Well, six months on and I've only just decided to get my act together and do my report!! So, I guess you start at the beginning - here it goes:
How we met………
It was just before Christmas 2009 when the snow was bad and I had a job interview about 25 miles away from home. I ummed and ahhed about going – I needed a job, but I needed to have an accident less!!
I left home and started trundling my way there, an hour into my journey and I’d made it the grand total of two and a half miles! Hmm, perhaps this wasn’t the best idea?? I decided to give it another twenty minutes and see how I got on – in which time I managed to make it into town and on to the motorway. Satnav left me in a field!! Turns out the place was pretty much in a field – it was just that it was a field half a mile in the other direction.
I finally got there, and long story short, I got the job. I started pretty much straight away in the New Year. A few days in, I had to go and get something from the far end of the factory. I had to pass through a bit that narrowed and someone was coming towards me. He stepped aside to let me through… and little old sarcastic me says “Is my bum that big?”. He grinned “You said it, not me!”……. Hello Mr Dudders!
The Glorious Twelfth!!!
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Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
How we got together…..
The big bum (which I hasten to add isn’t that big and is in fact one of Mr Dudders’ favourite features!) became a bit of a running joke between the two of us, and over the next week or so was the cause of much banter. He seemed to keep finding excuses to come into the office … hmmm coincidence, I think not!!
With a mountain of work piled on me, I worked late many nights, and although come 5 o’clock the office was a ghost town, the factory was still a hive of activity. You guessed it, Mr Dudders visited me quite a lot! There was much playful flirting between the two of us, but having spent most of my life working in male dominated places, it was the norm for me really.
One night, he asked me to go for a drink some time and I said I’d think about it. This was added to the banter, and went on for a couple of weeks. It was now the beginning of February and fast approaching that well known commercial event…. And he jokingly asked me to be his Valentine. By now he’d asked me to go out for a drink on many occasions and I still hadn’t been sure, but this week he’d not mentioned it at all. I now wondered whether he’d been serious or just mucking about, so nervously, I put myself out there and asked him out for a drink. He was serious – phew! I hadn’t made an idiot of myself!
We went out on our first date on Friday 12th February straight from work. We went to a pub down the road, played some pool, chatted and just got on really well – even though I couldn’t drink as I had to drive! We then went for something to eat and then on to another pub, finally dropping him off around midnight. I texted him to let him know I was back safely – or so I thought! I actually texted my sister… oops! Second attempt, texted him fine. We met up again the following day, spent the whole weekend together, and have been inseparable ever since!!
The big bum (which I hasten to add isn’t that big and is in fact one of Mr Dudders’ favourite features!) became a bit of a running joke between the two of us, and over the next week or so was the cause of much banter. He seemed to keep finding excuses to come into the office … hmmm coincidence, I think not!!
With a mountain of work piled on me, I worked late many nights, and although come 5 o’clock the office was a ghost town, the factory was still a hive of activity. You guessed it, Mr Dudders visited me quite a lot! There was much playful flirting between the two of us, but having spent most of my life working in male dominated places, it was the norm for me really.
One night, he asked me to go for a drink some time and I said I’d think about it. This was added to the banter, and went on for a couple of weeks. It was now the beginning of February and fast approaching that well known commercial event…. And he jokingly asked me to be his Valentine. By now he’d asked me to go out for a drink on many occasions and I still hadn’t been sure, but this week he’d not mentioned it at all. I now wondered whether he’d been serious or just mucking about, so nervously, I put myself out there and asked him out for a drink. He was serious – phew! I hadn’t made an idiot of myself!
We went out on our first date on Friday 12th February straight from work. We went to a pub down the road, played some pool, chatted and just got on really well – even though I couldn’t drink as I had to drive! We then went for something to eat and then on to another pub, finally dropping him off around midnight. I texted him to let him know I was back safely – or so I thought! I actually texted my sister… oops! Second attempt, texted him fine. We met up again the following day, spent the whole weekend together, and have been inseparable ever since!!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The early days…….
Or should I say, almost inseparable!! A few days later he flew out to Spain to see his mum and dad. His mum was on to him straight away – arriving at the airport he phoned me immediately – so he was walking towards them in arrivals on the phone… but not to them! I was left at home and it was my sister’s birthday, so we were out for a family meal. This is when he called me from the airport.
