The Big Day....part 3

Yes, it was a long day....and the waiting for the wedding was a bit of a strain on Debbie........her dad dropped off a bottle of brandy and some coke at the bridal suite before the wedding.......and Debbie admitted to having a 'couple of large ones'.......she stumbled over some of the words to her vows and she said it was the nerves, not the brandy that did it.

Now they were married the whole atmosphere lifted......it was palpable......the tension faded and there was a sense of joy and happiness....certainly both the bride and groom looked far more relaxed than they had done for days(so I am told).

Once the pictures were taken, we all headed in the direction of the bar, and the restaurant.....our sit down meal was in the upstairs room.....so Ma had to do the stairs again.......She got up out of her wheel chair and a whole cascade of confetti fell off her lap.......the strong lads offered to carry her up the stairs in her chair, but she declined their offer....I was quite glad about that.....I didn't want the chair to disassemble half way up the two flights of stairs.....that would have been a disaster.......and every wedding that I have ever known has had disasters of some sort.
Debs was lucky.......she only had two very minor glitches in her day.......the red cravat and handkerchief to complete the groomsmans outfit had failed to arrive at her house on the Friday before we left....the company promised faithfully tht they would deliver it to her house by 10 am....we left at 12md and it still hadn't arrived........anyway after a few phone calls (which may have had a mild degree of threat in them).... the company delivered the missing items to the wedding venue....so all was well in that department......the other minor glitch......despite all the care taken in getting the cake up to Scotland....without a blemish, I might add....somehow, the bottom tier of the cake, which was heart shaped.....managed to get a bit of a knock.........fortunately it was at the back of the cake, so it was not that noticeable.

Our sit dwon meal was superb.......creamy vegetable soup(but you could have had garlic musrooms or pate).......Roast beef and all the trimmings......followed by Strawberry cheesecake or Chocolate Pyramid(heavily laced with Cointreu).......the speeches went off well, lots of anecdotes and laughter.......and before long we were into toasts.....The Bride and Groom, the beautiful bridesmaids, the parents of the Bride, the grooms parents...it went on and on......I feared that I was going to be a little past it by the time we had finished.

Ma said that she was full fit to bust....and it made her tired....we congratulated the happy pair and then we made to go back to our room.
I wanted to get my shoes off, they were killing me.......and I wanted to get changed.

I settled Ma into the room, ditched the high heels for a pair of lower heeled shoes....they still killed my feet....I changed into my dress and went back to the evening reception.

It was then that I realised that I am beginning to feel my age.....I knew none of the music that the young folk were dancing to....if you could call it dancing.......the music was very very loud........I got myself a glass of wine......sipped it slowly while I watched the folk enjoying themselves.
Once my glass was empty, I went and spoke to Debs and Stuart...told them what a brilliant day it had been......and that it had been what all weddings should be....happy and joyful.....no family feuds, no fights or falling out......well, none that I saw, or was aware of......t even the sun had come out to add a shine to the occasion.

I thanked them for asking me to share in their special day....I told them I was going back to the room to check on ma and change my shoes......they said 'You are coming back down aren't you'......I said I was, but I knew that I wouldn't....and I think that they knew too.

I didn't feel bad about being a party pooper, I knew that there were lots of people there who would help them to celebrate.
So here I was.......going back to the room....having lost a sister-in-law, but having gained a lovely pair of friends....and having met many of their family who I now consider to be friends too.

It was a lovely, lovely day.

Pictures:-
1) Chris and Steph......Grooms Sister and Brother-in -law.
2) The cake.
3) Ma with Chris and James.....having a laugh.
4) A bottle of bubbly.
5) The old Pump
6) Honeysuckle......this was all over the complex......and it was lovely.
7) Outside the Church.....waiting.
8) Inside the church...Bridal Party.
9) The Waterwheel.
10) Debs and Stuart.

Attached Thumbnails