Saturday morning
I woke at 4 and dozed on and off until Chloe bounced into my bed at 6.20. She was excited but calm and so looking forward to the day. Paul bought us coffee and we sat and chatted. A perfect way to start a perfect day. My goodest child(her name for herself!) was getting married and would soon become Mrs Unwin (often to be called Dr Unwin along with half of Ed's family). Her chosen breakfast - croissants and little pastries was soon prepared and eaten by Paul, Kitty, Hilary, Ben, Chloe and I. Paul then left for the church to meet Roy also known as 'The Pigman' who planned to arrive at the marquee at 6am to start cooking the hog-roast. This was the morning that I had looked forward to - the laughter of the bridesmaids all together, the smell of hairspray and the chaos of so many people and the excitement as we got ready. I had gone to this place during hard blood tests, lonely nights in hospital and during MRI scans. And here it was at last. I took a deep breath as the door bell began to ring. Anna ( Ben's girlfriend arrived having flown back from Cyprus) and the 2 hairdressers - Sam and Jackie, with all their bits and pieces. Showers and baths were taken and the day began in earnest. Chloe had her hair done - lots of curls and clever back combing and the other hairdresser did mine. Debs arrived along with Hannah - the make-up lady with her magic bag of tricks. Emma and Laura also arrived carrying their camera bags and plans for sun and rain! Matt arrived having collected our lunch from M&S and Ben struggled to find room in the fridge. Soon Paul was returning with Lily and Jenny (Ed's 2 sisters and 2 of the bridesmaids) and their was lots of laughing and excitement. They had been setting up the ice-cream table in the marquee and could report that everything was looking lovely. Chloe's hair was finished and her make-up applied and she looked really beautiful. Joy and Talia arrived at 11 and the bridesmaids were complete. We had lunch - which was extremely yummy and bubbly - also yummy! Clare - Ed's mum arrived and our party was all here!
Then the dressing began - Chloe's dress has a very clever lacing system, which Talia had learnt how to do. So Talia, Chloe and Hilary (chief bridesmaid) retreated to the front room to begin that.(The bridal shop had told us to leave at least an hour to do this). Everyone else spread themselves around the house and put on dresses and make up. I had the joy of having my 2 other girlies Debs and Anna helping me get dressed and discussing make-up. Talia did a wonderful job, patiently lacing Chloe into her dress with no stressing. Once started they rejoined the others and finished it off. Clare then shortened the ties and sewed them in neatly, (great to have a seamstress at hand).
We were all ready with a little time to spare, so as it was still dry outside, Emma took some photos of Chloe and the bridesmaids in the garden. Laura (the other photographer) had left to take photos of Ed arriving with his boys at the church. Ed and the best-man drove to the church in Ed's, grandfathers Morgan (very exciting for car lovers!) At this point Joy and Kit left to go to the church and we were left with bridesmaids, an excited but calm bride and 2 mums and Paul. Richard (Ed's step-dad) arrived with a lovely big car for bridesmaids. By this time the sky was looking very overcast - we checked that we had umbrellas. Jo arrived with her beautiful ribboned car to take Chloe and all was ready.
Bridesmaids left with Richard and after one last kiss for my girlie, Anna and I left with Clare. Taking a little detour - because I forgot to tell Clare where to go, we arrived at the church. As we arrived the heavens opened and it poured. Thankfully our church has a little porch where the bridesmaids could wait - although they must have been quite chilly. Clare parked her car as Jo arrived bringing Chloe. She drove right up to the church door and they waited hoping for a gap in the rain - but the weather had decided to do its own thing! Chloe then had to get out of the car in the pouring rain - with large puddles all around. It was a fun few minutes getting Chloe, her dress and her veil out of the car without all ending up in a puddle! Jo had bought a rug to cover the gap between the car and the porch which helped greatly. Soon she was out, her veil re-attached and her train arranged beautifully. We were ready....... but no photographer.
Her mum, who was in the church, came rushing out saying she had had a phone call from Emma to say that she was lost on her way to the church! Phone calls and her mum running to the end of the lane - in her beautiful dress and heels and in the pouring rain, ensued. Time ticked by - I was very aware of Ed sitting in the church wondering what was happening. In the end we decided to wait for Emma and tell Ed. I took what felt like a very long walk down the aisle, with everyone looking at me, to tell Ed about Emma - he was relieved as he knew Chloe was here and was wondering what was happening. 15 minutes later we were ready and Julian (our Vicar) asked the congregation to stand.