With this, and the accidental text the previous Friday I faced a full on grilling from the whole family! Agghhh! I remained tight lipped and like I had no idea what they were talking about! So, they decided that I was seeing someone and that he was called Keanu! Poor Mr Dudders was called Keanu for many months when they first met him!!
Once he was back home, we spent every spare moment together, and within a couple of weeks he told me he loved me!
Or should I say, almost inseparable!! A few days later he flew out to Spain to see his mum and dad. His mum was on to him straight away – arriving at the airport he phoned me immediately – so he was walking towards them in arrivals on the phone… but not to them! I was left at home and it was my sister’s birthday, so we were out for a family meal. This is when he called me from the airport.
With this, and the accidental text the previous Friday I faced a full on grilling from the whole family! Agghhh! I remained tight lipped and like I had no idea what they were talking about! So, they decided that I was seeing someone and that he was called Keanu! Poor Mr Dudders was called Keanu for many months when they first met him!!
Once he was back home, we spent every spare moment together, and within a couple of weeks he told me he loved me!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
Meeting the in-laws……
The reason he’d gone to Spain was that it was his mum’s leaving do. She was retiring and they were moving from Spain back to Cyprus (his dad was in the army and they had lived there when he was little). After leaving Spain, they came back to the UK for a month. As he didn’t get to see them very much, we decided to visit them at his gran’s while they were here.
I remember walking up the stairs to the flat with him in front of me. He got to the top and turned the corner, and I heard this little voice saying “Let me see, let me see, where is she then?”. This was my future mil!!
Actually, I am a very lucky girl, as I was welcomed with open arms by the whole family (bit of an overload as I met half of them that weekend!!) and Mr Dudders’ family are just as lovely as he is.
The reason he’d gone to Spain was that it was his mum’s leaving do. She was retiring and they were moving from Spain back to Cyprus (his dad was in the army and they had lived there when he was little). After leaving Spain, they came back to the UK for a month. As he didn’t get to see them very much, we decided to visit them at his gran’s while they were here.
I remember walking up the stairs to the flat with him in front of me. He got to the top and turned the corner, and I heard this little voice saying “Let me see, let me see, where is she then?”. This was my future mil!!
Actually, I am a very lucky girl, as I was welcomed with open arms by the whole family (bit of an overload as I met half of them that weekend!!) and Mr Dudders’ family are just as lovely as he is.
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The Proposal…..
A couple of months in, we’d shared everything and knew we wanted all the same things and were totally loved up. He’d actually asked me to marry him several times, but not with the big gesture and I didn’t think he was serious! Now his parents were back in Cyprus, it was time for a holiday!!
Standing on a mountain looking at the stunning scenery, he pulled me towards him and asked me to marry him – this time I knew he was serious!
![[http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/47286_102868726440105_100001509339028_18192_752313_n.jpg]](http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/47286_102868726440105_100001509339028_18192_752313_n.jpg "http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/47286_102868726440105_100001509339028_18192_752313_n.jpg")
A couple of months in, we’d shared everything and knew we wanted all the same things and were totally loved up. He’d actually asked me to marry him several times, but not with the big gesture and I didn’t think he was serious! Now his parents were back in Cyprus, it was time for a holiday!!
Standing on a mountain looking at the stunning scenery, he pulled me towards him and asked me to marry him – this time I knew he was serious!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The Venue……
We hadn’t actually set a date but there was a wedding fayre at one of the local venues, so I went along with my mum and sister in October 2010. I thought it was quite nice, and it was nearby to home, so it ticked the right boxes. We have vaguely talked about 12th August – it would be six months between our first date anniversary and our wedding anniversary but nothing concrete. At the wedding fayre, they asked about a date, and we ended up pencilling in the date without any commitment.
Back home, Mr Dudders and I agreed that was it – 12th August 2011 was to be our wedding day. We made an appointment with the wedding co-ordinator so he could see the place too and make sure we were happy with it. In fairness, Mr Dudders is very much a if you’re happy kind of man, so it was basically a done deal, lol. Our meeting was a couple of weeks away, but we checked the registrar was available and booked that so we had the date secured.
