Since you weren’t able to be with us on this special day, here’s a long version of what went down!

The Dilemma

Our original wedding date was May 30, 2020. We had the perfect day planned. We were going to have our ceremony and big celebration with all of our family and friends here in Nashville and then head off to Jamaica for our honeymoon!

After a year of planning, we had to cancel due to the pandemic. At first, it felt impossible to know how to proceed.

[Mia speaking]: I cried every time I pictured not having my mom, dad, and sister with me on our wedding day. No walking down the aisle with Dad, no father-daughter dance, no getting ready and laughing with Mom and Natalie. Anytime someone recommended a “Zoom wedding,” I’d lose it.

The Solution

Ultimately, we realized that we needed to move forward into our next chapter together, alone. That was a really hard decision, to say the least. However, we are ready to grow our family and our hearts were telling us not put this on hold for another year. So, after weeks of weighing the pros and cons… we decided to get married privately on our original date with less than two weeks away!

Side note: Let’s just say it was a moment of regret for eating all those quarantine cookies when the wedding dress wouldn't zip.

The Lead-Up

One week before, we stood in masks in a line around the block to get our license from the county clerk. Then, we drove around and ended up finding the perfect, magical spot: The Iris Garden at Ellington Agricultural Center. After some scrambling and driving across town to sign some papers, we got permission to be married there on May 31st… Mia’s mom’s birthday. Luckily, our officiant, photographer, and videographer were all able to switch the date at the last minute. It all came together!

Side notes: Mia cut down on enough cookies JUST in time for her dress to actually zip up. Mia cut Steve’s hair at 1am on May 31st. (Mia does not actually know how to cut hair).

The Day

It was an imperfectly perfect day. The weather was gorgeous. The first part of the day was not your typical wedding day. We cleaned the house, put Aliya down for a nap, ran very last-minute errands, and tried to breathe because, of course, we were running late to our own wedding. Once Steve and Aliya were ready and left for the garden, Mia had about an hour to pull herself together (hair, makeup, get in the dress, get the dog, head over!) Our sweet next-door-neighbor, Aja, drove Mia over and watched Nike during the ceremony.

Aliya was the most beautiful, sassy, flower girl imaginable. She was awesome all day and was full of joy and excitement for us to officially become a family. Even when she got blisters, she was still a trooper.

Robby Stone, our dear friend, spoke the perfect, most loving words about us as individuals and as a couple. His speech was full of Disney references and jokes. He even said, “You may now KISS DE GIRL!” He involved Aliya in the ceremony in the perfect way. In short, he nailed it. He even followed us around during photos and made Aliya laugh. If it weren’t for "Wobby," she would be crying about her blisters in every group picture you see. Robby’s wonderful husband Coury was also there to save the day with boutonnière direction and helping run the Zoom so that our immediate families could watch!

We shared our own vows and Mia was grateful to have bought all-waterproof makeup. You’ll be able to hear those vows when we share the video, which was captured by another dear friend and videographer, Spenser Fritz. (You can hear part of Mia's vows, in song form of course, by following the link at the bottom of this story).

Cari Griffith, our photographer, was amazing from our very first email to the wedding. She was so empathetic to our situation and committed to helping make the day special, no matter what. She was awesome with Aliya and made us feel so comfortable as we walked around and took photos after the ceremony. She truly captured the joy we felt.

Our sweet families watched on... you guessed it... Zoom, all dolled up from across the land. While the internet connection was spotty and they couldn’t catch everything, it was really special to know they were all together and “with us” in that way.

After photos, the three of us drove home, called our families again, ate some delicious burgers (thanks Spenser and Amanda!!), and had an epic dance party on the back deck.

To Our Family and Friends:

Whether or not you knew we were getting married on May 31st, we felt you with us. We’ve often heard that wedding days are a "big blur." In that way, we were fortunate. Because of the simplicity and intimacy of the day, we were able to focus on our love and only our love. It didn't happen how we intended it to happen, but it happened how it was supposed to happen.

When the day ended, it didn’t feel like anything was "over." It still feels like the beginning of a celebration as we enter into the next chapter.

