Moving on

Cherryfudge

Thank you everyone - we did enjoy ourselves! @Sun_Addict, that sounds original and fun!

Everything went to plan, though there was a huge surprise - the couple have been officially married over a year! Very few people were in on the secret (which is the best way to keep it secret) so after the ceremony there was no shortage of conversation. Of course the marriage meant there was no need of a registrar, so the mums officiated up front, succeeded by the bride's flamboyant siblings, and everyone did an impressive job.

My outfit worked well: most of the event was held indoors but there were some planned outdoor photo opportunities (confetti, sparklers, group photo) so I was glad of the wrap I'd brought though it wasn't needed indoors. It was cold, windy and rainy! However the courtyard where the outdoor things took place was sheltered from the worst of the weather and was pretty and nicely lit so I can see why they went ahead with those things.

The food was seriously good: all credit to the bride who chose the menu and the venue for spot-on skills.

Having planned to avoid as much of the dancing as possible, I was on the floor from the moment the bride and groom finished their first dance and didn't stop till I saw Auntie looking tired. Given that she's 83 and dances like a good 'un, I thought it best to stop when she looked as though she needed to finish! It was gone ten by then. I didn't dance all the time though - there were a lot of light sticks involved so I had any number of light sabre battles with N, who at 3 was one of the youngest.

As it was a family wedding, we had lots of catching up to do, some of which continued over coffee this morning. My SiL looked absolutely stunning, but has has had problems due to complications of an op earlier in the year. D and E came despite E still recovering from flu. She had to leave part way through the dancing, but she was bright again by this morning. We also met DH's cousin and her husband whose house we borrowed in September. Lovely to see them again though sad that her parents are no longer able to cope with travel. They seem to be being drawn more into the wider family which is great: she's an only child and I think it helps to have people with whom you can reminisce. 

When J and L were about to leave - with 80 miles or so to drive and a young baby - my SiL suggested she help herself to some of the floral arch as there was no use for the flowers afterwards and it was a shame to waste them. J got a beautiful bouquet and suggested I did the same which I did (with permission). This morning when the venue was being cleared, my SiL suggested we call in to the venue on the way home to see if there were still some left. I put my foot down and told DH and Auntie that I wanted to collect more if available, and when we got there, Auntie came in with me, saying all the time that they would all have been taken down. They were, but they were in boxes at the back and we got permission to take what we wanted. Auntie got a lovely bunch and was very happy with them and I got a big armful which are now in a bucket, reviving.

For those who are interested in these things, weddings nowadays often seem to have lots of novelty features and this one included a magician (very skilled card tricks as he wove his way among the groups of guests), a pick-and-mix table, sparklers photoshoot after dark, yodelling (some of the family is Swiss!), a hot chocolate table with lots of toppings, a late-night buffet, two stations where you could write messages on a board or on hearts, the light sticks... possibly more, I don't remember now. There was a planned stunt for the children to hide squeaky pig toys in people's pockets, but I think the children took more home than they hid. They were mostly too young to understand.

Other than that, we've eaten out for lunches but in a money saving way: supermarkets duly raided! That ended up as a bigger spend because it occurred to me to look for dried beans that we can't get in our local supermarket, and I also bought a gigantic bag of almonds half price. Even DH won't get through those in too short a time!

Today was very rainy so we dropped Auntie back at hers then drove home in a lot of spray which turned into fog as we crossed the Pennines but cleared as we went up the A1. Yorkshire even had some blue sky!

Watty1

Loved all the details. Sounds wonderful 

rtandon27

Sounds like you had a lot of fun!

ladybird1106

So glad you had a fab time and impressed with you giving the wedding displays a second home. 

Love 🐞

itsthelittlethings

Sounds like a great day!

Nelliegrace

Wicksteed Park did a wonderful reception for DD and SIL at very short notice when the original venue let them down. The food was excellent and there were rides on the Victorian Carousel between the meal and the dancing. 

Cherryfudge

Nelliegrace said:

Wicksteed Park did a wonderful reception for DD and SIL at very short notice when the original venue let them down. The food was excellent and there were rides on the Victorian Carousel between the meal and the dancing. 

I bet that was fun! There's something about those traditional fairground attractions that's very appealing - and the accompanying music too.