Wording for invites - anniversary party after elopement

[Elopedincovid]

Hi all,
We eloped in April last year for both practical (wanted to buy a house after the wedding and had already been postponed since initial lockdown) and personal reasons (anxiety around elder relatives health). There were only 8 guests who are our parents and grandparents and we all isolated totally in advance due to some parents and grandparents having complex conditions and being CEV for Covid. We had an absolutely wonderful day and no regrets!

That said other family members were happy for us but also a little disappointed they couldn’t celebrate with us and keep asking when we will have a party/reception to celebrate. We would love to do so and kindly my husband’s grandparents have given some money to put towards doing so; we have chosen a venue we love with special family meaning relating to a sibling who passed but the only suitable dates they had due to being popular is about a month before our wedding anniversary so I don’t feel I can call the event an anniversary party as it is so early, but also know there are negative associations with vow renewal (really don’t want anyone to think we’ve been unfaithful especially in first year!)

We thought about wording the invitation as ‘you are invited to a party in celebration of the marriage of mr and Mrs X’ but I don’t know if that sounds silly.

The event is daytime (1-5) and will be afternoon tea with (surprise!) entertainment from a company that does murder mystery events as neither of us are too fond of discos or just sitting watching a live band or whatever and wanted something different, however we were thinking of starting with a short ‘ceremony’ where we just stand up and do a poem or reading to each other with no celebrant or anything as we just stuck to the legal words at the elopement, everyone we have spoken to says this is a nice idea so not worried our family will hate it but feel that also muddies the waters on what to call the bloody thing lol. We are also just going to wear a suit and party dress respectively so not trying to ‘redo’ the wedding per se and both sides have form for lavish anniversary parties (way more than our ideas so not to over the top given family track record)

Apologies for long post I’m just really anxious it’s going to sound silly whatever we write! Any suggestions appreciated

Following as we have a similar dilemma . We have decided not to have any ceremony/blessing/reading etc and I won't be wearing white. We are just having a party so unsure what to put on the invitation! Might end up just putting 'You're invited' plus the details

I think it’s fine to call it an anniversary party- no one will care that it’s not on the day. Or “a party to celebrate our marriage”- both are fine.

I would invite people to attend our post covid wedding reception

"You are invited to a Reception following our marriage last year which had to take place with very limited numbers" should cover it.

I would put the information about the form the day will take though, with the invitations, so people know what to wear, when to have eaten, if it is going to finish early evening or in the early hours of next day etc. so they can plan accordingly.

I’d call it an anniversary party and give all the timings etc. I think calling it a reception means people will feel they need to buy a present.

I would call it a party to celebrate the marriage

And I think anyone who has a murder mystery party for the event is destined to have a long and happy marriage. It's a brilliant idea!