Wedding Weekend!

So the date had finally arrived for Lissa and Micheal's wedding!  I knew before I arrived in Wales that I would have to come back for my best friend's wedding, no way would I ever miss this special day!

Ben and I decided to head into London the night before our flight and avoid possible train delays the morning of, we headed out to the train station on Wednesday night and walked straight into a rainstorm!  Needless to say we were a bit soaked when we got to the station:

 We managed to survive though :)  For our stay in London I opted for a quaint English Bed & Breakfast by the airport which I had found online.  The pictures showed a ideal little inn with a full English breakfast, I couldn't wait!

Well, that was until we checked in!  The shuttle driver who picked us up at the airport (the train from Cardiff went straight to Gatwick airport) had long fingernails (ew!) and spoke on his cell phone in a language I couldn't understand the entire drive to the hotel.  When we arrived at the hotel we thought we were finally rid of this guy, buy no, he's the owner!  So great first impression.  When we got to our room we discovered a shabby, tiny space with two spare beds stuck together, a railing on the floor which for some reason went through the middle of the room, carpet which had been laid on top of existing carpet, a picture glued to the wall off center above the bed, gross drapes and no batteries in the TV remote!

To top it off we were located at the top of the stairs next to the hallway door which banged open and closed throughout the night with guests coming and going, not the best night's sleep to get before a 9 hour flight!  But we made it through the night and at least gained a good story to tell folks in the US ;)  Ben loaded up the car and we headed to the airport!

Finally, we made onto the plane and headed to Florida!

We landed on Thursday night (an hour late!) and Mom picked us up from the airport and brought us to Brandon for the night, the next day we headed to Jacksonville with Michele and Shannon for Elizabeth's wedding!

ROADTRIP!!!!

3 hours later when we arrived in Jacksonville, we had a little surprise for Michele, since we had missed her birthday on Tuesday the 2nd.

We surprised her with champagne and gifts, yay!

After our champagne and treats, we headed out for Michele's favorite food.....MEXICAN!

Shannon and Ben being adventurous with tequila shots, Michele and I passed ;)

A fun time was had by all, happy belated birthday Michele!!!

On Saturday Michele and I headed to Elizabeth's hotel room at the Crown Plaza to watch her get ready for her big day.  Micheal sent Elizabeth a dozen red roses, how sweet!!!!

We then watched Elizabeth get her hair done, her stylist did such a great job!



Next was makeup for Elizabeth's maid of honor, her sister Carly:

and Carly did the nails for all the bridesmaids, Elizabeth's three cousins:

Here are some shots of Elizabeth's gorgeous dress and the exquisite shoes for the bride and bridesmaids:

Elizabeth and Carly's brother, Cody,  saved the day and appeared with supplies of wraps, sodas and most importantly, CHAMPAGNE!!!

We spent the rest of the time drinking champagne with Elizabeth and all her friends, very fun!

We then left Elizabeth so she could get ready for her wedding and we could as well! 

The wedding began with a pre-ceremony cocktail reception at the Epping Forest Yacht Club, beautiful and I just loved having a drink beforehand.  You'll never guess what Michele and I chose to drink......CHAMPAGNE!  We're so predictable ;)

After the cocktail reception we took our seats for the ceremony, just steps away!

and then the ceremony began with Micheal and his brothers (his groomsmen) taking their places:

Then the bridemaids made their way down the aisle:

the maid of honor:

the flower girls:

and finally the beautiful bride herself on her father's arm:

father of the bride giving her away:

and then they were married!

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Micheal Tricano:

as they new husband and wife made their way into the sunset, we made our way into the reception for some great food, music and booze!

Elizabeth and Micheal cut the cake:

and the reception was over!  Afterwards we headed over to Elizabeth and Micheal's hotel after a ride in their limo, you know it's a party when there's a limo!

We brought back beer for the bride and groom and had a little party right there in the hotel lobby!

Now that was a great wedding!  Congratulations Elizabeth and Micheal!