![[http://www.weddingvenues.com/images/listing_photos/197_hotel-exte.jpg]](http://www.weddingvenues.com/images/listing_photos/197_hotel-exte.jpg "http://www.weddingvenues.com/images/listing_photos/197_hotel-exte.jpg")
We hadn’t actually set a date but there was a wedding fayre at one of the local venues, so I went along with my mum and sister in October 2010. I thought it was quite nice, and it was nearby to home, so it ticked the right boxes. We have vaguely talked about 12th August – it would be six months between our first date anniversary and our wedding anniversary but nothing concrete. At the wedding fayre, they asked about a date, and we ended up pencilling in the date without any commitment.
Back home, Mr Dudders and I agreed that was it – 12th August 2011 was to be our wedding day. We made an appointment with the wedding co-ordinator so he could see the place too and make sure we were happy with it. In fairness, Mr Dudders is very much a if you’re happy kind of man, so it was basically a done deal, lol. Our meeting was a couple of weeks away, but we checked the registrar was available and booked that so we had the date secured.
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The Dress……
Now we had the bug, so we started thinking about wedding dress shopping. We were going to a different town one weekend, so had a look for shops there on the internet. I didn’t bother with the couple of really local ones as we’d not heard the best things about them. One of them the staff were really snotty (which was true – we went to a sale there (where I bought both my flower girls’ shoes – bargain £10 each!) and they looked down their noses at us) and the other had done a friend’s dresses where my sister was bridesmaid, and when they altered her dress they took it in too much and they had to quite literally shoe horn my sister in to it!!
So, we found the Wedding Warehouse in Slough – we went there on the off chance without an appointment. We didn’t need one, and this was a Saturday – they only make appointments for alterations, not trying on, which we thought was great. They have since moved, which to be honest is probably not a bad thing – it was hidden away and quite frankly we weren’t that keen on getting out of the car. When we came back out, all pleasantly surprised, mum said she’d almost refused to go in!!
I don’t know how they do it in most shops, but they gave me a bunch of tags and just let me choose a load of dresses to try on. Having had a quick look on the internet at some of the foreign sites I hadn’t really planned to buy anything as I thought the prices were ridiculous – I mean it’s a dress I’m going to wear for one day!!! So, I looked through everything with eyes out on stalks at some of the prices and chose most of my selection from the sale rail (a very healthy proportion of their stock).
From the internet, I’d had the idea that I wanted something a bit different and my mum spotted one she thought I ought to try. It looked awful on the hanger and she had to push me to put a tag on it. Begrudgingly, it came in the changing room along with another four or five dresses. Right, let’s prove her wrong and then I can get on with this I thought.
I stepped out of the changing room, cue mum, my sister and me getting all emotional!! Everyone in the shop stopped and looked on. So, I go back in the changing room and the lady asks which I’d like to try on next. I picked another one and come back out – it’s just not the same. Now my mind is working – surely it’s just because it was the first wedding dress I had put on…….
Back into the changing room and I look at my remaining choices. Which one next? So I put the next one on, and step out of the changing room……
![[http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/423608_289362454457397_100001509339028_812968_1682640947_n.jpg]](http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/423608_289362454457397_100001509339028_812968_1682640947_n.jpg "http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/423608_289362454457397_100001509339028_812968_1682640947_n.jpg")
![[http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/428227_289362521124057_100001509339028_812969_1940681548_n.jpg]](http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/428227_289362521124057_100001509339028_812969_1940681548_n.jpg "http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/428227_289362521124057_100001509339028_812969_1940681548_n.jpg")
This was ‘the one’ and it was back to the first dress I tried on!!! As I was to find out outfit shopping for everyone else would NOT be so easy!!!
Now we had the bug, so we started thinking about wedding dress shopping. We were going to a different town one weekend, so had a look for shops there on the internet. I didn’t bother with the couple of really local ones as we’d not heard the best things about them. One of them the staff were really snotty (which was true – we went to a sale there (where I bought both my flower girls’ shoes – bargain £10 each!) and they looked down their noses at us) and the other had done a friend’s dresses where my sister was bridesmaid, and when they altered her dress they took it in too much and they had to quite literally shoe horn my sister in to it!!
