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.

Cherryfudge

I haven't yet mapped out the week so here goes:

Monday work 5pm
Tuesday childcare all day
Wednesday work 5pm, church group later
Thursday church cleaning then work 5pm
Friday work 5pm
Saturday
Sunday

That all looks achievable! I went for a run this morning (c25k week 4 run 2) so I'd like to fit another one in on Wednesday or Thursday, and again a couple of days later.

I've paid the credit card up to date but there are two pending payments so I need to go back later. One of them is quite funny (depending on your sense of humour, perhaps): those of us who were staying in the same hotel gathered for breakfast yesterday. We usually book and pay for breakfasts when we book in but this hotel didn't run that system. They asked us to pay after we'd eaten. There were effectively four parties of us there but D and E just got coffee and paid up front. They joined us on our table with Auntie. The next table was A, H and the girls. When the girls had finished they disappeared and so did DH - reports were that they'd found a one-armed bandit and DH was showing them how to 'play' (no money, thankfully: the girls are at the stage where pressing buttons is fun). Apparently, he explained to them that you have to be grown up to press a certain button, so every time they wanted it pressed, they got him to do it!

This gave the rest of us more time to chat, but eventually A and H went to find their children and the rest of us wandered off. The member of staff hurried over to the till and we realised we had all nearly walked off without paying. Hence the pending payment on my credit card.

It wasn't too expensive as the cappuccinos were already paid and children eat for free. A has offered to settle with me, but not before his brother posted him a 'dine and ditch' message on the family WhatsApp.  

Today, I have a parcel to collect. Clearing the credit card, there were rather too many payments to V1nted, though mostly that was to do with getting an outfit for the wedding. I'm going to offer J some shoes that I bought but I doubt they are her style, and may join others that I intend to sell. I've received the refund for the item that the seller couldn't post and sorted out what I paid for which item so I have an idea what to charge.

Other than that, I should clean the fridge and make some soup, though the soup might have to wait depending on how the rest goes.

ladybird1106

Sounds like you had a lovely weekend making lots of happy memories.
love 🐞

Cherryfudge

The fridge and soup didn't get done, but I've done three hours of paid work and am now thinking ahead to tomorrow. I made Coronation Chick peas with sweet potato for lunch today so the same again for tomorrow. I've collected my parcel and done a small amount of grocery shopping plus a gift for someone.

I've arranged coffee at mine tomorrow with a friend from the Tuesday group: mustn't forget to tell DH!