JAMES AND TALIA GOT MARRIED ON SATURDAY! YAY!!! It was so beautiful... and a really, really big day! So I might start at the beginning...

Well it started with me sleeping in and getting ready in a mad rush when Alan came to pick me up for music practice in the morning Heidi and I lead singing for the wedding and had a practice that morning which Heidi couldn't make it to. Anyway, I think I got home at about 11:30am, and was able to bludge round, check emails etc for an hour until 12:30pm when I decided to start getting ready for the wedding. Iron dress, shower, wash hair, spend forever deciding how to do hair, do makeup, get dressed, check everything I need is in my bag, make sure house is locked up (Mum and Christine were at Paluma, Michelle, David and Dad were at the Relay for Life), and then Heidi picked me up at 2pm.

We go to the church early on purpose so that Heidi and I could sing through one of the songs because she didn't know it. We were stuck outside with some other early-arrivers because nobody had a key. Then "the guys" arrived... the groom James, the best man- my boyfriend Andre , and the other two groomsmen, Alan and Ben. They had a key so we could get into the church... we got set up, sat down on our special chairs right up the front of the church (not advantageous- we were stuck behind the groomsmen so couldn't see much) and then- waited.

There were more than 160 people at the wedding... and then "the girls" arrived. Talia looked so pretty, and her three bridesmaids' dresses were each a different shade of blue (the groomsmen's ties matched). Unfortunately I have no photos because I FORGOT MY CAMERA (I swear, I do that at EVERY wedding) but I shared Heidi's... and I know for a fact that Michelle Ayres got hundreds

After the wedding of course there were PHOTOS... photos at the church of the bridal party, James and Talia's families, the people who helped make the wedding happen (minister, church members, musicians and singers- yay for Heidi and me lol- etc), etc etc etc. Oh, and the music team got CHOCOLATES...

>_>

So anyway a bunch of us decided to go to Lukabean for coffee or whatever until the reception started. Andre's Mum and James's parents went, and then there was the "young crowd"... Heidi, me, Jessie, Jacinta, Jako, Scooter, Michelle P, Beebs, Aaran, JP... and there was someone else, who was sitting beside Scooter, I can't remember who it was... sorry!

And then we headed out to Talia's place at Rupertswood for the reception. We took a little detour, it was NOT my direction-reading skills' fault, it was the fault of the incorrect GPS directions we had.

The reception was beautiful, and SO MUCH FUN. At our table was me, Heidi, Jessie, Jako, Luke Henderson, JP, Scooter and Jacinta. The food was reasonable- it tasted good but was a bit cold, probably because our table was the last one to be allowed at the buffet (I blame James's brother Jeremy, the MC of the night... he purposely kept walking straight past us and letting other tables go first ).

Andre made a really good Best Man's speech... as embarrassed as I acted, I was proud of him It was honest, heart-felt, and funny (he got lots of laughs out of everyone). One of my favourite lines was about men being like fine wine... you have to stamp repeatedly on them in the dark (like grapes) until they become something you'd like to have dinner with

And then of course (after all the other speeches, toasts, etc) was PARTY TIME... we had half the backyard to dance on with lots of great music which we could choose ourselves from the computer set-up First of course was the bridal waltz, and after a while the dancing died off a bit when dessert was announced... but then the Nutbush got most people back out there dancing. We did the Nutbush, the Macarena (both numerous times), Limbo, and just plain partying! I swear, the photos of me doing the Limbo with a Vodka bottle in my hand are NOT as bad as they look... oh gosh, one of the Top 10 most embarrassing parts of the night... me dancing and acting silly, then Heidi saying "ooh ooh dance like that again Leah"... so I did... and she took a photo... and I'd been grinning at Jessie and poked my tongue out at her... at JUST the moment Heidi took the photo *cringes*... so Heidi has a photo of me dancing with a bottle of Vodka, poking my tongue out at someone *smacks head on desk*

Next embarrassing moment... Andre shouting out to someone while standing beside me at the same time as Luke made a comment about me and alcohol... I said "what was that?"
"Oh never mind."
"No, tell me. I didn't hear you because Andre was shouting in my voic- my ear, in my ear."
*Andre and Luke burst out laughing*
"Shouting in your voice, was he? You just proved my point."

