Getting used to being home again, wedding planning, the big day came and Olivia and Miguel finally tied the knot. A beautiful wedding reception in our own garden.

 Madrid. Sunday, 18th June, 2023

The photo of the day. 

Good morning friends.

This time last Sunday was our first day home after our 50 day road trip. And in just a week since then Olivia and Miguel finally tied the knot. I say finally as they have been together for more than 10 years and already have children; rather untraditional to say the least. 

So it's been a very hectic week for all. But last Sunday was a quiet family day. I couldn't get enough of my family after such a long absence. But first things first and Suzy and I went to get some provisions as the cupboards were bare. We then met up with Oli and co for coffee and croissants.

Eladio with Juliet and Elliot last Sunday

It was wonderful to be together again. It was not so wonderful to go to large ball park with them which was so noisy. We only stayed a few minutes concluding we were too old for such things. I have never liked crowded indoor places with lots of people and noise - at heart I am a country girl. 

At the entrance to the bouncy ball park 

So we left the young family to it and drove home to get lunch prepared. As you will know, Lucy who had been with us for 4 years, upped and left while we were away but thankfully she brought another lady from Paraguay, Tana  (Sebastiana) , to replace her  -initially for 4 days but now she is staying on and so far so good.

The whole day was dedicated to the family and for once we had no guests. At dinner time though Eladio and I were alone and enjoyed a simple meal on the kitchen terrace. Tana prepared "tortilla española" - thankfully she knows how to make it as it's a staple part of our diet here.

It was lovely to be home but strange and it took time to get into our usual routines. We couldn't get our trip out of our heads and that day I reread some of my blog posts. I wrote 8 all in all and am thinking of printing them and turning them into a booklet to keep. They are an amazing momentum to recall everywhere we went and everything we did. Thank you for reading them. 

Monday came and there would be lots to do. It was a day full of action, mostly wedding planning but also food shopping which included coffee at Alverán. It was nice to be back in Spain, if only for the coffee there. 2 coffees and a croissant cost 4 euros vs 10 euros in France. That says something doesn't it? Why Spaniards complain about life here is beyond me. They should do our road trip to come back and realise what a great country this is.

It also included a much needed haircut and a welcome Skype call with my friend Amanda. We shall be resuming our Monday afternoon calls. I love to share my life with her and only wish we lived nearer each other. 

We caught up with the news too - having taken a huge break during our trip. There were 2 big stories that day; Boris Johnson resigned from politics - good riddance - and Silvio Berlusconi, that colourful and controversial Italian politician, Italy's version of Donald Trump - died aged 86.

Meals outside were a delight too with Tana helping and serving them although I cooked - boeuf stroganof for the record. On Monday I got the best night's sleep in a long time and slept the night through - a bit of a miracle for me - waking up at 7 am on Tuesday morning. 

We had more errands to do that day - I love our morning errands together. We went to the garden centre to get a big hydrangea plant to replace one that had died. We then headed back to Boadilla where I went to get some new sun glasses. You may not remember but mine fell into the canal  while having a photo taken by the Bridge of Sighs in Venice - shall never forget the moment, hahahaha. It was then time for our morning coffee which we had, yes, you guessed it, at Alverán. The lovely waitress served me the best capuccino I have ever had. So I had to have a photo which I must share here as it's one of the good ones I think. 

A wonderful capuccino at Alverán on Wednesday morning

As he took it, my husband remarked "España, sin ir más lejos" - meaning Spain, no need to go further away (sin ir más lejos also means  as a matter of fact) This comes from a slogan from years ago to encourage rural tourism in Spain. How right he was. After all the countries and cities we visited on our road trip, we both came back convinced Spain is one of the top countries to live in in the world. 

We were copying some new clicker remotes for the main gate - don't know where they all go - when I received a call from Bulgaria. Wow! It was from Vladimir, "Volodya" who was my mother's pupil in the 90's. We met him in Sofia and it was thanks to him that we got to visit my mother's house on Dante Street and where we met Ralitsa, the daughter of Antoinette,  my Aunty Masha's best friend. Ralitsa's family lived in the flat right under my grandparents. I shall never forget that moment. As Vladimir is not on Whatsapp I downloaded Viber which he uses and then we spoke again. He wanted to tell me how much he loved my mother, how she helped him when he arrived at Leeds University as a young foreign student who had never left his native Bulgaria. He told me she knitted a jumper for him as he didn't have one and she was worried he would be cold in the north of England. It was then that I found Ralitsa and later her brother Anton on Viber and FB. In 1992 on their second trip to Bulgaria after the Iron Curtain fell, my parents, Aunty Masha and Zuka stayed with them. Anton sent me a very old video of a birthday celebration they had together at their flat, the flat Vladimir took me to. It's grainy and bad quality of course, but so wonderful to see my mother, my Aunt and a very young Zuka. I'm so glad we included Sofia on our road trip - the emotional highlight for me. 

That was on my mind as we did more shopping, for items I had forgotten to add to the list on Monday. Once home we unpacked everything and I made lunch - fish this time. I am teaching Tana to make the dishes we like for our meals. Oh I do miss Lucy but I'm sure Tana will do a good job one day. The signs are there but only time will tell. 

