At last, I’ve put up a gallery of pictures my nephew, Andrew MacDonald, took at my wedding.
I’ve been wrestling with getting this post up, partly because I feel like I should try to describe the day, or share our ceremony and vows.
But I’m not going to. It was a space, a moment. And it was ours. Lots of people I love couldn’t be there, but the Internet can’t fix that.
My mum, on the other hand, stayed up late a night or two after it was all over and wrote a wee diary about the event. This is just one more giant feather in her cap, because she’s the one who organised the whole event. I could never thank her enough for the perfect day we had.
So, without further ado, here’s a link to the photos:
And here’s my mum’s account of the story:
Joan’s Journal of Hamish & Craig’s Wedding
December 28, 2010
It was too bad the weather turned so nasty yesterday as the day went on — which had Craig commenting that at least it made it “a white wedding”! Ian delivered Hamish & Craig to the Inns on Great George around 1 p.m., where they took their overnight things and changed into their wedding clothes — new hand-made MacDonald and Cameron kilts and “all the “go-withs” — and met up with us at The Loft at 2:30 p.m. We then hooked the laptop up to Skype to include Craig’s family members who had gathered together in Stirling (Scotland) to see the ceremony. Before the formal ceremony, Craig and Hamish had us share a drink of prosecco — like champagne but with a bit more fizz and a nicer flavour.
Everything went without a hitch and the soft lighting and dozens of little candles lit the place perfectly. Seven covered chairs with dark fabric and burgundy chiffon ribbons around them were set up in a semi-circle in the far corner of the room facing where the ceremony took place. Hamish had also made what looked like a little program booklet for everyone, but was lovely romantic readings. The “service” (non-religious) and vows were written by Hamish and Craig, other than the required words for the marriage vows, and they exchanged silver wedding bands they had hand-crafted for each other. Both of them and Ian and Ellen, who read quotes from relevant pieces of their own choice, got a bit choked up and I think we were all a bit weepy when it was over (including our only non-family guests and best friends, Rob and Jean Robinson).
After the ceremony, we went downstairs to 42nd Street Lounge for some picture-taking and a toast, with the grooms drinking out of the quaich cup I had bought them for that purpose. We toasted with a dram of single malt scotch with a splash of water — I always said I hated whiskey, but it was actually quite nice. Then we went back upstairs for a fantastic dinner, with more wine and toasts. Then back down to 42nd Street Lounge while they dismantled the dinner table, etc., for the Open House. We started dinner about 4:45 p.m. with the idea we would be finished 6 p.m. — wrong, we were just finishing up around 7 p.m., the time the Open House was planned to begin.
Fortunately, there were no patrons in the Lounge, and about 7:10 p.m. Hamish’s oldest friend here — Tina Mill (the person assigned to show him around school his first day in January 1982) and her sister Lana arrived, immediately followed by our whole Trivia gang en masse, which pretty well filled the Lounge. With drinks in hand, very shortly after we went back upstairs to The Loft and the party began with most people coming and staying for the evening — we finally got everyone out by about midnight — by then it was mostly the friends from Ian’s teen-age years, who are a bit like our trivia gang, hang out together any chance they can, especially since some of them are just home for the holidays, and with whom Hamish has become friends over the years too.
It really was a totally magic day, full of emotion and love — the room added to the magic with the candles and very dim, soft, lighting, and Hamish and Craig had put together a CD of appropriate music for the occasion — which soon faded away as the conversation level rose.
Regardless of the dreadful weather, the room was soon filled with people who didn’t seem to have trouble interacting among themselves and with “the grooms” and everyone seemed so happy to be sharing the event — some meeting Craig for the first time, and some meeting Ian and Ellen and Andrew (grandson/photographer) for the first time also.
The tartan trimmed wedding cake was lovely — also trimmed with edible dark red roses that we thought at first were real, they were so perfect. The top tier was taken off before they cut the cake, for the boys to take back to Craig’s family in Stirling, where they will be staying over New Year’s en route back to Wick. The cake was dark, rum-soaked(!) fruit cake with marzipan in the middle and covered with smooth fondant icing and everyone commented on how delicious it was.
Also commented on was the table centrepiece of purple and white heather, thistles, evergreens, holly, and three lovely yellow roses, with two tall white candles in the middle. The men’s boutonnieres were small sprigs of thistle and heather and Ellen and I had a white and pink orchid with sprig of white heather.
We had booked a room for the newly-weds at The Inns on Great George last night and when they arrived, they found it had been upgraded to a two-level suite with king-size bed, jacuzzi and all the trimmings. Our friend, Rob, had arranged for a bottle of champagne to be waiting for them, so they got the royal treatment.
After we picked them up today, we all went to the Merchantman for lunch and a nice family time together. Since everyone arrived last week, Ian and Ellen have been up west to take her Dad and brother out for dinner and a visit, shopping, and gadding about with their buddies, so we haven’t spent a lot of time all home together.
Hamish and Craig leave Thursday, December 30th, and Ian and Ellen will be here until January 2nd.
Apart from a jump in the household from 3 to 7 and normal routine turned completely upside down, it has been a dream-filled time that we will treasure forever. It is very obvious that Hamish and Craig intend to spend the rest of their lives together and we couldn’t ask for a more loving, sensitive son-in-law. We used to feel sad that Hamish would never be allowed the opportunity for the married life Bryson and I have shared together — and now it has happened.
That’s my wedding planner/mother of the groom/mother-in-law of the groom wedding day epistle for any friends who might be wondering how things went. Hope you can feel some of the excitement and joy of the event our family and friends here shared.
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