It was an early start today as Marguerite had left everything to the last minute. They had to get Ben sorted before Marguerite chucked him down to her Mum's, before she and Jude got ready themselves and eventually left Belfast around 10.00am. 
Three hours later and they were pulling into the beautiful little town of Durrow in County Laois.
The town was very nice indeed ....as was the entrance to Castle Durrow itself.
The front of Castle Durrow was pretty spectacular ....... let's just say it was the prettiest place you could ever wish to attend a wedding at ......... it and The Old Mill at Ballydugan of course!
So while Marguerite was away sorting out the keys to their room for the night ............... 
....... Jude was tucking into a sandwich. You see Jude is always thinking about meal times on days like this. Due to many things that are beyond the control of a guest at a wedding one can never be sure just when they'll see food again so Jude takes the guessing clean out of the equation and always makes sure he has a sandwich just before going into any wedding. Here he is horsing a chicken and bacon sarnie into him as he unpacks the car. Check out the cool 'Statue of Liberty' suit case. Wha?
It's an hour before the wedding and Jude and Marguerite are taking things easy and enjoying the views from outside their room.
The rooms backed onto the countryside and had a real country mansion feel about them ...... well that would be because they were in a country mansion, wouldn't it?
'Here Mummy, this place is sick, it's tucked away in the countryside, ooooh it's so gorgeous mummy. Ohhh Mummy I'm so excited about the wedding ....... I just love weddings me ....... I love wedding dresses Mummy ....... I watch a program all the time about wedding dresses ..... ohhh and the service ....... and the romance and all that ...... ahhhh Mummy it's great, don't you just love weddings? rambled Marguerite to her Mum.
After that quick report back to base Marguerite and Jude made their way to the wedding service.
While stopping for a few cool 'Country Garden' pics as they went.Here is Marguerite looking all cool and all dolled up with the cool gardens behind her. Nice outfit!
Jude scrubs up well too sometimes. Here he is looking out over the property and thinking to himself, 'I would just love to live here'.
And here they were as they started to mingle with the other wedding guests. And before long they had hooked up with ................
........ their auld mucker Clare Copeland. Here are Marguerite and Clare with two of the day's coolest hats / hair thingys ........ ehhhh .... fascinators ....... that's what they're called nowadays!
Clare lived in Boston for a few years and became good friends with Marguerite and Jude throughout that time. She returned home early last year.
And here is Marguerite looking all cool with the beautiful Castle Durrow behind her.
'Come on now Jude, the wedding's about to start', said Marguerite. 
Marguerite and Jude know Mark and Michelle from Boston where Marguerite worked with Michelle at InvestNI. Blog followers may remember some random events where they were together, for example the 'Boat Party at Marina Bay' in 2012.
Michelle and Mark are a great couple and lots of fun. But right now Mark is freaking out a lot more than he is having fun as he awaits the arrival of Michelle.
The setting really was spectacular. The perfect choice of location for the occasion. And adding the finishing touches to the ambience were this cool band as they chucked out some great tunes.
And so, the guests settled ...............
......... Mark sweated ...... 
......... and the scene was finally set. 
First to emerge were the bridesmaids and Michelle's mother Barbara. All looking great they were too.
Then the bride emerged. Michelle was escorted out by her Father and ..........
......... the moment was just as beautiful as she would have ever hoped it would be.
And before you knew it they were saying .......... 'I do', 'yes', 'I will', 'certainly', 'whatever', 'yes please' and 'maybe' .................
......... as they exchanged vows ......... and they were married.
The guests, many of whom were over from America, were enjoying the magical setting, the wonderful service and the brilliant Irish weather.
This cool sign tells the story of Mark and Michelle. From the top:
05th July 2013 at Castle Durrow well that's their wedding day, Killington Vermont was were they met at a ski house, Sutton Dublin is where Michelle is from, East Greenwich Rhode Island is where Mark is from, and Marina Bay is where they live in Massachusetts.
Today's wedding had strong Irish and American connections because ......... well for obvious reasons! So the wee pamphlets that were handed out to guests had either an Irish flag or a U.S. flag. Here is Marguerite with the Irish flag as she heads to the garden party. 
Clare and her boyfriend Mike were enjoying the craic today.
