You’re officially married – Pop the champagne, get on that flight, and go have fun on your honeymoon! Relax and enjoy your time together because there will be plenty to do upon your return. If timing allows, I would recommend arriving home a few days before having to get back to work, so that you can focus on your newlywed checklist.
Open Your Gifts and Cards
This will probably be the most exciting thing on your newlywed checklist, so I recommend doing it first! Don’t forget to keep track of the gifts, and who got them for you – write everything down so that you can be prepared when you’re writing your ‘thank you’ cards.
Write + Send Your Thank You Cards
This can be an intimidating task to most couples, but please don’t put this off. Divide and conquer your list to make the process more efficient.
Change Your Name (if you plan to)
If you have decided to take your spouse’s name, you will not want to procrastinate on getting this process started, but you will need to wait until you receive your marriage certificate in the mail.
Pro Tip: Be sure to request a few certified copies of your marriage certificate from the clerk’s office in the city that you filed your marriage license.
The most frustrating part about changing your name is that you have to start in a specific order because you will need some of the documents with your new name to proceed with obtaining the others. Before wasting your time, make sure that you do your own research on the different types of documents to be sure that you have all of the necessary paperwork ready to go. There is nothing worse than sitting at the DMV for hours, only to find out that you’re missing that one piece of paper.
So where do we start?
-Social Security Card – You’ll need to start with your social security card, as you will need this to get your new driver’s license.
-Drivers License –You’ll get this next because you’ll need it for almost everything else that you have to change. You should be able to get your voter’s registration and vehicle registration changed at the same time, as all of these will be done at the DMV.
The order for everything else will not matter as much, but that doesn’t mean that you should wait. Change everything, and change them quickly. You can download our checklist to stay organized and mark off each box as you go!
-Passport,
-Vehicle Registration and Titles
-Bank accounts and credit/debit cards
-Your job – W2, insurance, retirement, etc.
-Loans – Mortgage, car, student, personal, etc.
-Voter Registration
-Your Bills – Utilities, cell phone, etc.
-Insurance Policies
-Doctor’s Offices
-Subscriptions
-Social Media Accounts and Email
Have Your Dress Cleaned + Preserved
Most bridal shops and boutiques offer cleaning and preservation services so check with the shop that you’re buying/planning to buy your dress from. If you’re planning to go on a lengthy honeymoon right after the wedding, assign a family member or a very close friend to drop the dress off at the shop for you. You don’t want the stains to set for too long, so the sooner that you’re able to get your dress cleaned, the better.
Review Your Vendors
Show some love to the vendors that helped make your wedding dreams become a reality by writing them reviews. They will be thrilled to know how much you enjoyed and appreciated everything! Most businesses in the wedding industry are small businesses and reviews can be crucial for them, so this will be a great way to show your love and support.
When all of the boxes on your newlywed checklist have been checked, pop open another bottle of champagne! There’s no such thing as too much celebrating!
You can also download our step by step guide to changing your name here
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