Caden and Bailey Lundquist had to celebrate their wedding with two separate luncheons, one with his immediate family and one with hers, instead of having a big party with their family and friends.
Instead of having everyone attend their temple sealing, the couple was only allowed to have both sets of parents, two of Bailey’s five siblings and only one of Caden’s three siblings attend.
Instead of dancing at the reception party with everyone, Bailey had her first dance with her new husband and her dance with her father in her parent’s living room.
The couple was planning on getting married in May, but when the COVID-19 outbreak became more serious in March, they said they knew they needed to get married and felt strongly that they needed to do it sooner rather than later.
On March 16, they started talking about the possibility of moving up their wedding date. The next day, they finalized their new date, March 24, in the Draper Utah Temple. Little did they know that March 24 would be the last day that any Latter-day Saint temple would be open for the foreseeable future.
“We got married and felt so utterly blessed to be there in the temple,” Bailey said. “The very next day the Church announced all temples would be temporarily closed.”
Caden said they felt lucky to be able to sneak into the temple right before it closed. “We also felt a little guilty that there were so many couples just like us that wanted to get married in the temple but at least for a time couldn’t,” he said.
Bailey said she’s thankful she and Caden received such strong impressions to move quickly to get into the temple, but she knows God has a plan for everyone. “For those that couldn’t make it to the temple, that was a part of the plan too,” she said. “He loves us and takes care of each one of us.”
Caden said he learned that something like COVID-19 forces people to focus on what’s most important. “For Bailey and me, that was entering into a covenant with Heavenly Father in His temple.”
Despite these unusual circumstances for a wedding day, Caden and Bailey admitted it wasn’t at all what they had imagined but both described it as “bittersweet.”
“We got everything we wanted out of our marriage because we were sealed for time and eternity,” Caden said. “But there was a bitter feeling because we couldn’t see our closest friends and most of our extended families.”
Bailey said she knows they made the right choice. “The sealing, the spirit and the joy that I felt that day couldn’t be swayed by anything,” she said.
All the craziness going on has been emotionally exhausting for everyone, she said. “I have felt so tired and concerned with what the future will bring, but what I do know is I have my teammate right by my side.”
