More Wedding Pictures

At the church - Adam, Joel, Jeff, Blake & our Joel

Natalie's Dad, me, my sister, my aunt, Natalie's brother & girlfriend - and you know who

Dale, his brother & Mom - My Mom & Dad and Bernice

Maggie, me & Auntie Lydia - My Mom & Dad

Dale, me, Shelley & Bernice - Adam, Joel & Dale

Wedding Photos

I know, I know, this could get to be too much - but these are fantastic. They are a sneak preview from the photographer. Enjoy!

And here is the photographer's website - http://gillianottaway.blogspot.com/

Adam & Natalie's Wedding

What a fabulous wedding! It is definitely the best wedding I have ever been to. And apparently I wasn't the only one to shed a few tears when Natalie came down the aisle! I just wish I could remember all the wonderful things that were said and all the delightful feelings and emotions. The ceremony was truly inspirational with so much thought and caring put into it by our Reverend Maggie. All in the wedding party looked so sharp - and young! The music was beautiful - with a very talented soloist and two equally talented pianists. Wow!

The cars were such a treat on loan from a very special person. And we are anxiously awaiting the photos from the official photographer. In the meantime, these will have to do.

We went directly to the house after Church, where most of the guests got to relax and enjoy the scenery and some very delicious appetizers while the wedding party and the families had photos done. And then came the champagne, which continued for the rest of the evening along with the lovely soloist and her accompanist.

Afterwards we were all seated in the Marquis for a very special dinner.

Click here to download a copy of the menu

I would also like to say a huge thanks to Burt for the use of his lovely home and the exquisite view, which was such a wonderful background for the decorations and all the beautiful flower arrangements that were done by Natalie's Mom Elizabeth. Hopefully you can see some of them in the photos.

The speeches were all so wonderful and from the heart. Dale's was excellent, but hats off to Adam for his. Between them and Natalie's Mom and Dad, tears were again flowing freely. It was delightful. Then of course the cutting of the cake and just in case you had a sweet-tooth, you could belly-up to the chocolate fondue. Yum!

Next on the agenda was Adam and Natalie's first dance then Natalie with her Dad and then we all got our turn and got in a couple of good hours of dancing and partying. After all the guests had left, a few of us including some of the wedding party, sat around and polished off a few more glasses of champagne for the road. All-in-all, it was a great wedding.

Sunday was lovely again with most of the wedding guests joining Adam and Natalie for brunch at the Kingfisher. Another gourmet feast. All the dieting to get into the dress - out the window! It was a great venue for many of the guests to say farewell to Adam and Natalie as they headed home - both near and far. I also found that it was a nice way to slow down after the busyness of the day before.

So now we are catching up on some much needed rest and Adam and Natalie are getting ready to head off on their honeymoon. Thanks for all your greetings and good wishes.

Take care and ttys.

Love,

Laurel

Pre-Wedding

Hi all,

I meant to get this out sooner, but have been too busy enjoying the preparations and visiting pre-wedding. We are so thankful to have arrived as planned, with the ash clouds stopping flights in Ireland and Scotland while we were still in Heathrow. After that we were still saying our prayers as Jeff still had to get here from Cairo via Amsterdam, Nicole from Switzerland and the rest of Natalie's relatives from the UK. As it turned out, everyone made it except for one Bridesmaid but that was because of a family crisis.

We started on the social circuit as soon as we arrived, catching up with friends and relatives and doing what we could to help out with wedding preparations - which wasn't much as Natalie and her Mom Elizabeth had everything under control. Dale got the Motorhome out and cleaned up then putting the wings on his airplane was his next priority. I did get down to Nanaimo on Friday with Adam and Natalie to get her a cute little outfit for their honeymoon, as well as a purple satin guest book and a few other last minute items, while Dale got his first flights in.

We are still under the effects of the time change, but the good part is that I am up and at the gym by 6:30am every other day with Mom. We are also getting in some early morning walks. It has been a bit chilly for me, but at least that does keep one walking quickly to keep warm.

Mother's Day was lovely. 10 of us went to Monte Cristo's for lunch after church to celebrate, including of course Dale's Mom and my Mom and Dad, Auntie Lydia and Uncle Mac, Bob and Adam and Natalie.