To be continued...........
Tuesday, 1 July 2014
Monday, 30 June 2014
Photos part 1
 |
| Table decorations |
 |
| Setting up the marquee |
see post below for part 1 of the wedding
 |
| The marquee in all its glory |
 |
| The tables before cutlery and glasses |
 |
| A table decoration |
 |
| Centre of table |
 |
| Tandem - decorated |
 |
| Porch flowers |
 |
| Decorated aisle |
 |
| Window arrangement |
 |
| Pedestal number 1 |
 |
| The church getting ready |
 |
| A sneaky peak at the bride and groom |
 |
| Me minus hat! |
Wedding part 1 setting up!
We had a magical day on Saturday. Chloe text me as she and Ed travelled in the taxi to their hotel on Saturday evening and said - Mumlet it was perfect. I want to do it all again!
I have decided to write about it in sections. For those of you who don't like detail you can stop reading now! I will put photos in a separate post.
Wednesday - Flowers collected, Chloe and Ed arrived along with Hilary and Kit, flowers arranged in wooden pots for the table decorations
Thursday - Flowers arranged in church (pedestal for the first time!), nails painted at Gilding the Lily
Friday
The day dawned with a beautiful sunny morning. Earlish start for breakfast - with Hilary (chief bridesmaid), Chloe and Ed. Then Ed, Chloe and Paul left to meet the marquee people before they began the huge task of erecting the marquee. Back to meet up with Kit and Talia and we left for the last dress fitting at Confetti (wedding dress shop). Talia had a lesson in lacing the dress (quite a tricky task) and all was well. The dress and veil looked beautiful - all neatly ironed. I also picked up my dress which had been adjusted for the last time. We were just about to leave when we had a text from Paul saying that the flowers had fallen over. We weren't too concerned as we thought he was at home and meant the flowers in a vase. Unfortunately we discovered he had gone to open the church and had discovered the very large pedestal of flowers had tipped over and was lying on the floor - the oasis shattered into a hundred tiny pieces! So off we set on a mercy mission to rescue the flowers. On the way I phoned our flower arranger from church who (thankfully) was able to also come to the rescue. We decided to laugh about this as there was nothing we could do about it. We carefully removed all the flowers from the heap of broken oasis and ordered them and then using new oasis, which we attached very, very firmly to the stand, we re-arranged the flowers. Thankfully only a few had been damaged and only one rose had been completely destroyed. An hour later - all was well. This wasn't part of our plan but had been one of Chloe's 'bits and pieces' that we had left gaps for on Friday!
Back home for lunch - thankfully prepared by Josh and Paul. Packed lunch made for the boys who were collecting the drinks from Henley and taking them in a horse box (yes there was that much) to the caterers to keep cool until Saturday.
2pm rehearsal at the church with bridesmaids, ushers, mums, dads and best man and bride and groom. Lots of practice of SLOW walking! So hard not to speed up the aisle when you feel nervous. Ed's mum and I practised our crying! Then a lovely meeting on the grass, in the sunshine, where Chloe told best-man, bridesmaids and ushers of their tasks for Saturday. It was great to see them all together. There was lots of laughing!
Then all over to the marquee to set up. It was wonderful to see the huge marquee set out with the 100m of bunting that Chloe had made all ready, softly blowing in the breeze that was gently moving through the open doors. Although I had seen drawings of the marquee with tables etc... I couldn't quite imagine what it would look like. It was HUGE! Even on Saturday with 180 people in it, it was still huge, with plenty of space. I had worried slightly about the 'gorgeousness' ( our name for the swags until we found out the proper name) being too low and making it feel claustrophobic but it was fine. Under Chloe's direction we set up the tables with the wooden table decorations ( cut and carved out by Ed and his dad and flowers arranged by Joy, Clare, Hilary, Chloe and I), table numbers and little semperviviums (grown by Chloe) planted in little wooden pots ( cut and drilled by Ed). Each pot had a little flag with the guests name. They looked wonderful. We set up the tables and chairs etc... in the marquee and the church. With so many helpers we soon had it all done.
The boys left for a meal at Ed's dads house. We returned home to a fish and chip supper supplied by Matt and Joy - who had to stand for a very long time in a Friday evening queue.
Earlyish night ready for the big day.
I have decided to write about it in sections. For those of you who don't like detail you can stop reading now! I will put photos in a separate post.
