A little bit of background...

The proposal was soooo romantic. Half way up the River Seine, a gentle rowboat, a ring... well, a girl can dream! It was actually in a restaurant in Monmouth when I mentioned (for the umpteenth time) that we really ought to get married, and Guy said 'maybe we should'.

And that was it.

'Maybe We Should'. Not exactly the most romantic of moments, especially as I immediately fell off my chair and choked while hissing WHAT? and was then told to sssshhh as people were looking, but as it was most definitely the only proposal I was going to get, I took it…

On the Saturday before Christmas a black cat ran across the road in front of my car (it's ok, well in front, he was quite safe) which is a Good Omen so I bought a lottery ticket. Zilch. Zippo. Nothing. On the Monday (was that Christmas Eve, I can't remember?) I had this truly weird feeling that there would be a dress at the local second hand dress agency. Especially weird as I hadn't even been there in three years... So on the first day it opened, the day after Boxing day I went to look, in my lunch hour. I asked if they had any beaded dresses and they showed me to a rail of black ones. I explained it was to be my wedding dress, the helpful lady fished around at the back and, bingo, there it was!

Cream silk, smothered in tiny pearl beads, fitting like a glove. Four times over budget but, hey, it ticked all the other boxes...

Later I told Guy I had my outfit and that it was a trouser suit covered in red flowers...

He believed me.

So we're all set for the wedding - Friday 21st July 2006 at Castell Coch, just north of Cardiff in South Wales. We're having a tiny wedding (about 15 of us) on the Friday at the Castell, followed by lunch in a marquee in the garden at home which we'll prepare ourselves. Then a HUGE party on Saturday 22nd for all of our friends to come - we figure that's about 150 people... it's going to be some party!