'Howdy partner', exclaims Michelle as she greets Marguerite in the good auld fashioned Irish 'line up'.
'Congratulations Michelle', said Marguerite.
Marguerite and Michelle worked together at InvestNI, across the same desk from one another for four and a half years and are good buddies.
At the garden party Marguerite and Jude get their pic taken with Michelle's parents and .......
........... with Becky and Seamus.
Jude's fantastically whiter than white shirt brightened up this pic somewhat. 
'Hey Ingrid, that's a cool hat ........ now can I have your American flag for Ben? asked Marguerite.
'Certainly my dear, of course', replied Ingrid who really was sporting a cool hat indeed.
Now Marguerite was happy to have both Ben's flags to take home to him.
Here is a cool pic of Marguerite and Jude relaxing at Michelle and Mark's wedding.
'Mummy, how's Ben? Ok, that's good. Ohhhh mummy the dress was sick, it was all white and all, and the hair, and the music, the service, the champagne, the weather, the scenery ....... ohhh mummy, it was all fantastic! rambled Marguerite to her Mum. 
The garden party lasted a couple of hours before everyone was called into the main reception for dinner, the speeches and some dancing.
Wha?
The good auld Stars and Stripes means a lot more to Jude and Marguerite now than ever before having lived in the United States. Random history / flag information - the 50 stars represent the 50 United States of America while the 13 stripes represent the original 13 colonies of America. Not a lot of people know that (well the second part anyway).
The auld glasses of champagne were certainly kicking in by the time folk got settled in their seats and that always means there will be plenty of craic at the dinner table. Marguerite dove straight in by sticking on the funny glasses and the American head thingymabobbers. 
Meanwhile Jude got stuck into the bags of M&Ms that adorned the tables. Yum, yum, fill yer tum!
Clare and Mike were looking all 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' with all the American gear on. 
Elaine and Ian were a very nice couple how shared the table with Marguerite and Jude. They were from Dublin and were great craic.
Whassssuuuuppp? 
Then Mark and Michelle made their grand entrance and everybody whooped and hollered.
Marguerite has lost her marb ....... her marb ......... ehhh ...... it looks like she's lost her lense! The craic was great by this stage and everyone at the table was joining in on the fun.
Even Gary! 
Everyone joined in with the party games at the table. 8 persons all put in 5 Euro each over two games betting on how many times 'Thanks' would be said and on how on how long the speeches would last. Results later.
Here is Mark having some fun mingling with the guests.
And catching a cool pic with Marguerite and her mad glasses.
'Hey Michelle ...... great wedding mate, you're the best', said Marguerite as she lifted Michelle up in a hug. 
Marguerite and Jude enjoying the craic.
'Hey .......... I just got married ....... isn't that mad', said Michelle as she pulled this cool pose.
Oh yeah, the party games. Well Jude guessed 31 minutes on the speeches and he was closest so he scooped the 40 Euro on that game. Kathy won the other game. Nice!
Clare having fun.
First dance.
Michelle and Mark lit up the dance floor in their first dance as a married couple. Like John Travolta and Olivia Newton John they were!
Congratulations to both Mark and Michelle.
Next up was Michelle's dance with her Dad.
And they chucked a very nice jive down on the floor!
And another special dance as Mark's Mum joined Mark and Michelle for a spin around the floor.
Dancing Queens - take 1.
Dancing Queens - take 2.
'And I tell you, it was soooo hot I thought I was going to faint out there, I was ready to keel over ..... and poor Mark was sweating like a pig', said Michelle as she discussed coping with the gorgeous weather she had for her wedding day.
Marguerite, Michelle and Elaine are all smiles as the wedding party moves into the late hours.
Marguerite and Michelle having great craic boogying on the dance floor.
'I can boogie ...... I can Boogie ....... ohh yes I can booooogeeee! Marguerite finishes the night off in style. 
Before heading back to the hotel room and retiring for the evening.
Up fresh the next morning ...... 
........ Marguerite makes her way in for breakfast.
Everything about Mark and Michelle's wedding was great. The weather, the company, the craic, the venue, the food, the drink, the fun. Congratulations and best wishes to Mark and Michelle. 
No comments:
Post a Comment