Weddingbee boards

Sorry, Bees, I apologize since I'm so long-winded! If you stick with me to the end you have my sincerest gratitude. <3

As the title suggests, I am thinking of a DW in Florida, specifically on Treasure Island near Tampa, and I'll describe a little of what I'm thinking. Any criticism, suggestions, or advice would be awesome and very much appreciated. I can't imagine we would have more than 30 people, which may be easy to accomplish since I'll definitely only have my mother representing my family. I have an oceanside beach house in mind where the ceremony and reception can happily both take place with a minimum reservation of three days (perfect to me), and the house has enough beds for at least 20 people. The house also seems to have at least five kitchenettes (one in each suite area), each with a small stove/oven, decent size fridge, and microwave. Is it a silly/naive/impossible idea to think that we as a family and bunch of friends could cook up a storm for the reception? I think it would be so much fun if everyone was willing and liked the idea. I don't know yet how equipped the house is with cookingware, but I would be willing to pay for the local grocery shopping trip and anything we need to cook it with so we can have good homemade food everyone will likely love over catering that could suck and leave people dissatisfied. My other thought (and I have my mother and some friends, especially guys, who love this idea) was to have the rehearsal dinner there at the beach house the afternoon/evening before the wedding day, with everyone who wants to come invited, and have it be barbecue style. I don't know if the house has a grill of it's own, but is it possible to rent one?

Nothing is set in stone, yet, seeing as our wedding is likely a few years away, but I am putting together a sort of game-plan and cost estimate so I know what I'm in for. I have so many questions about it, but I'll try to keep it brief (Ha! Not likely. I'm long-winded as all get-out!).

My main concern is about the marriage license. I tried researching this but couldn't come up with enough info. We will likely be living in Virginia or Alaska at the time of the wedding. How would we handle getting our marriage license in Florida? How many days before the wedding do we have to get it? Do we absolutely have to get it in person? Is there a waiting period or any other drastic requirements?

Somewhat related, if we want a friend or family member to officiate for us, is there anything special they would have to do in Florida for it to be legal?

My other main concern is that I want to do as much DIY as possible. Thankfully I don't have anything too major in mind, lots of paper lanterns, but I just remembered favors and programs and the guestbook and various other essentials that could end up taking more space than I think it all will. How should I handle getting my decorations and other wedding things sent to Florida? We're likely to not even live locally with most of our guests, so getting their help is out. Should I ship things? If so, where would I even ship everything to? What are my options?

I also wonder if hiring a Florida-based wedding coordinator around the time of the wedding would be my best bet to make sure I have everything covered, even if I don't plan to hire much of anybody else. Would they be able to help with my long-distance decorations dilemma? And long-distance cake baker and florist woes? :P

Thanks for listening to me. I know I'm silly and probablly naive, but I'm just so excited and need a bit of solid info to ground me and make this more of a reality. I want to be able to lay out the facts for my fiance so we know what we're dealing with for my idea and if it's even feasible. If anyone wants to tell me to go away and just talk to a wedding coordinator, go ahead! I'll at least know that's what I should do. Thanks Bees! <3