Woman who ‘hated’ $30,000 wedding finds happiness and relief in renewing vows for $1,000
A woman who says she spent more than $30,000 on a wedding she “hated” has found a new way to have a “beautiful” and “stress-free” marriage experience: for less than a dollar Price renewed her vows and loved every minute of it.
Alexandrea Acevedo, 27, of Orlando, Florida, told the SWNS news agency that she had a “big wedding” with 200 guests a few years ago, but the whole I feel “stressed” and “anxious” every day.
Today, she feels like she did “what everyone else wanted to do” instead of having the wedding of her dreams.
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She and her husband, Michael Acevedo, renewed their vows last year and climbed a mountain with three of their four children, SWNS reported.
She said it was a “beautiful day”.
Alexandrea Acevedo poses with her husband Michael on their wedding day. It was really “for the guests,” she said of the event. (Syndey Thornton/Olive and Birch Photography via SWNS)
In contrast, recalling her wedding a few years ago, she said the event was “so expensive… We were so young. It was a hard time. I don’t know why we did it.”
She said the event cost her and her husband “a little over $30,000. It was such a waste of money. We could have used that money for a house deposit. The wedding was not for the couple; Hosted for guests.
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She added: “We put all our energy and stress into [into] A shining event. Why did I spend hours going through all this? We do what others want, not what we want.
“Why did I have to spend hours going through this?”
The couple met in January 2017.
They got engaged in April of that year after a whirlwind romance.
September 2018, the couple’s wedding day: “It was all a blur.” (Syndey Thornton/Olive and Birch Photography via SWNS)
The now mother of four said she wanted “nice clothes, photographers and to go to the mountains,” but some family members wanted the exact opposite, SWNS reported.
“When we brought up the idea of eloping and doing it ourselves, they were upset… so we ended up having a big wedding,” Alexandrea Acevedo said.
She said she spent more than a year planning a garden-themed event for 200 guests.
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“I planned everything myself…everyone is within your ear,” she said.
She said that today she barely remembers her wedding in September 2018 because she was so stressed out by everything.
“I’ve been very anxious all day,” she told SWNS.
The couple only decided to renew their vows last year and had a completely different experience than they had during their wedding. (Syndey Thornton/Olive and Birch Photography via SWNS)
“I don’t really remember much. It’s all a blur. There was so much chaos.”
She said she knew her family expected her to “eat her food and say hello to everyone,” but said she was “exhausted” by it all.
She said: “This should have been the happiest day of my life, but it turned out to be someone else’s day. You can’t even enjoy a meal.”
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After getting married, the couple set out to create the family life they wanted. Today, they have four children, ages 9, 6, 2 and 4 months old.
As they approached their fifth wedding anniversary, they decided to celebrate by renewing their vows.
They said renewing their vows was “completely stress-free. It was just about us and not about pleasing anyone else.” (Syndey Thornton/Olive and Birch Photography via SWNS)
They hired a photographer and drove to Fred W. Symmes Chapel in Cleveland, South Carolina, with their three oldest children in September 2023, SNWS reported.
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The mom said: “We, the kids, spent some time together with God. There was no pressure at all. It was just about us and not pleasing other people.”
She added: “What a beautiful day.”
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The family enjoyed lunch and hiked the rest of the day.
All told, they spent less than $1,000 renewing their vows.
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The wife and mom says she hopes to encourage others to plan the wedding they want the first time.
She said: “When it comes to your marriage, it should be about what you want, not what other people want. It should be about you and your family as a couple.”