And on that note, we DO still plan to have that big party to celebrate. We don’t know exactly when, nor exactly how it will look, but we will have it. And somehow, we think it will mean even more because we will not take for granted the ability to hug our loved ones.

For now, especially in light of this past week, we are honoring our marriage by immersing ourselves in ways to become more educated, aware, and loving humans, so that our family can be part of positive change in the world.

We are incredibly excited and happy to be Mr. and Mrs. Wisinski and we are so grateful to all who support our love and our family. Thank you. We love you.

Here's a song Mia wrote for Steve (taken from part of her vows)

***written prior to our marriage***

The Moment Steve Knew It Was Love:

It was a dark and stormy night… No, really! March 7, 2017. Mia and Steve were on a musical theatre tour (Mia was singing and Steve was on the tech side of things; they had just met a couple weeks prior). The tour bus was on an overnight haul from El Paso, TX to Grand Junction, CO and, while all the performers were nestled snug in their bunks, Steve was awoken in the middle of the night by the driver, who informed him that they were caught in a terrible blizzard on Red Mountain Pass. Do you know how scary Red Mountain Pass is? Take a look at this picture and then imagine a tour bus, pulling a trailer, in a white-out blizzard: https://images.app.goo.gl/Tierpr5MpM96RpvD6.

Steve helped him get snow chains on the bus but they soon broke! So, at 4mph, the bus crawled around sharp switchbacks. Steve went to wake Mia who, blissfully unaware in her bunk said, “Are we there?” He brought her up to the front and, gazing out at the snow-covered mountains, they held hands tightly and tried not to think about how dangerous the situation was. Steve later admitted that, when he found himself coming up with plans in his mind to rescue Mia in the event of a crash, he realized he loved her.

The Moment Mia Knew It Was Love:

Mia doesn’t have as specific or romantic of a moment of realization of loving Steve (although she was the first to actually say it)! She wasn’t planning to fall in love. In fact, she was planning to head back off to Colorado several months later for a seven-month theatre contract. The first day of tour, when she was telling Steve about the contract she was about to sign, he said “Are you sure?” “Who does this guy think he is? Of course I’m sure!” she thought (completely unsure), “Also, he’s pretty cute. I wonder if we’re gonna make out.” Sure enough, after one month of bus adventures with Steve, she was head-over-heels. But once they got back to Nashville, she felt sad. Love strikes at such inconvenient times! She was going away for seven months!

As fate would have it, one day Mia got the call that she had been accepted into a very prestigious songwriting competition for which she had been applying for five years!! The contest conflicted with opening night in Colorado. It was a dream-come true and a sign. She chose the contest over the theatre contract, ended up winning, and, most importantly, ended up getting to stay with Steve!!

“Hey this is getting long. Wrap it up, already!”

Sorry… Mia’s a writer!

This love story would be incomplete without mention of Steve’s beautiful baby girl, Aliya. Though the order of events may seem unconventional, Mia quickly developed a deep love and connection with Aliya. Seeing Steve be such a devoted “Dada” only strengthened her admiration for him. She soon found herself happily taking on the role of “Mama Mia” and loving Aliya as if she were her own daughter.

“Get to the proposal!!!”

Okay, okay!

Fast-forward to March 24, 2019: Aliya’s third birthday party on the back porch at Mia and Steve’s house. Family, friends, and neighbors are all there. The burgers are burning and Mia’s trying to flag down Steve because she doesn’t know how to use the grill. He walks away quickly from her and she’s getting irritated. Suddenly, Mia’s ushered outside and a friend hands her the cutest, softest, most perfect little black puppy. “It’s yours,” she says. Mia, shocked, keeps asking Steve, “Did you know about this?!” She looks down at his tag and sees: “Will You Marry Us?” She looks up and sees Steve, holding Aliya, getting down on one knee. And, all in an instant, Mia and Steve are engaged and the little family of three is now a family of four with the addition of Nike Wisinski!

If you’ve read all this so far, thank you for being invested in our story. We’ve felt like family for a long time, so we are thrilled to be making it official. Thank you for supporting and celebrating with us in spirit.