Monday had Adam and Natalie and Dale and I out on the golf course. You would never believe that they were getting married on Saturday - Natalie was so calm. My Dad picked Joel up at the ferry and we all went out for Sushi again - the Ichi Ban being a favourite of Adam and Natalie.

Tuesday was practise day for my hair while the guys hit the golf course. Amazingly my hair held its curl for two days, so I had no fear of it falling out on Saturday. Since I was downtown I just dropped into a couple of favourite stores and came back with a few things that I probably didn't need, but it was lovely to find clothes that fit and suited me.

Thursday we toured the local brewery with several of the out-of-towners and sampled a couple of their brews. Afterwards we were in fine form to head over to Burt's to set up tables and chairs for the wedding. The rehearsal went well on Friday (after the guys managed to fit in yet another game of golf). As soon as the processional started I got a bit teary, but I think I will get through it well enough. We went out to the Black Fin Pub afterwards with the whole gang. There were too many of us to fit at one table so we had an adults table and the kids table - that would be all those under 30. Jeff ordered champagne all around as usual and kept us all in fine form.

Things were very calm for us on Saturday with Mom and I getting our hair done and lots of time to get ready for the big event. I had Dale's Mom's outfit all pressed and ready for her to wear and the staff at the nursing home were wonderful and got her all ready for Bob to pick up.

And now I will leave you in suspense about the wedding as I await a few pictures to send . . .

Kouklia

Such a busy week. Spring is such a wonderful time for walks and spring flowers. I remember to bring my camera on most walks, but I am still unable to name all of the flowers we have found. Anyway, here are a couple more pictures for you to enjoy, including a couple of the Asprokremnos Dam, which has a lovely amount of water in it at present.

We did have an adventure the other day in the town of Paphos. As you may know from previous commentaries, it is the largest centre near us - some say approximately 60,000 people. Much bigger than Kouklia, which is around 700 souls. So, apparently there is a cinema in Paphos. But it is a well hidden little gem and unless you know the approximate whereabouts, you will not find it. What you must do is get close to where you think it is according to all the very confusing directions you get from the locals (no expats have found it yet), then sneak up on it. As it was, the heavens had finished emptying their buckets for about an hour when we started our search. We were able to circle the block and get as close as we could by car, then off we started on our trek. There were a couple of small signs outside the building, but not by any visible means of entry. When we finally got almost the whole way round we decided that the big awning labeled 'Luna Park' must at least lead to it or to someone who could give us more directions. Tah dah! There at the end of a corridor that housed little shops and cafes, was 'The' cinema. We were finally going to get to see 'Alice in Wonderland' with Johnny Depp. (We were originally going to go to Lemesos, but it disappeared off their website before we knew what was happening. At least Paphos is closer, but sorry Norma, no 3D) Our next concern was that since it was an early show, the theatre would be packed with children. Had I thought about how difficult it was to find, I would possibly have thought that of course, no one else had found it - so sure enough the five of us sat 20 rows away from the other five tweens that were there. It was a good movie, but a bit dark - do not take any young children as there were a couple of nightmare inducing scenes. And of course, lots of time to get more popcorn during the intermission.

Sunday brunch was also worth mentioning. Mandria is a little village about five minutes away from us with several good restaurants. We have been to this one in particular before, sorry - too long a name to remember - and it has always been good, but Sunday brunch was fabulous. It was a real mix of English and Cypriot food and the best Yorkshire Puddings I have ever had. It was a well stocked and very fresh looking buffet and included several lovely desserts as well. On the way home, I decided to finally drive up through Kouklia to Archimandrita, to finally get a close-up look at the windmill farm they have been installing as of late. Truck loads of enormous parts are always passing by, so I was most curious as to which section went where. The name of the company is Vespas if you are interested. It was well worth the drive.

You are now caught up. We are looking forward to seeing everyone soon. We are so excited about Adam and Natalie's wedding and crossing our fingers that no more volcanoes erupt between now and then, so everyone makes it. Wish we could have everyone there, but the kids have decreed that it is to small and family only. Feel free to email any thoughts and wishes though, as I am sure they would love to hear from everyone.

Take care and bye for now.

Love,

Laurel