I never pictured myself getting married through a screen. But sometimes things happen differently than expected.

My future spouse and I had been talking about marriage for a while, but with busy schedules, planning a traditional wedding felt like more stress than joy. We weren’t even sure when we’d be in the same place long enough to make it official.

One night, while reading wedding blogs, I came across a post about virtual weddings. At first, I thought it was just symbolic, but the more I looked into it, the more legit it seemed.

Turns out, in places like Utah, you can have a valid marriage completely online — even if you're in different countries. It's fully legal in the U.S..

We decided to go for it. Why wait?

Here’s what the process looked like for us:

• We booked a time with a licensed officiant through an official virtual marriage site.
• We uploaded our IDs, completed a few online forms, and got our virtual marriage license within hours.
• On our wedding day, we wore something nice for the webcam, sent the Zoom link to our closest friends and family, and said our vows live on camera.

Before we knew it, we were officially married. We toasted over Zoom, smiled at each other through the screen, and let it all sink in. It was beautiful — even from hundreds of miles away.

Honestly? It was one of the most authentic experiences we could’ve asked for. No overpriced venue. No awkward seating charts. Just us, the copyright we meant, and a handful of people who love us cheering from their screens.

If you’re exploring wedding options, I highly recommend looking into online marriage. It's an option more people should consider — especially if you're in the military.

You don’t have to wait for a perfect moment or a perfect venue. You just need someone you love, a decent Wi-Fi signal, and a little bit of paperwork.

Marriage is online marriage evolving, and honestly? That’s kind of amazing.

No matter the distance, you can make it official — and make it yours.