Bride Attends Her Own Wedding Virtually From Hospital 48 Hours After Giving Birth

A New Hampshire bride-to-be had her wedding countdown interrupted by a medical emergency that landed her in a hospital bed. Rather than push the date back, she came up with an unconventional plan to still be part of it.

ABC affiliate WMUR-TV reported on Sunday, July 26, that Ariel Vaillancourt was diagnosed with preeclampsia just days before her wedding.

According to Mayo Clinic, preeclampsia is a pregnancy complication marked by dangerously high blood pressure, along with elevated protein levels in the urine that can signal kidney damage. The condition can also lead to broader organ damage if left untreated. Doctors gave her no choice but to deliver right away, transferring her to Mass General Brigham with her ceremony only 48 hours out.

“They were like, ‘We’re going to have to send you to Mass General to deliver.’ I was like, ‘I can’t have this baby. I’m getting married in two days,’ ” Vaillancourt told WMUR.

Her son, Connor, arrived 10 weeks premature. Between NICU visits and learning the ropes of new motherhood, the wedding slipped down the priority list. But when she thought about all the plans that had gone into her big day, the bride-to-be made the call to keep the date.

“I was a wedding coordinator for like 10-plus years, so I said, ‘It’s all paid for, all of the vendors are showing up. Our families are already here from, you know, all over the country,’ ” Ariel told WMUR.

“[I told Andrew], ‘Just go and have a good time just because I can’t be there and Connor can’t be there.’ I still wanted my family to be able to go and enjoy it.”

Andrew Lavoie stood at the altar without his bride, who joined virtually from her hospital room.

But NICU staff stepped in to make the moment feel real — putting together a bouquet, decorating her hospital room, styling her hair and also dressing her baby in a tiny suit for the occasion.

The couple is now settling into life as newlyweds and new parents at once.