Wednesday - Flowers collected, Chloe and Ed arrived along with Hilary and Kit, flowers arranged in wooden pots for the table decorations
Thursday - Flowers arranged in church (pedestal for the first time!), nails painted at Gilding the Lily
Friday
The day dawned with a beautiful sunny morning. Earlish start for breakfast - with Hilary (chief bridesmaid), Chloe and Ed. Then Ed, Chloe and Paul left to meet the marquee people before they began the huge task of erecting the marquee. Back to meet up with Kit and Talia and we left for the last dress fitting at Confetti (wedding dress shop). Talia had a lesson in lacing the dress (quite a tricky task) and all was well. The dress and veil looked beautiful - all neatly ironed. I also picked up my dress which had been adjusted for the last time. We were just about to leave when we had a text from Paul saying that the flowers had fallen over. We weren't too concerned as we thought he was at home and meant the flowers in a vase. Unfortunately we discovered he had gone to open the church and had discovered the very large pedestal of flowers had tipped over and was lying on the floor - the oasis shattered into a hundred tiny pieces! So off we set on a mercy mission to rescue the flowers. On the way I phoned our flower arranger from church who (thankfully) was able to also come to the rescue. We decided to laugh about this as there was nothing we could do about it. We carefully removed all the flowers from the heap of broken oasis and ordered them and then using new oasis, which we attached very, very firmly to the stand, we re-arranged the flowers. Thankfully only a few had been damaged and only one rose had been completely destroyed. An hour later - all was well. This wasn't part of our plan but had been one of Chloe's 'bits and pieces' that we had left gaps for on Friday!
Back home for lunch - thankfully prepared by Josh and Paul. Packed lunch made for the boys who were collecting the drinks from Henley and taking them in a horse box (yes there was that much) to the caterers to keep cool until Saturday.
2pm rehearsal at the church with bridesmaids, ushers, mums, dads and best man and bride and groom. Lots of practice of SLOW walking! So hard not to speed up the aisle when you feel nervous. Ed's mum and I practised our crying! Then a lovely meeting on the grass, in the sunshine, where Chloe told best-man, bridesmaids and ushers of their tasks for Saturday. It was great to see them all together. There was lots of laughing!
Then all over to the marquee to set up. It was wonderful to see the huge marquee set out with the 100m of bunting that Chloe had made all ready, softly blowing in the breeze that was gently moving through the open doors. Although I had seen drawings of the marquee with tables etc... I couldn't quite imagine what it would look like. It was HUGE! Even on Saturday with 180 people in it, it was still huge, with plenty of space. I had worried slightly about the 'gorgeousness' ( our name for the swags until we found out the proper name) being too low and making it feel claustrophobic but it was fine. Under Chloe's direction we set up the tables with the wooden table decorations ( cut and carved out by Ed and his dad and flowers arranged by Joy, Clare, Hilary, Chloe and I), table numbers and little semperviviums (grown by Chloe) planted in little wooden pots ( cut and drilled by Ed). Each pot had a little flag with the guests name. They looked wonderful. We set up the tables and chairs etc... in the marquee and the church. With so many helpers we soon had it all done.
The boys left for a meal at Ed's dads house. We returned home to a fish and chip supper supplied by Matt and Joy - who had to stand for a very long time in a Friday evening queue.
Earlyish night ready for the big day.
Wednesday, 25 June 2014
3 days....
So Wednesday is here at last. We are now in the days which we have been time tabling for so long! I woke many times in the night and had little things whirling around in my head. Eventually at 6 I got up and wrote stuff down! My first text from Chloe was ahhhhhhhhh... Which worried me slightly as I assumed that was an 'oh no' ahhhhhh not an excited ahhhh... But all is fine she was just VERY excited. The last 2 days have gone well - my sickness is a little better after an adjustment to my drugs and lots of prayer. The house is looking lovely and clean and tidy, the beds are all made in readiness for all the people coming today. The bath is full of greenery ready for the 18 table decorations we are making. Tea is cooked and out of the freezer and I am off soon to collect flowers for church and table decorations. And the sun is shining! Please pray for a little sunshine on Saturday - we can cope with some rain - umbrellas arrived yesterday - but would love some sunshine for photos.
Thank you so much for all yor texts, emails messages etc.... It is so lovely to hear from you and share a little of our excitement with you.
For all you young mums - what a joy it is to be part of your children's journeys and to be standing alongside them as they make forever promises and begin their new families. My mind turns to all those not with us to enjoy the day, grateful for the family life they gave us and the principles and joys they passed on which we in turn have shared with our children. Saturday will be a day which will shine in our hearts as a forever memory - speaking of the importance of family as the families join together to celebrate the wedding of 2 wonderful young people. All is well and all will be well!