So, we found the Wedding Warehouse in Slough – we went there on the off chance without an appointment. We didn’t need one, and this was a Saturday – they only make appointments for alterations, not trying on, which we thought was great. They have since moved, which to be honest is probably not a bad thing – it was hidden away and quite frankly we weren’t that keen on getting out of the car. When we came back out, all pleasantly surprised, mum said she’d almost refused to go in!!
I don’t know how they do it in most shops, but they gave me a bunch of tags and just let me choose a load of dresses to try on. Having had a quick look on the internet at some of the foreign sites I hadn’t really planned to buy anything as I thought the prices were ridiculous – I mean it’s a dress I’m going to wear for one day!!! So, I looked through everything with eyes out on stalks at some of the prices and chose most of my selection from the sale rail (a very healthy proportion of their stock).
From the internet, I’d had the idea that I wanted something a bit different and my mum spotted one she thought I ought to try. It looked awful on the hanger and she had to push me to put a tag on it. Begrudgingly, it came in the changing room along with another four or five dresses. Right, let’s prove her wrong and then I can get on with this I thought.
I stepped out of the changing room, cue mum, my sister and me getting all emotional!! Everyone in the shop stopped and looked on. So, I go back in the changing room and the lady asks which I’d like to try on next. I picked another one and come back out – it’s just not the same. Now my mind is working – surely it’s just because it was the first wedding dress I had put on…….
Back into the changing room and I look at my remaining choices. Which one next? So I put the next one on, and step out of the changing room……
This was ‘the one’ and it was back to the first dress I tried on!!! As I was to find out outfit shopping for everyone else would NOT be so easy!!!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The Wedding Party……
We both have nieces and nephews who we knew we wanted to be involved, so that was a given! Two flower girls, two ring bearers and a page boy who at two years old had the job of looking cute! My sister was to be maid of honour and his brother best man – keeping it in the family!
And Their Outfits…..
As I mentioned earlier, the girls’ shoes were a bargain at only £10 each! Their dresses were also a bargain. Mr Dudders and I were out shopping (oh what a lucky girl I am – he happily comes shopping with me and manages to not look bored stiff!) and popped in to Debenhams. This store didn’t have an Occasions section, BUT, there happened to be a sale rail with an assortment of flower girl dresses and a couple of waistcoat sets. There were only about a dozen dresses on the rail, but amazingly, I found two the same in the right sizes. It was fate! To boot, they were just over twenty quid each – bargain!
![[http://budgetsavvybride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/tigerlily-butterfly-flowergirl-dress-2.jpg]](http://budgetsavvybride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/tigerlily-butterfly-flowergirl-dress-2.jpg "http://budgetsavvybride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/tigerlily-butterfly-flowergirl-dress-2.jpg")
For the boys, I wanted to buy their outfits rather than hire, and not to spend a lot so no-one worried about getting them dirty or taking them off early – boys will be boys! I found cheap suits on Ebay but wasn’t sure – surely they couldn’t be any good for £20?? We found the same thing on a trip to Birmingham on a market AND they sold them on Ebay too! The quality was great for a cheap little suit so we bought one at the market and ordered the others online as he didn’t have all the right sizes.
And they all looked adorable!!
![[http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/281624_198221493571494_100001509339028_542551_7147958_n.jpg]](http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/281624_198221493571494_100001509339028_542551_7147958_n.jpg "http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/281624_198221493571494_100001509339028_542551_7147958_n.jpg")
We both have nieces and nephews who we knew we wanted to be involved, so that was a given! Two flower girls, two ring bearers and a page boy who at two years old had the job of looking cute! My sister was to be maid of honour and his brother best man – keeping it in the family!
And Their Outfits…..
As I mentioned earlier, the girls’ shoes were a bargain at only £10 each! Their dresses were also a bargain. Mr Dudders and I were out shopping (oh what a lucky girl I am – he happily comes shopping with me and manages to not look bored stiff!) and popped in to Debenhams. This store didn’t have an Occasions section, BUT, there happened to be a sale rail with an assortment of flower girl dresses and a couple of waistcoat sets. There were only about a dozen dresses on the rail, but amazingly, I found two the same in the right sizes. It was fate! To boot, they were just over twenty quid each – bargain!
