A wild, wet Waterford wedding
So this weekend, then, saw our lovely mates JD and his beautiful girlfriend E, finally tie the knot. We left early fearing the floods and were right to worry as roads were closed, diversions in place where roads had flooded, or worse, collapsed due to the heavy rain.
No matter, we made it in time to the hotel, only to find out that check-in wasn’t until 2pm. Oops. The wedding was at 2pm and we’d tumbled out of bed straight into the car that morning. A small amount of panic set in as I imagined us, still in our joggy bottoms and sticky-up hair, sitting red-faced in the front pew. Still, I’m a firm believer in a bit of charm (I’m a lover not a fighter), and a large amount of sweet talking and general sucking up saw us happily installed in our monster room with a good hour to spare (they knew the Englishes were in town – they gave us the biggest room, furthest away from everyone else).
Scrubbed (#2 took full advantage of the complimentary shower cap: ‘look, I’m a dinner lady!’), anointed and dressed in our finest, then, we made our way to the bar where the groom was already putting in some serious elbow action. We all managed to get to the church in plenty of time though. And what a beauty it was – perched high on the hill above a grey and brooding sea.
Ten minutes before the service, though, the rain went away and the sun came out. Surely a good omen, whatever your beliefs. The wedding was amazing. You know that bit where everyone cranes to get a glimse of the bride as she walks down the aisle? Well, she was just breathtakingly beautiful. I snuck a peak at JD’s face and he was absolutely entranced. JD has a musical family and his sister G’s boyfriend played the flute and the guitar as well as singing during the service. My goose bumps had goose bumps, dear reader, it was gorgeous. A happy crowd, we wandered blinking into the sun for photos and the like, before heading back to the hotel for Rosé Champagne aplenty. Now as you know, I struggle with the issue of trying to respect people’s privacy whilst being desperate to give you a glimpse of the action, so I’ll just give you a teeny view of the bride (well, you have to, don’t you). Isn’t she just beautiful?:
The new Mr and Mrs D’s beautiful little daughter toddled around looking utterly divine:
and some very sweet speeches followed: ‘everyone told me I should make it clear right from the beginning who’s the boss in our relationship’, JD said, bringing himself up to his full height in a very manly fashion, ‘so I’d just like to say, darling….. you’re the boss’.
Later, Team English strutted our funky stuff on the dance floor, waiting for the new Mr and Mrs D to get the sloppy stuff over and done with first, naturally. The music (again, JD’s sister’s boyfriend – this time with his entire band) was absolutely amazing – a great mix of ‘fiddly diddly’ music, as Hubby calls it, and contemporary stuff too. The groom’s three lovely sisters soon had everyone up on their feet:
and we danced until our feet were sore (the smalls gettin’ down with the happily sozzled groom was a highlight for me). Actually, the smalls made Hubby and I very happy, chatting politely with people, joining in the banter and generally behaving very well. At one stage I caught a glimse of #1 in the buffet room, deep in conversation with D, one of JD’s lovely sisters. They were laughing and chatting and I felt suddenly terribly proud of my little man. Ah, we had fun… we chatted with old friends, made some new ones, and collapsed exhausted into bed just after midnight. . Apparently they were still hard at it long into the early hours, too. Ah, there’s nothing like a good Irish wedding.
So here’s to the new Mr and Mrs D, and the beautiful little E. May they lead long and happy lives together. Cheers!
And congratulations on getting home safely, too. We live halfway up a mountain and WE were flooded. It’s getting ridiculous.
“I have often heard it said from me Father and me Mother,
That goin’ to a weddin’ is the makings of another…”
Look out #1!!!!!
Go Team English!
My son got married in Gloucester last July on the weekend that Gloucester flooded. It was a truly amazing event!
I love weddings! Drinks all round!
Tara: You’re too kind. Thank Gordon there were no piccies of that bit – would have broken the lens! I bumped into the best man in the lobby looking like total crap. He even offered me the use of his bathroom if we were desperate. I obviously looked THAT bad!! x
Kate: Too right, it was fab. And rain definitely didn’t stop play, either in Waterford or Gloucester by the sounds of it.
Jay: Yes, I can just about tolerate them being little sods at home as long as they’re nice to people when we’re out! I love weddings too…checking out what everyone’s wearing… all the dancing and chatting… Ooh and the pink bubbly was just fab *sigh*
Wee One: Great idea! I must ask DBM too – she’s copywritten her photos x