Wedding!

The last couple of weeks have been centred round a wedding - Jamie was Best Man at Chris and Stacey’s wedding on Saturday 29th September, and the week before that he was in charge of organising the stag do.
He had booked most of it from New Zealand and when he arrived in Scotland he had to confirm and fine tune all of the arrangements. The revellers spent the weekend in a big house beside Loch Lomond; it was very luxurious with an outdoor hot tub. They went paint-balling in the morning and then went on a speedboat pub crawl around Loch Lomond in the afternoon, ending up with a pub tea at the Oak Tree Inn. It went really well and was enjoyed by all, and most importantly Chris loved it.
The wedding itself was a truly joyous occasion. It was held in Dumfries House, which is a beautiful stately home near Cumnock in Ayrshire. We have never visited it before but we will certainly make a point of going back to explore it and the park around it. Stacey was absolutely stunning in her gorgeous dress, and Chris looked like the happiest man on the planet! The ceremony was very moving and intimate in one of the 18th century drawing rooms, and then we were given a really fascinating tour of the house * while the bridal party had their photographs taken - it was an inspired idea because it was genuinely interesting, and the time flew by until dinner. Chris also had a special surprise for Stacey; he had arranged for her favourite horse to be brought to the front of the house!
Another great idea was that the speeches took place before the meal so that the folk at the top table could all relax and enjoy their food after the speeches were over - the food by the way was first class. Stacey’s Dad had many of the guests in tears when he recited a spoken version of the Heartland song “I loved her first” with baroque music playing in the background. Then Chris’s speech was so heartfelt and moving, he was overcome with emotion when addressing his new bride and it was so sweet, resulting in more tears from the guests. And finally came Best Man Jamie, who had written his speech incorporating some great ideas from his Auntie Jennifer, and had practised it to me and James and Alasdair many times. He was fantastic! His speech was amusing, as befits a Best Man’s speech, but also very affectionate and there were yet more tears from the guests when he finished by saying to Stacey, “Thank you for making my best friend so happy.”
The evening continued with much dancing and fun, I was impressed by David and Chanel’s lively dance moves ** and James and I were not slow to get on the dance door ourselves and throw a few shapes! All good things must come to an end, and after we all sang and danced to “500 miles” and “Loch Lomond” we made our way to the quaint and very comfortable Stair Inn where the four of us spent the night. What a great wedding!

*  The guide told us all about the history of the house, built by Robert Adam for the Earl of Dumfries in the 1750s, and how it was furnished sumptuously by Thomas Chippendale and leading Scottish cabinet makers to attract a bride so that he could have an heir (sadly he didn’t). The house then changed hands through the centuries, and eventually was saved from being sold in 2007 by Prince Charles who set up a trust to restore and preserve it.

** Ally and Cat were not able to be at Chris and Stacey’s wedding because they were at another wedding (Cat’s cousin’s wedding in London.)