But then Luke did the exact same thing fifteen minutes later

And then later in the night there were some slow songs again so I got to slow-dance with Andre

We ended up leaving at 1am I got home at 1:30 (thanks Luke for driving us home)... got to bed at 2. (Do you have any idea what it takes to get ready for bed after going to a wedding?? Get undressed, put pyjamas on, take fifty million bobby pins out of hair, brush it out and put it back in a hair tie, clean makeup off face, clean teeth, wash feet because I'd been dancing in Talia's backyard for 3 hours in bare feet, FINALLY get into bed...)

And then I had to get up at 7:30 for church. Normally I can handle 5 hours sleep ok. Man, I was knackered Sunday morning though. Not only had I had a late night, but it had been a long, full, energy-sucking day. I was exhausted, tired, and SORE (from dancing and limbo)... but it was SO much fun.

Got this in my inbox today...

The NSW Origin team training session was delayed at Suncorp Stadium today for nearly two hours.

One of the players, while on his way back to the dressing room happened to look down and notice a suspicious looking, unknown white powdery substance at the end of the field.

The NSW Coach immediately suspended practice while the Police were called in to investigate.

After a complete field analysis, the Police determined that the white substance, unknown to the players, was the try line.

Practice was resumed when the officials decided that it was unlikely that the team would encounter the substance again this year.

GO QUEENSLAND!!!!!

So anyway, I have THE WONDERFULLEST boyfriend in THE WORLD... yes, he has put up with me for 2 years, today! Yay!

 

And seeing as what he did for the event was Heidi-melt-worthy (and anyone who knows Heidi Schwartz knows she has high standards), I'm going to tell everyone.

 

It started last night, seeing as both of us are usually busy Wednesday nights. I knew we were going to The Watermark on the Strand, so I got dressed up all prettiful, and then he came and picked me up at 7, with a single yellow rose. After putting that in a vase, we headed off down to the Strand, and arrived at the Watermark. When Andre knew the guy at the front register by name, and the guy (Grant) recognised Andre, I knew something was up... he lead us to our table, and lying on the table was another yellow rose ^_^

 

We ordered entree (garlic pizza bread with dips) before Andre ordered us a bottle of Shiraz (which, because we didn't finish it, he got to take home), and then we had our main meal- both of us ordered honey beer battered red emperor (SO GOOD... *drools*) with chips and a watermelon & cucumber salad, except I had the smaller entree-sized one seeing as I knew I wouldn't finish the bigger one :P We also had a side salad to go with it. Once we finished with that, our waiter Sam asked us if he could get dessert for us. Andre said that when he booked the place, the person on the phone had said since it was our anniversary they might be able to do a special dessert for us. So Sam sussed that out, then came back and said it was all good to go. It turned out to be mint beauvoire (a set mint cream type thing) with toffee on top, and pineapple pieces around the outside of the plate with chocolate syrup... then, written arond the edge of the plate in orange icing type stuff was "Happy Anniversary!!"! I was speechless for, like, 2 minutes straight. Ok, not quite. 1 minute maybe.

 

Once we were finished there we went for a little walk along the Strand and sat on a bench where I gave him a present- can't have HIM doing all the spoiling!- a Shawn McDonald CD and a book, before we headed home.

 

Right, but it doesn't finish there!

 

This morning, before I woke up, he came around and Michelle let him in (to my knowledge), when he proceeded to come into my room and scatter rose petals all over the place (Mum said he just wants to make more work for me when I clean it up :P) then he woke me up with a kiss on the cheek. I sat up, saw the rose petals everywhere... and he had an arrangement of 8 more yellow roses!

 

Now, do I or do I not have the awesomest boyfriend ever? Even Heidi has said- numerous times- that I have one very awesome boyfriend ;) No doubt Chiara will be equally as proud of him... ;)

 

THANKYOU ANDRE!!! XD *tacklehuggles Andre*