I found it hard to sleep in Wellington. The room was upstairs and it was pretty humid and warm so I kept waking up all night long. I woke up at 6am and couldn't get back to sleep.
So at 7 I got dressed and went downstairs. We left at about 8am to drive to Hawkesbury where the hotel was we were staying in that night. Hawkesbury was about a 4 hour drive from Wellington.
We arrived in Hawkesbury in enough time to get lunch before getting changed and driving the 40 minutes from the hotel to the place the wedding would be held. The only restaurant anywhere near was the Zeller's store restaurant. At this point I didn't care cause I was pretty hungry.
We left at 2 to give us enough time to get there. We arrived at the Beantown Ranch to be plesantly surprised at the locale. It was absolutely stunning place. It was in a gorgeous woodsy area and they had a reception hall which was ranch style. There was a chapel and then a HUGE pond. In the center of the pond is an island which you can get to from a bridge. Then there was a pavillion on that side of the pond as well. A horse and carriage like thing takes the guests from the chapel to the pavillion where the ceremony was actually held.
At the back of the pavillion there is huge windows and a giant arch doorway which allows you to see the pond behind the pavillion. The groomsmen entered the pavillion and took their places and then the chapel bell announced the arrival of the bride and her bridesmaids in a horse drawn carriage.
The ceremony was casual but lovely. A friend of the bride played guitar and sang "I Could Not Ask For More". It was SO good and I don't think there was a dry eye in the house. (I took a video clip of it. There are also pictures of the wedding which you can see if you click the title of this entry) After the ceremony ended the bride and groom walked out of the pavillion and they were wisked away for a short horse and carriage ride around the facility to give them a couple of private moments before having the rest of their pictures taken.
They took pictures of the bride and groom with all the assembled guests and then brought out cheese, fruit and veggie trays and opened the bar. Unfortunately I didn't know it was a cash bar so I came unprepared and had NO cash. Auntie Janet bought me a couple of drinks but I felt bad for not having any money with me.
The reception was back in the hall on the other side of the pond. We were once again shuttled over with the horse and carriage. The hall wasn't overly huge and seemed to JUST fit all the guests. There was no room for a dance floor since the tables took up all the space.
For dinner we had a garden salad, roast chicken with wild rice and veggies and then for a dessert ice cream with a candy coated shell and fresh fruit.
The speeches were short and sweet and then everyone was left to wonder where the dancing was going to be. At this point a member of the staff announced that the bride and groom would be having their first dance on the island in the centre of the pond! The facility staff had already placed brown paper bags with a single tealight on the shore circling the pond and had a spotlight on the island. So everyone was asked to step outside for the first dance.
The danced to "I Can't Help Falling in Love with You" and it was beautiful because by this point it was dusk.
After the dance was over the staff had already changed the reception hall to make a dance floor and redecorated the room with new centerpieces. On the outside of the building was a covered porch where they set up a series of tables from which they served coffee, tea, sandwiches, pickles, squares and cookies at midnight.
They did not have a bouquet or garter toss. Which I totally don't mind. I hate that stupid tradition anyway.
I realized by being at this wedding that I have a whole huge family that I didn't even know. That whole Alexander family is such a tight-knit group I really feel like all these years I've missed out. Some of my cousins remembered me but most of them were too young the last time they saw me to remember me. It was a little sad cause in some ways I didn't quite fit in even though everyone tried to make me feel I did.
It was also hard because I had no one to dance to when slow songs came on. Everyone at the table I sat at got up to dance then I was all alone there by myself. That is one of the reasons I hate going to weddings cause I ALWAYS end up there alone. All my cousins have boyfriends and girlfriends so I was really an oddity especially at the age of 28. I tried not to let it show that I was sad, I put on a big smile and just kept taking pictures. I guess after all this time that is what I'm good at. At least my camera is good for hiding.
Auntie Janet, Jacques and I stayed until 12:45 and then headed back to the hotel cause we knew we had a VERY LONG drive ahead of us tomorrow.
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