Family & Friends

After the family had all feasted on their six course meal we rolled ourselves outside to have photos taken before starting the dancing. We'd arranged for hog roast buffet to be served for the evening guests and i'm told it was very very good but personally, I couldn't eat another morsel after the formal dinner! The sun was causing some problems for our photographer but every time a cloud came over we all smiled and got the photos taken. These are a mixture of family and friend shots...

Our reception pt.1 (the feasting part!)

The country club we held our reception at was so beautiful and the staff were brilliant. The maitre d' organised his staff and our guests in such a low-key professional way that we didn't really notice anything going wrong. We kept the first part of the reception for just family and friends joined for the second part. The dining room was gorgeous and the food was so great I think I ate a little too much for a corseted bride!

Festive loungewear

Does anybody else come home from work, realise they have a night in and reach for the comfy PJs instead of actual clothes? It can't just be me surely? For those of you who are done with adulting for the day at 6pm, here are my best picks of festive PJs this season: 

Left to right: Joules / Fat Face / White Stuff / FF Clothing

Our ceremony

It went by in a flash. Seriously. One second I was arriving outside the Church and the next it was time to walk down the aisle and everything kept rolling along and I felt swept along on the tide. It was a great feeling though. After all of the months of planning and stressing over details, the day itself seemed to be taking care of itself (obviously with a lot help from family and friends!). It was such an intimate ceremony which was conducted by my parent's friend (who is a minister and has known me since I was a baby). I walked down the aisle on my daddy's arm to Yiruma 'River Flows in You' and we signed the register to Einaudi 'I Giorni' - perfection. 

My beautiful flowers

How cute are my flower girls?!

My handsome pageboy doing an awesome job

That joy mixed with my dad's 'trying not to look sad about giving his daughter away' face

You may kiss your bride!

My brother doing a reading

My mum witnessing our register signing (in a kick-ass hat might I add)

Signed, sealed, delivered

Leaving the Church an hour later as man and wife!

Our wedding : before we said "I do"

Our ceremony was at 1pm on the big day giving us plenty of time to prepare and beautify ourselves! I woke up around 7.30am (after an almost sleepless night) and had a leisurely breakfast with my niece and dad. My hairdresser arrived at 9am and my hair and nails were started...

I sort of imagined lots of people around on the morning of the wedding. What I failed to realise was that they all had to get ready too! So I did my own make-up on the floor of my parents' spare room and listened to some worship music. Final bridesmaid arrived and they got me into my dress - then the nerves really started to flood in! We had some first look photos with my dad and were on our way to the church. The morning had flown by and I felt like I was being carried on a stream of people moving me from one place to the next! 

Now for some before the ceremony photos...

The walk down the aisle felt so short, it wasn't long before I had to let go of my dad's arm and stand at the altar with the entire room looking at us *nerves*

Mango & Apple Smoothie

So i'll start with a confession and then we can all move on from there...I'm lazy in the kitchen. No, I know you're shaking your head, but really I am.

We got given a blender for our wedding and since then i've failed at making salsa (it was more like soup) and tried to make smoothies from frozen fruits which just turned out to be really sour. Not good. Husband is disappointed to say the least.

On my weekly wander around Aldi (because i'm cheap and not going to spend a fortune on expensive food), I found mangos. Hmm...they're exotic I'll buy them. But being so cheap I then had to use them and not just ignore them on the counter until they died a miserable fruit death and got chucked out.

Then the blender caught my eye. Ah ha! I shall blend the mangos. If Jamba Juice do it, so can I! Guys, it was amazing...

Foodie bloggers share a recipe. I won't be patronising here but I'll tell you how to make your own awesome smoothie. Chuck a mango, an apple, handful of ice cubes and a half cup of milk in your blender. Press the button. 

Is your mouth watering yet? Go forth and blend!