For the boys, I wanted to buy their outfits rather than hire, and not to spend a lot so no-one worried about getting them dirty or taking them off early – boys will be boys! I found cheap suits on Ebay but wasn’t sure – surely they couldn’t be any good for £20?? We found the same thing on a trip to Birmingham on a market AND they sold them on Ebay too! The quality was great for a cheap little suit so we bought one at the market and ordered the others online as he didn’t have all the right sizes.
And they all looked adorable!!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
The Venue – Take Two……
We had our meeting with our venue. We were kept waiting for about fifteen minutes and it then turned out that the wedding co-ordinator sent her husband instead. While we waited a couple of the bar staff argued over who was going to take some mayonnaise to a table. Hmmm!!! The meeting went ok – they had a package that we wanted to tweak a little, which he said was fine – just swapping a dish on the menu and wine for soft drinks, nothing major. His wife emails saying actually no they can’t do that and offers us a set menu and priced it up separately so it would cost more than the package! Now we liked none of the food and weren’t particularly impressed with their attitude either!! Things weren’t looking good – the wedding co-ordinator couldn’t be bothered, the staff squabbled and they didn’t seem very organised. In short, we decided they couldn’t be trusted with our wedding.
So we had a look at another place down the road. They were so much more enthusiastic and it felt so much brighter. The thing that swung it was we got exclusive use and that they just seemed so much more on the ball. Our wedding had moved….
![[http://www.foxcountryinn.co.uk/images/wedding-receptions.jpg]](http://www.foxcountryinn.co.uk/images/wedding-receptions.jpg "http://www.foxcountryinn.co.uk/images/wedding-receptions.jpg")
We had our meeting with our venue. We were kept waiting for about fifteen minutes and it then turned out that the wedding co-ordinator sent her husband instead. While we waited a couple of the bar staff argued over who was going to take some mayonnaise to a table. Hmmm!!! The meeting went ok – they had a package that we wanted to tweak a little, which he said was fine – just swapping a dish on the menu and wine for soft drinks, nothing major. His wife emails saying actually no they can’t do that and offers us a set menu and priced it up separately so it would cost more than the package! Now we liked none of the food and weren’t particularly impressed with their attitude either!! Things weren’t looking good – the wedding co-ordinator couldn’t be bothered, the staff squabbled and they didn’t seem very organised. In short, we decided they couldn’t be trusted with our wedding.
So we had a look at another place down the road. They were so much more enthusiastic and it felt so much brighter. The thing that swung it was we got exclusive use and that they just seemed so much more on the ball. Our wedding had moved….
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
Some More Outfits…….
The kids are clothed and I have my dress. The colour scheme is burgundy and ivory – can’t really be anything else with my dress!
So we start shopping for my sister’s dress and the mother of the bride outfit. We hunted high and low, and the hunt lasted several months, dozens of shops and hours hanging about changing rooms while they did their thing. Hmm – something wrong there – how many dresses did I try on?!?!?!
For my sister’s dress, we eventually ended up back at the Wedding Warehouse with their vast array of dresses. As much as we’d tried to avoid it, it was going to have to be a pricey ‘proper’ dress. Again, more hours hanging around a dressing room, but we got there in the end. Oooh and another cheeky opportunity to put my dress on again!!!!
![[http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/398737_289412724452370_100001509339028_813105_584706555_n.jpg]](http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/398737_289412724452370_100001509339028_813105_584706555_n.jpg "http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/398737_289412724452370_100001509339028_813105_584706555_n.jpg")
The kids are clothed and I have my dress. The colour scheme is burgundy and ivory – can’t really be anything else with my dress!
So we start shopping for my sister’s dress and the mother of the bride outfit. We hunted high and low, and the hunt lasted several months, dozens of shops and hours hanging about changing rooms while they did their thing. Hmm – something wrong there – how many dresses did I try on?!?!?!
For my sister’s dress, we eventually ended up back at the Wedding Warehouse with their vast array of dresses. As much as we’d tried to avoid it, it was going to have to be a pricey ‘proper’ dress. Again, more hours hanging around a dressing room, but we got there in the end. Oooh and another cheeky opportunity to put my dress on again!!!!
Finally, my report!! To read about The Glorious Twelfth.....
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
http://www.youandyourwedding.co.uk/community/forums/thread/1590207?goto=newPost
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