Days in the week leading up to THE wedding of the year....

So, at the end of May, my darling daughter got married to the lovely man she met in Australia four years ago.

Within weeks of their romantic engagement in Florance, we were swept up in a whirlwind of wedding planning. Where would it take place? When would it be? What type of wedding? All seemingly big decisions , which were made without fuss and quite quickly.

It would be a wedding from home, in the village church down the lane where brides have been married since the twelfth century, carrying on an ancient tradition.

And the reception would take place in a marquee in the field behind our cottage, thanks to the generosity of Ian and Sharon, our friends and next door neighbours ,who gave us the use of  their field.

At the beginning of the week, the marquee men arrived and quickly set to work in the sunshine

My darling mum,  known to most of us as Mama ,had arrived the day before , so while the marquee went up she had a grandstand seat to watch the proceedings.

And by the first evening , when the bride to be arrived home, in a car
full of important things - the dress, the shoes, the bunting, the orders of service, decorations, etc, she gasped with delight  as we sat in the garden with a bottle of prosecco to look at such an important feature of her wedding day.

What happened during the next few days are a blur. A busy blur of frenzied activity, laughter, frowns, goodwill , hard work , pulling together , and a real sense of friendship as we all went about doing what needed to be done for the big day.

Lucy's brothers Billy and Callum took a few days off from work to help, and Grace and Ellie, two of Lucy's bridesmaids were here for three days, working their socks off, as was Harry the bridegroom . On Friday Sarah and Emma the two other bridesmaids had arrived and they were all in the marquee dressing the tables, stocking up the bar, and doing a hundred and one jobs.

Lucy had already made 108 metres of bunting the week before, and by Friday afternoon, most things were in place.....

And yes, the posh loos had arrived!

 

 

 

Meanwhile Mama and my friend Dot had finished decorating the church with flowers.....

Then back in the kitchen, after making about 600 canapés, I sat down with Mama and my friend Eileen who'd arrived to pitch in to hull 60 pounds of strawberries....

And we found that when you're sitting down , chatting and having a glass of wine at the same time as hulling, the job doesn't seem too bad!

 

By now, we all were tired .It was time to get changed, and go down to the pub in the next village for a meal..and to celebrate my birthday and the wedding anniversary of Mr Thinking of the Days. That's one birthday and anniversary I won't forget in a hurry....being with our extended family - my most favourite and most loved people in the world and with friends, knowing the next day was going to be the biggest day in my daughter's life so far.

But before we made our way home ,, I received an unexpected surprise....a delicious and delightful looking cake made by Grace, who I've known since she was a few months old, and who will always be part of our family.

 

By then I was nearly in tears of love and gratitude, not just for the cake, but for everything. But I was also excited and apprehensive at to what tomorrow would bring . After all, torrential rain was forecast, would I sleep, would everything be ok? Would Lucy and Harry enjoy their big day?


And yes, you'll have to wait for pictures of the bride, the dress and the wedding shenanigans until the next blogpost....!