After the customary family photos were taken by the photographer, the bridal party hopped back into the Buick and drove off towards the vineyard for more photos to be captured. The bride's family followed them on foot and "supervised" with drinks in hand as countless photos were snapped here, there and everywhere until everyone got tired of smiling. By this time, my feet were on the verge of killing me with fat blisters forming on the toes. On hindsight, I should have invested in the hire of a walking frame...

I got a ride in the Buick back to the reception after which I immediately ducked into our motor-home to change my footwear from high heels to sandals. [Our original plan was for Neil to spend the night in the top bunk of our motor-home so he could enjoy the evening without the worry of driving back to Melbourne at the end of the night. That did not eventuate but I will elaborate on it a little later.] Nina changed out of her wedding dress while glasses were re-filled before the newly-weds returned to mingle with friends and family. I think there were hors douvres to be had but in all the excitement, I didn't get around to sampling any of it.

At 5pm, we sat down to a scrumptious dinner of roast beef, chicken and lamb with a variety of mixed salads followed by a varied assortment of desserts from Black Forest Cake and French vanilla cheesecake to fresh fruit salad for the diet-conscious. As with most weddings, champagne, wine, beer and soft drinks were in plentiful supply and imbibed with gusto. It wasn't long before the handful of kids present were fully charged up on a sugar high but all things considered, they conducted themselves pretty well, the only damage done was to one of the dozen disposable cameras placed on the dining tables.

After dinner was over, it was speech time - Roland started the ball rolling with a short speech telling us about the warm friendship that they have enjoyed for many years before proposing a toast to the newly-weds. Being a man of few words, he was quick to pass the buck to the father of the bride. The MOTH began by thanking everyone for being present to join in the celebration and offered apologies on behalf of family members and friends who couldn't attend due to ill-health or overseas residence. He thanked Pauline and John for their very generous offer of the winery as the venue for this happy occasion and Neil for the classic Buick wedding car. He welcomed Dennis into our family and remarked on how suited the newly-weds are and how well they work as a team. For example, most weekends, Dennis stays home and guards their worldly possession while Nina shops for groceries, happy in the knowledge that the house won't be burglarized. He is also great at fixing the lawnmower so Nina can mow the lawn to her heart's content and at least once a week, they do the dishes together! Satisfied at the shade of redness on Dennis' face, the MOTH then switched the spotlight onto Nina - relating some of her childhood escapades and misadventures, much to the amusement of those present. Towards the end of his speech, he proudly went on to extol Nina's virtues and academic achievements, finally ending with, "There are only four words to describe you - in my mind, 'Nina, you're the best!'" We then raised our glasses and drank a toast to the bride and groom.

Nina and Dennis then stood up with their thank you speech - well actually, Dennis just stood there while Nina did all the talking... She spoke on his behalf, thanking everyone for sharing their special day with them. She closed by telling us to continue enjoying ourselves. Just as I was on the verge of turning off the movie mode on my little camera, Dennis' ex-wife, Nikki, stood up and announced that she had a few words to say. [She had driven for seven hours from Canberra after work on Friday night to attend the wedding.] Her impromptu speech about how if a person has the ability to choose a stepmum for her son, Nina is the prime. By the time she finished her touching speech, I could feel tears welling up in my eyes...

After the speeches, we continued on with the drinking and mingling until it was time to cut the wedding cake. This was followed by the bridal dance. Nina told us beforehand that Dennis can't dance if his life depends on it (well, they weren't her actual words but we knew what she meant) so she briefed the family to please, please, please join them on the dance floor after a few seconds of their wedding 'shuffle'. We were going to let them 'suffer' for a bit longer but felt sorry when we saw Dennis' face getting redder by the second. The MOTH and I joined them on the dance floor and we were quickly followed by Deej & Gen and Sharon & Greg.

A bit more dancing followed but it seemed that the grown-ups were more interested in drinking and chatting so we left the dancing to the young 'uns. At 8.15pm all the single ladies (and girls) jostled for a vantage position in the hope of catching the bridal bouquet. Iesha, all of eleven years old, was the successful catcher. Afterwards, we chin-wagged on the deck with drinks in hand. By 10pm, most of the guests had left the scene of the crime - the non-drinkers drove home while others found their way to their respective motels in the nearby township of Kyneton. My MOTH and his drinking buddy, Neil, took it upon themselves to guard the $40 bottles of red at the bar with John as supervisor...

  By 10.30pm, my MOTH and Neil were the best of buddies - both were completely and utterly wasted... A few minutes later, we glanced towards the bar to see Neil struggling to fight against gravity as he clung onto the bar to stop himself from falling in a heap. My MOTH however, was M.I.A. (Missing In Action). Dennis tracked down his new father-in-law to the gents' toilet where he had spent the last 15 minutes trying to undo his tie! We unanimously decided that they should be put to bed. Pauline took one look at them and said there was no way she was going to let me spend the night with two drunks in the motor-home. She suggested that Neil should sleep on the sofa in the wine shed before racing off to get two huge buckets just in case they throw up during the night. Deej and Dennis helped Neil to the sofa while I went to the motor-home to grab a pillow and blanket for him. John and Deej then help my MOTH to the motor-home and while I was battling to get the door unlocked, my MOTH lost his balance and took John down with him as he fell backwards. I finally managed to convince my MOTH to go to sleep amidst his vehement protestations that he wasn't ready for bed. I then returned to the dining room to join family members who were cleaning up the tables and re-setting the furniture back to their original positions before adjourning to the deck for a nightcap. The newly-weds called it a night soon after and disappeared into the bridal suite. Donna and a couple of mates shared the second bedroom while Deej and Gen slept in the library.

When I awoke bright and early the next morning, I looked out the window of our motor-home and saw Neil wandering about the estate looking a trifle lost. When he spotted me, he came over and with a sheepish look, he meekly said, "I've come to apologize..." Continuing on, he asked, "Did I behave inappropriately towards you or anyone last night? I didn't proposition you or anything like that, did I?" I assured him that all was well and asked why he appeared so worried. I was trying so very hard not to laugh out loud but almost wet my pants when he replied, "I thought I must have done something terribly wrong when I woke up on the sofa in the huge shed with a huge bucket close by, instead of in your motor-home!" By this time, my MOTH was awake and when John came over, we all had coffee in the motor-home before a hearty breakfast in the dining room with the newly-weds and the remaining wedding party. We went our separate ways shortly before lunch. What a splendid wedding this has been - one that I will always remember with a smile...

  


Copyright © 2008 OzLadyM
Please do not use any material on this website without my permission. Thank you.