Thank you so much for all yor texts, emails messages etc.... It is so lovely to hear from you and share a little of our excitement with you.
For all you young mums - what a joy it is to be part of your children's journeys and to be standing alongside them as they make forever promises and begin their new families. My mind turns to all those not with us to enjoy the day, grateful for the family life they gave us and the principles and joys they passed on which we in turn have shared with our children. Saturday will be a day which will shine in our hearts as a forever memory - speaking of the importance of family as the families join together to celebrate the wedding of 2 wonderful young people. All is well and all will be well!
Sunday, 22 June 2014
6 days to go........
So here we are in the week before the wedding. I have thought so often of this week and what it would feel like and now we are here. All is calm - I think. Chloe and Ed are here for the weekend and seem remarkably calm but excited. Both looking forward to their day. Our house is already full of wedding 'stuff' - not much room for people.
Unfortunately I am still being very sick which is such a nuisance and means that I am quite unreliable - as I may have my head in a bucket! Thankfully most things are done - it is just the flowers to be done this week and we can take our time. I am going to try and appreciate every moment of this week as I know how fast it will go. I am so glad we can make forever moments together. I am sure you can understand that in my quiet moments I reflect on how hard this would have been for everyone if I had not been here and I am so so thankful I am able to be here fully part of everything. What a privilidge!
We have also discovered recently that Paul has to have his gallbladder removed. This explains the terrible pain he has been having on and off for the last 2 years. We are relieved they have at last found a reason and that it can be sorted. He has an appointment with the consultant on Tuesday and hopefully will be able to book a time for the surgery. Poor Ben will then be carer to both his parents for a while!
The week looks a bit like this - with gaps for resting and unexpected 'bits and pieces' ( I am quite concerned about these abstract bits and pieces as I can't plan for them)
Monday - house tidying and bed making ready for the week ahead with my lovely sister
Tuesday - greenery obtaining for table decorations and resting in preparation for the week
Wednesday - collecting flowers and making up table arrangements, Chloe, Ed, Hilary and Kit arrive - Ed has list of jobs
Thursday - flower arranging in church and nails
Friday - marquee up, tandem to church, last wedding dress fitting, collecting my dress, rehearsal, table setting, church setting up, abstract bits and pieces, fish and chip supper here, Ed having a boys night at his dads,
Saturday - THE WEDDING! I am so looking forward to the morning of getting ready with bridesmaids, Ed's mum, aunts, hairdressers, make up lady, lots of giggling and laughter, singing and music...... The wedding is at 2pm followed by canapés and drinks ( hopefully in the sunshine), hog roast and salads, yummy puddings, speeches( must remember my tissues) cake cutting, live band, nibbles and ice cream maker...... And home by midnight!
Unfortunately I am still being very sick which is such a nuisance and means that I am quite unreliable - as I may have my head in a bucket! Thankfully most things are done - it is just the flowers to be done this week and we can take our time. I am going to try and appreciate every moment of this week as I know how fast it will go. I am so glad we can make forever moments together. I am sure you can understand that in my quiet moments I reflect on how hard this would have been for everyone if I had not been here and I am so so thankful I am able to be here fully part of everything. What a privilidge!
We have also discovered recently that Paul has to have his gallbladder removed. This explains the terrible pain he has been having on and off for the last 2 years. We are relieved they have at last found a reason and that it can be sorted. He has an appointment with the consultant on Tuesday and hopefully will be able to book a time for the surgery. Poor Ben will then be carer to both his parents for a while!
The week looks a bit like this - with gaps for resting and unexpected 'bits and pieces' ( I am quite concerned about these abstract bits and pieces as I can't plan for them)
Monday - house tidying and bed making ready for the week ahead with my lovely sister
Tuesday - greenery obtaining for table decorations and resting in preparation for the week
Wednesday - collecting flowers and making up table arrangements, Chloe, Ed, Hilary and Kit arrive - Ed has list of jobs
Thursday - flower arranging in church and nails
Friday - marquee up, tandem to church, last wedding dress fitting, collecting my dress, rehearsal, table setting, church setting up, abstract bits and pieces, fish and chip supper here, Ed having a boys night at his dads,
Saturday - THE WEDDING! I am so looking forward to the morning of getting ready with bridesmaids, Ed's mum, aunts, hairdressers, make up lady, lots of giggling and laughter, singing and music...... The wedding is at 2pm followed by canapés and drinks ( hopefully in the sunshine), hog roast and salads, yummy puddings, speeches( must remember my tissues) cake cutting, live band, nibbles and ice cream maker...... And home by midnight!
