Before I write about one of the happiest days of my life, I thought I'd share with you the day we got engaged first! Niall proposed to me on June 5th 2016 whilst we were at the TT in Isle of Man. We went for a ride over the mountain in the afternoon which was absolutely beautiful. We then went for a lovely evening meal at The Barbary Coast which overlooks the harbour, a live band was also performing so it was just perfect. We then went for a walk towards the harbour afterwards where Niall got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. It was truly magical.
Over the next couple of months, we decided on a date! We knew we wanted to wait a couple of years to save up and we also wanted it to be a Friday 13th as we were officially dating on a Friday 13th! Fast forward to our wedding day - Friday 13th July 2018. It was meant to be. The night before the wedding was just a blur, it was a late one as we were still setting up our reception! We had decided on a DIY wedding reception so literally everything was done by us and our family and friends! My parents had Oscar so I could help but the time was just going so quickly that I had to leave to pick Oscar up and get to the hotel of the church, in total it was almost a 1 hour journey! My friend had kindly offered to take me so Niall could stay at the venue to carry on though the night. When we finally got to the hotel, I was shattered and hungry. It was around 11pm, Oscar was asleep in his car seat, and all I could think of was I've got to carry my luggage and Oscar up a flight of stairs to my suite. My mum, sisters and best friend were already in bed in a different building so I had to suck it up and get on with it! When I was finally done and in the suite, I took it all in. It was absolutely stunning and I wish I'd had more time to relax in there. I had a shower whilst Oscar was asleep and then there was a knock at the door. One of my bridesmaids, Kerrieanne had come to see me and she had snacks!! It was nice to have company and just have a good natter after such a long day.
The morning came and I could have stayed in bed for so much longer if I'm honest haha! But the wedding was at 1pm and we had lots to do! The hairdressers turned up and they a big job ahead of them - they had mine, my mum, my three sisters and 2 best friends hair to do! We had breakfast turn up for all of us, including fresh orange juice which was just what I needed. The amazing PM Photography arrived too - all the photos that are featured on this blog are taken by them (apart from the engagement ones!) It was literally chaotic! Everyone was using the bathroom, we were running late. The plan was to have gypsophila to put in our hair too but I didn't get chance to get any the day before so Kerrieanne offered to drive out and find us some! Oscar was loving life being surrounded by his nanny and his aunties which was lovely to see! Gracie, my little sister and maid of honour looked like she was having the time of her life too. Eventually my sister Mollie had to kick everyone out of the bathroom so I could get my dress on! She helped do it up for me and then it finally hit me that is was the big day! Then I was panicking that I couldn't get my earrings in so I ended up leaving them out! I then couldn't find Oscar's plain socks so he ended up wearing some blue ones with a duck at the top of them haha! I felt like everything was going wrong! The time was ticking and we still hadn't had photos together! Kerrieanne came back with some gypsophila for our hair which I was so happy about, now it was time for some quick photos!
Once we had some photos together, we had to get a move on. Luckily we were only a couple of minutes away from the church! I felt awful as I literally left Oscar with my sister and brother in law, Sienna and James. I knew he'd be fine but I just wanted to have a cuddle with him! I quickly got into Mollies car which we were using for the wedding car - a cute little beige fiat! She had quickly threw a bow ribbon on to make it look more wedding like but I thought it looked perfect! As we were driving into the church grounds, I had to duck as guests were already walking up and I didn't want them to see me yet! We had finally made it to the beautiful Normanton Church in Rutland. I was finally going to become Mrs Simons.
Once inside the church, I had to sit in a back room as the alter was actually by the entrance of the church. I had the pre-interview with the Registrar and now it was time to walk down the aisle. The plan was for Oscar to walk behind the bridal party with a sign saying 'Here comes Mummy' but he had fallen asleep in his Nanny's arms so we left him be. I had been nervous about this whole moment. When I have to walk into a room full of people, or talk in front of people, I get so flustered and go bright red which I thought would happen. It didn't though. As soon as my dad was by my side, and I kept my eyes locked on Niall, everyone else disappeared from the room. It sounds so cheesy but it felt like it was just us two. Reading the vows, it was like we were in our own little bubble. It was perfect.
