Our Wedding Day

This post first appeared on Modern Mummy's blog a couple of years ago, but seeing as yesterday was our fifth wedding anniversary, I thought it would be nice to share it again.

I've STILL not got round to getting the photos printed into an album but I hope I will...one day! 

Kieran and I had been together for 8 years when we got married, plus we had a 9 month old son. We both decided very early on that we wanted our wedding day to be relaxed, and having a baby to look after meant that we couldn't get too hung up on all the preparations anyway! We wanted the day to be special (who doesn't?!) and fun. Oh, and Kieran said it HAD to be in South London, as he gets a nose bleed if he goes 'up North'!

So we got married at Camberwell Registry Office, and had the reception at The Prince Regent pub in Herne Hill. We arranged for a vintage double-decker bus to collect our guests at London Bridge station, drop them off in Camberwell and then take us all on to Herne Hill. Well, that was plan but the bus was very old, and it had a few problems starting so there was a mad dash for taxis at London Bridge. Luckily the bus was soon fixed and it joined us after the ceremony to take us on to the pub. Phew!

We wanted our wedding to have lots of personal touches, and we started with the invitations. We made these ourselves by photographing a couple of scaled people (I'm a modelmaker by day) painted to look like us (?) We had a 'Save the Date' card, and one invitation for the ceremony and lunch, and another for the evening reception.

Our friends are really important to us - I think living in London, where you get lots of people from all over the place, friends often become more like family. We were touched that so many of our friends wanted to be involved in the organisation and preparations. Liz made the cake, a delicious and HUGE carrot and orange cake; Kate made the cheese biscuits, 'A' and 'K' ones, as well as coming to Covent Garden Flower Market with my brother and I to buy as many orange flowers as we could! Lisa sorted out the rings for us, Jo found my beautiful bracelet, and Marc was the DJ. Hannah read after the ceremony, organised my hen do and her mum made my bouquet, while Ren helped me find the dress and gave invaluable advice. (Something I learned by myself though: don't wear big black Primark pants when you plan to try on wedding dresses!)

I had originally planned for my friend Beth's mum to make my dress, but while out shopping for the fabric Ren persuaded (pestered) me to try on some instead. I was not keen on this as a.) I am not really one for big, fussy dresses and b.) I had big, black Primark pants on. However, we found ourselves in a fancy shop with a very helpful assistant. I scanned the dresses and picked the plainest, most simple dress so that I could try it on quickly and then get out. I was not expecting to like it, let alone love it but... it was perfect! It was also in the sale and the only one they had left was my size. Even more perfect! I had no idea what a Lanvin dress was at the time, only that I had just bought one for more money than I had ever planned to spend. Oops! (The back of the dress is stunning as it falls from the shoulder blades into a low 'V' but you'll have to take my word for it as I can't find any pictures of my behind!)

It was a fantastic day with all our friends and close family around us - some came from France, most came from South London and my brother flew in from Australia to give me away. Poor little Lewis had a high temperature that day and really wasn't himself but he was happy enough with cuddles from Nana Daisy and Kieran and I were able to spend the night in a hotel - my first night ever away from my baby!

We have so many great photos from the day that I'll let them do the talking. Here is the day in snapshots:

 

 

 

I think this one needs explaining - we were doing Baby Led Weaning and I was sitting next to Lewis. I didn't want to take any chances with his mucky hands and my dress so I put this poncho on while he ate!

Date: 09.10.10

Venue: Camberwell Registry Office and The Prince Regent Pub, Herne Hill

Walked down the aisle by: My brother

Guests: 50 for the ceremony and lunch, 50 more for the evening reception

1st Dance: You are the Sunshine of My Life by Stevie Wonder

Last Dance: Finally by Kings of Tomorrow

Wedding night: Hilton Docklands, London

Honeymoon: a week in Cornwall (with the boy!)

So, five years married, nearly 14 years together, 2 children, 1 cat and 12 fish later... We've had lots of highs, a few lows and we're definitely more tired but I wouldn't change anything for the world! I love you Mr Tobin x