Monday, 16 June 2014
12 days to go!
Wow! Time is flying past so quickly. Ed and Chloe are working very hard finishing off all the bits and pieces. With so many guests it is a lot of bits and pieces. I am making sure we have everything written onto lists for next week. We have hairdressers booked, nails booked, make-up booked, flowers ordered, flower arrangers sorted, car booked, florist booked, caterers booked, marquee booked, hall booked, banns read, organist booked, vicar booked, weather booked, cake maker booked, singers booked, band booked, bell ringers sorted ( hopefully), bridesmaids dresses made, wedding dress fitted, suits bought, waistcoats purchased........ the list goes on! A few things are outstanding and will get done this week - we hope!
I am so proud of Chloe and Ed and the calm way they have been dealing with organising a wedding - while living in Kent and working very busy jobs.
I have been really struggling with sickness caused by the drugs I take for the autoimmune diseases I have. It is really hard to cope with being sick so often and feeling nauseaous all the time. It seems such a little thing but it is very wearing. So near to the wedding I am not keen to change anything and end up with more side effects. Cooking and planning food is very difficult and poor Paul often ends up cooking tea and me not eating it. I am going back to my lists of joy to focus on all that is good in my life rather than focusing on the negative things which so easily fill my mind.
We went to Savil on Saturday and amid the rain showers and saw the most beautiful roses. The perfume was fantastic especially after the rain. It was very quiet - people staying away because of the weather I think. What a joy to see such lovely gardens so peacefully.
This week - plenty of wedding bits and pieces, coffee with friends, bookstall planning and buying for our church holiday club, bible study, flowers and getting the house ready for next week when we have a full house of guests. Ben finishes his exams on Wednesday - hurrah! Anna has finished her first year at uni and is 1/5th a Dr! All is well!
Saturday, 7 June 2014
3 weeks
21 days to go .......
Yesterday I watched a few of the 70th anniversary celebrations of The D day landings mostly with tears streaming down my face. It is the thought of those boys, many as young as Ben, landing on the beaches so scared about what was going to happen next. Then having to push through the bodies of other young men to get to the beach and on to the fighting. So many have never really spoken of those days but have lived with their memories shaping their futures. So many lives lost so that I can enjoy the freedom I have today. So many mums at home living with the loss of their precious sons.
We had bible study yesterday and we are studying Deuteronomy, looking at the celebrations they had to remind them of what God had done. We got to discussing how important rememberance is and how we should remind each other what Jesus did for us when he went to the cross. It was the ultimate sacrifice one man who had done no wrong dying for us who have done so much wrong. Again a mother left to mourn the death of her son at the foot of the cross. It is good to remember.
This weekend - more wedding stuff. Ed's dad and partner coming to church for the reading of the banns and lunch with us. Chloe and Ed having a photoshoot practice. Some sorting of bits and pieces. Hair cut hopefully using my hat to get the right shape and style. Then next week blood tests, coffee with a friend, ordering wedding flowers, bible study and hoping to start getting the house ready for the people who will be staying in the wedding week. Little by little we are getting there.
Yesterday I watched a few of the 70th anniversary celebrations of The D day landings mostly with tears streaming down my face. It is the thought of those boys, many as young as Ben, landing on the beaches so scared about what was going to happen next. Then having to push through the bodies of other young men to get to the beach and on to the fighting. So many have never really spoken of those days but have lived with their memories shaping their futures. So many lives lost so that I can enjoy the freedom I have today. So many mums at home living with the loss of their precious sons.
We had bible study yesterday and we are studying Deuteronomy, looking at the celebrations they had to remind them of what God had done. We got to discussing how important rememberance is and how we should remind each other what Jesus did for us when he went to the cross. It was the ultimate sacrifice one man who had done no wrong dying for us who have done so much wrong. Again a mother left to mourn the death of her son at the foot of the cross. It is good to remember.
This weekend - more wedding stuff. Ed's dad and partner coming to church for the reading of the banns and lunch with us. Chloe and Ed having a photoshoot practice. Some sorting of bits and pieces. Hair cut hopefully using my hat to get the right shape and style. Then next week blood tests, coffee with a friend, ordering wedding flowers, bible study and hoping to start getting the house ready for the people who will be staying in the wedding week. Little by little we are getting there.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)