Nerdy military pre-deployment wedding (with Game of Thrones cosplay!)

It's Memorial Day here in the U.S., so we're celebrating our military couples with this geektastic Army pre-deployment wedding in Indiana. Salute!

The Offbeat Bride: Maureen, Chemist

Her offbeat partner: Sean, Army Reservist/Electrician

Date and location of wedding: In-laws' backyard veranda on a pond in Dyer, IN — March 26, 2016

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

There was no decided theme to our wedding. I just picked out things we both liked and it happened to turn into a lot of geeky things. We had Star Wars cakes and brought some fun props from our cosplays. We've both been struggling with Sean's upcoming Army deployment, so we really only did some of the other typical wedding things as a second thought.

Tell us about the ceremony:

Sean proposed less than three weeks before our ceremony. We decided that we no longer wanted to let the Army ruin our plans to move forward with our relationship. His deployment had been looming over us for months, so we decided it would be best to have a small, intimate ceremony before he shipped out.

I got a simple dress for $100 and ordered flowers for $120. I paid $200 for photos from a good friend. In lieu of engagement photos, we had a fun photo shoot the weekend prior in our Game of Thrones cosplays at the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2). The cakes were made by a family friend who makes beautiful cakes. She customized them with Star Wars pictures and a cute photo of us.

Sean's godfather/uncle officiated our wedding, which was cute because Sean was his ring bearer at his wedding so many years ago. We had the wedding on his parent's veranda in the backyard. They live on a pond, so the scenery was great. We had a makeshift aisle I walked down, and nobody saw me in my dress until my dad walked me out of the house onto the veranda. We wrote our own vows, which were entirely geeky.

We had about 20 people in attendance, just close family and a few friends. The ceremony was beautiful. Afterwards, we cut the cake and then took photos together by the pond.

Tell us about your reception:

We plan on having a reception next year when Sean gets home from his deployment. But of course, we really just want to have food and alcohol. We aren't too concerned about the venue or the little things. I love crafts, so I am sure I'll make fun things. The great thing is that we're already married, so it takes a lot of stress off us.

What was your most important lesson learned?

I am a control freak, but this ceremony was all thrown together within the last two days for the most part. I let his family take control of the little details. We never rehearsed, and I had no idea what music would play or where we would be standing until my father walked me down the makeshift aisle. But it was the best feeling trusting that other people love us enough to make sure everything taken care of so we didn't have to stress.

Now I get to casually plan a party when he gets back from his deployment, and it gives me something to which to look forward.

Vendors

• Photographer: High Five Foto
• C2E2 Photographer: Kaminsky Kandids Photography
• Hair: Chelsi Savage, Highland Hair Cuttery
• Nails: The Polished Pinky

Gallery

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