleep in a little more. We treated out-of-towners to a Nashville and personal favorite—Edley’s Bar-B-Que. Guests grabbed a plate and we sat around the pool deck chatting.
This event doesn’t have to be elaborate or expensive, in fact it’s almost better to be informal. At this point many guests have already attended two dress coded wedding-related events so let them relax. Our invites stated “come as you are.” Your guests came to celebrate you so it’s a nice gesture to set aside more time to spend with them and thank them for making the trip. We’d recommend inviting your closest family, the wedding party, and guests from out-of-town.
Write Down Wedding Day Memories
Hopefully you wrote or recorded some details the night before, either way spend some time recording more details. Your wedding day is one of those days you'll want to relive over and over again, and even though you’ll be exhausted you’ll never regret having these memories for years to come.
Check Out Photos From The Wedding
Search your wedding hashtag, if you had one. Or create a shared iPhone folder and invite people (at least your wedding party and family) to share any behind-the-scene photos from the big day. You may be surprised at some of the moments they captured, and most of them time they are completely different from what the photographers captured.
You definitely want to see your professional photos, but remember there will be hundreds of photos for the photographers to comb through and edit. This process takes awhile so just be patient. Most photographers will try and send a couple your way within a few days so you can post on social media. :)
Do What You Do.
Relax. You guys did it!
The weeks, and especially the final week, leading up to the wedding is all go-go-go! Today is about enjoying your first day as husband and wife so do whatever makes you two happy.
We hosted a day-after lunch for our out-of-town Nashville reception guests, but once everyone left, LeBraun and I put a Harry Potter movie on and took a 3-hour nap. :)
Order Takeaway
Unless you’re dying to try out some new kitchen appliances, we’d recommend ordering takeaway from your favorite restaurant. Chances are you’ve been keeping a “wedding diet” at least the week leading up to your big day so treat yo’ self! Don’t go crazy, but grab something you’ve been craving.
Since their not open on Sundays, we picked up from our favorite Thai—The Smiling Elephant (soo good!)—the day of our reception just to make sure we’d have delicious food to enjoy the day after our Nashville reception.
Eat Leftover Cake
End your takeaway dinner with some leftover wedding cake. Truthfully you probably only got a couple bites at your reception, but now you can have as much as you want. Do it!
POST-WEDDING WEEK IDEAS
Spa Day
If you don’t immediately go on your honeymoon, treat yo’ self and your new spouse to a day of pampering and de-stressing. I’ve never known anyone to turn down a massage!
Rejoin Your Friends
After the wedding you may want to spend all your time with your future husband, especially if you are moving in together for the first time, but it is important to maintain balance between your marriage and relationships with friends. You’ve probably been MIA from some gatherings leading up to the wedding so rejoin your friends. Meet up and grab coffee, pencil in a brunch, shopping time, or dinner date.
Deposit Checks
People like to know that you received their gifts and although you’ll be writing thank you notes, seeing the deposit go through will ensure them on their end that you received their generous gift.