After the ceremony, we had about 20 minutes remaining at the venue to have photographs there. There was an ice cream van parked outside the church so we managed to get a few photos with that too, and Jonathan the photographer managed to get me a complimentary ice-cream haha! The weather was beautiful as well! Completely different to what the weather reports were saying! We then got into Mollies car and headed towards the reception which was about 40 minutes away to a little place called Scraptoft Hill Farm.
When we arrived, I was excited to enter as it wasn't completely finished when I had left the night before. And it was gorgeous. It was everything I had imagined and more. We were greeted by our family and friends who all looked wonderful! I found Oscar who I gave a massive hug to! I bet he was wondering what was happening! When everyone had safely arrived from Normanton to the reception, it was time for the formal family photos. Whilst this was happening, everyone looked like they were having a good natter and enjoying themselves. For the wedding meal, we had hired a wood fired pizza trailer called The Hidden Gem so they were busy cooking pizzas for everyone too. When we had finished the photos, I was able to grab a drink and eat some pizza, it was delicious! We then went round to the yurt which is where we were staying that night and had some photos around there. We also bumped into the farmer, Will who had just been shooting! So Jonathan having a creative mind, asked Will if I could hold the gun so he could take some photos of me standing on Niall whilst holding it ha! I felt so awkward but it was hilarious and something that will make us smile everytime we look at the photos.
Next up was the afternoon tea which was all set up by my mother in law, Lorna. It was incredible and I loved every bit of it, it was perfect. Oscar had fallen asleep again so was in one of our friends little girls pushchair next to us! It was then time for the speeches which were great but just as we thought they had finished, my Grandpa stood up and starting tapping his glass with a spoon. He started making a speech which I wasn't expecting at all and it was so emotional and made me feel so happy and proud, it's a memory I will keep forever.
After the speeches we then went for a walk around the fields to admire the scenery and used the opportunity for photos! When we arrived back at the tipi's, the guests had already started arriving for the evening reception and I was so surprised at what time it was! It was so lovely to see everyone and share this day with them. I remember just standing back and taking it all in. Everyone looked so happy which was exactly what me and Niall wanted out of this day. Me and Mollie sat in the chill out tent for a bit with Oscar and I didn't even realise the BBQ had started and finished haha! I literally could not believe where the time was going! It was then time for the cake cutting! My friend Kerrieanne had made us our wedding cake and it was a lovely surprise to see that the cake was presented on a wooden cake stand engraved with the words 'Mr and Mrs Simons 13th July 2018' that she had bought for us! It was gorgeous! I knew after this moment, that it was going to be our first dance. Now me and Niall don't really dance unless we have had a LOT to drink which since having Oscar we hadn't done in a while! For some reason, on this night, alcohol wasn't doing anything and I was so nervous. I hate having eyes on me ha! But it had to be done. It was so awkward and I don't think we even danced, we just kept slowly spinning around! Oscar came and saved the day by running up to us so I picked him up and he joined in with us. It didn't look so awkward then haha!
The day was almost coming to an end. Guests were leaving, the photographers were going home after a long day, the sun was going down and so I took Oscar into the chill out tent to try and get him to sleep. Mollie came and joined me and then told me to go and enjoy myself. Then I felt bad that she wasn't with us so Niall's parents went and took over from Mollie! This was the time that I finally started to relax. I drank alcohol, and ate food. We were dancing and chatting to the guests that were still there. We also remembered that we hadn't shared the cake out so we started cutting slices out of that to eat ha! It was great!
The generator started to give up a couple of hours later so the power kept going off which resulted in the music cutting off and I just remember dancing and then stopping and then dancing again over the space of a song. But I loved it and it was such a good laugh! The night just got more hilarious though. At some point during the night, Nelson, the farmer's dad turned up and joined in the celebrations! He was amazing! He walked off making us think he had called it a night but instead came back on his quad bike, it was just crazy! He took Niall and a few friends around for a spin a couple of times. I'm sure there's a video of it somewhere but it was brilliant. A great end to an amazing day!
Daisy x
