As I look out on to a cold and grey English day, it's hard to appreciate how gorgeous the weather was on Friday for my little sister's wedding, but gorgeous it was, and warm, with not a cloud in the sky - we were so lucky! The venue was pretty special too as they got married in Kew Gardens, which served as the most stunning backdrop. It was of course the reason behind the purchase of the vertiginous Red Shoes, and I obviously hadn't factored in the stability of such heels on grass, but I am happy to report no further broken ankles!
One incident we may choose to recount on my son's future wedding day however, is something he decided might be a good idea to try the night before the event. I awoke to find him standing by our bed, looking like he had been quite unwell in the night. His hair was plastered down, and he looked very sorry for himself. Closer inspection revealed that it wasn't actually sick, it was some sort of cream. His sister immediately denied all knowledge, as did he, so it took a little detective work to discover that he had smeared at least half the contents of a bottle of self-tanning lotion all over his head, and down one side of his face, as a deep orange tan became evident in the cold light of day. Further detective work revealed that his sister also had bright orange hands (quelle surprise!), as they had apparently wanted to try and dye his hair for the special day! After much scrubbing, and a couple of baths later, we managed to slightly tone him down. It turns out there is a reason that you must keep these types of products away from fair-hair and eyebrows, as it warns on the bottle... I am not sure my sister had envisaged green hair as part of their pink and green colour scheme, but luckily her nephew was happy to oblige!!
The bride looked gorgeous in her 1920's style dress, and the groom looked just as radiant (if not a little nervous!), and both were surprisingly composed! My father walked her "down the aisle" along with my daughter as bridesmaid, and my slightly green haired boy, and his one year old cousin as page boys. The baby crawled down the aisle ahead of his mum which was very sweet! After photographs and much Pimms and champagne on the lawn, we sat down to a wonderful meal looking out over the gardens, served to us by staff who couldn't possibly be more accommodating. One person may have slightly overindulged, was our daughter, who gave us a frightening insight into her teenage years after "inhaling" a gargantuan bowl of ice-cream, immediately followed by the entirety of her elderflower chocolate wedding favour! What followed was like watching a miniature drunk person as she staggered outside to have a "lie down" on a bench, followed by an unfortunate and swift redecoration of the famous flowerbeds (quickly remedied by a jug of water, but perhaps something we can remind her of on her special day too, depending on how those teenage years pan out)!
After the meal, we were driven around the gardens in a "train" bedecked with wedding ribbons which was a great touch! It's not often that you see places like this completely devoid of other people, and it was nice to take the weight off those heels for a little while, then it was back for a relaxed evening rounded off with bacon sandwiches!
After the intimate family affair the day before, the much larger reception took place at a nearby church hall the following evening, expertly (and rather hastily) decorated by her very talented family(!!). It's amazing how around 5,000 net curtains, bunting and Chinese lanterns can transform a place, add the all important ingredients of good friends, family, music and a hog roast, and a great night was had by all!
As young girls, we often imagined what our wedding days would be like, and I don't think I could have imagined a more perfect day for my little sister and her lovely (if not so new) husband. I am just so upset that having waited for this day for nearly 12 years, it's now all over and done with (which just means we will have to put pressure on my youngest sister and her other half not to wait quite so long)! Two down Dad, one to go!
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