“Mitch and I hadn’t been together that long before I got pregnant,” says Sarah Jane Ashby. A few years later, the two decided to get married, and their daughter Marlowe headlined the guest list. Sarah Jane tells us the whole story below…
“I had just moved to New York, and I was traveling to LA a lot for work, and this guy in LA messaged me on a dating app and said, ‘You’re thousands of miles away. I’m so sorry.'” Who is this man holding the fish in the photo?! But we ended up chatting, and the next time I was in Los Angeles, we met up for burgers and beers. Things quickly got serious for both of us. I have never loved anyone so much. ”
“He agreed for us to move in to be together, and then I found out I was pregnant. We loved each other, but we weren’t going to get married right away just because we had a baby. In 2020, Mitch moved to New York, he started a new job, the pandemic hit, and I gave birth to Marlowe. Our family was really forged by fire. But we rolled with it.”
“Marlowe was 2 years old when Mitch asked me to marry him in the photo booth. Then the picture didn’t come out for 10 minutes. When I finally asked someone, they said, ‘Oh, yeah, that happens sometimes, but you can always retake it.’ We were like, ‘No, you can’t do that!’ We just got engaged in a photo booth! Thankfully, I was able to remove it with only a few scratches. ”
“We wanted to do something in Wales, where I’m from, because my grandmother lived there. Because of cost, we ended up getting married in New York City Hall. We then had a small ceremony in Wales, followed by dinner for 30 people in a pub. It all felt very intimate.”
“As we got our number tags and waited our turn, it reminded me of my childhood in the butcher shop. We were there with 100 other couples, and we loved that we weren’t the only ones. I think many New Yorkers understand that getting married at City Hall is a way to commemorate your relationship with the city.”
“Marlowe has great energy, and I mean that in the best sense of the word. Our friends Jessica and Bart served as our witnesses and mediators for Marlowe.”
“I really wanted to wear something vintage, so I was thrilled to find this 60s Jackie O style dress.”
“I met my friend Jessica through work. Years ago, when I told her my big dream was to move to New York, she said, ‘Clap on the couch for two months!’ After Marlowe was born, Jessica and her husband, Bart, became a great support system. They’re like family. After the ceremony, the four of us went out for dinner and danced.”
“I absolutely reject the idea that life has to follow a set schedule. A friend of mine was engaged and really wanted a baby, but her wedding kept getting postponed because of the pandemic. She told me that we inspired her to throw the rulebook out the window and not wait until things were in the ‘right’ order.” ”
Thank you so much for sharing your story with us, sarah jane.
PS Now that you’ve had more weddings, including 7 more at City Hall, how did you manage to make it your own?
(Photo provided by: Sylvie Rosokoff(except for the photo booth one that came from Sarah Jane).
Source: Cup of Jo – cupofjo.com