There was a huge rain storm so we had to have lunch inside. There was even hail which I hoped wouldn't damage the new hydrangea. We had also bought some calla flower plants from a street seller by Alverán.  I love these flowers which grow wild in Asturias. Eladio planted them where we had a bald patch outside the garage and they look lovely. He does not have high hopes for them as he says they are very delicate. I hope he is wrong.

New calla flower plants in our garden

The rest of the day was spent quietly. I rewrote my speech and I hoped Eladio wrote his. He was reluctant to write one but I kept telling him it would be the highlight of the wedding and how much it would mean to his daughter Olivia. I did not badger him any more. 

Dinner was inside because of the weather and we had fresh gnocchi with the delicious pesto sauces I bought in Italy.  

We went to bed just on time for the news and to see Donald Trump in the dock for keeping White House secret papers at his luxury home in Mar a Lago. Will he be charged or sent to prison? I doubt it. 

The news on Wednesday morning was full of the same story but I'm not really following it. I skimped through The Times that day and am realising that the news right now, after our trip, is somehow not interesting me as much as it used to. 

That day we had a group of 8 people coming to stay, on top of one guest we already had. They were coming for 2 nights and would leave on the morning of Oli's wedding. I had blocked the calendar for 16th and 17th June and wished I had also blocked it for the 15th so we would be alone the day before the wedding.  Thus the house would be full and hectic for 2 nights. Well, we have places to escape to, namely our own quarters - our big bedroom and our study 

Oli and Miguel came as they did on many days, bringing stuff for the wedding. Miguel bought far too much of everything - as usual - and I imagined there would be loads of drinks leftover afterwards as there were after my 60th birthday party. They stayed for lunch which was cream of broccoli soup followed by "bitki" (Russian type hamburgers) with mashed potatoes. I taught Tana how to make the soup and the bitki and will be showing her how to make other dishes we like for our meals. 

The gardeners came too and mowed the lawns and Eladio and Miguel put up some new parasols he had bought as the temperature forecast for the big day was 33ºc. I knew we would be sweltering but Olivia insisted on the reception being in the garden. I would have chosen the pool where there is a lot more shade. 

Our Airbnb guests arrived at around 4.30 and soon the house was mega full. I escaped to my room and Eladio escaped to his study. We only met again for dinner which we had on the kitchen terrace. It took me a while to fall asleep that night. I think I was suffering from wedding nerves.

 I was up at 6 am on Thursday morning, the day before the wedding; the day before the big day and there was so much to do.  Thankfully our 9 guests were all asleep so I had the kitchen to myself.

The catering people came, Miguel came multiple times to bring even more drinks which no longer fitted in any fridge. I went out to do some more shopping so as to have a decent lunch. With all the guests in the kitchen I managed to make a meal of bacalhua a bras. I tried to rest before the afternoon preparations for the wedding, namely getting the garden ready or as ready as it could be before the big day as most things would go up the next morning.

At about 5.30 Gloria arrived with two helpers. I have known Gloria for more than 20 years as she always worked at the PR and events agencies I hired when I was at Motorola, Nokia, Yoigo and even Adamo. It had to be Gloria who would "dress up" this wedding. And what a wonderful time we had. Here are some photos,  a sort of what is called "making of" in the industry.

Some of the photos of the "making of"

And here are some of the photos of the finished decorations. More would come, including the flowers, the next morning.

Getting the garden ready

While all this was going on, Suzy wanted to try out the sound system and she gave us a foretaste of what was to come on the day. I always wish Suzy had become a professional singer. Don't you agree?

Suzy trying out the sound system with Pippa at her feet

I took a short video for you to hear her singing. 

Suzy trying out the sound system. What a wonderful voice she has

It was getting late and what wasn't ready by then would be done the next morning so we bade goodbye to darling Gloria and her helpers.

It was just Eladio, Suzy and me for dinner then which we had on the kitchen patio - a mixture of lovely leftovers. Then it was early to bed to get as much sleep as possible for the next day.

Apart from waking up at 3 and not being able to fall asleep until 4, I actually slept until 7.20 so not bad at all. And what a day Friday would be, the day of the wedding of my youngest daughter Olivia to her partner and now our formal son-in-law, Miguel and in our own home which made it so much more intimate. 

It was all go from early morning. By 9 am the catering people were here, by 9.30 Gloria was here to finish decorating the garden and by 10 dear Copi was here to do Ol's make up and her hair. I was under strict instructions from Olivia to be with her throughout until she was dressed in her lovely bridal gown - a very simple off white slinky dress from Mango. I later gave her a beautiful bouquet. Her necklace was a diamond pendant worn by her great grandmother on my father's side. It's a family heirloom which now belongs to her. 

Very soon Copi had done her makeup and she looked stunning. 

The bride with her makeup on

For her hair I was the one who insisted on Austrian braids which is what Oli wanted too. Copi worked her magic to make it look like this. 

Her hair - Austrian braids

And here is a fun video of Oli being made up by Copi. 

Soon it was time to dress the bride and that was mainly Suzy's job who was also dressed by then. She looked lovely too. I love this photo of the two sisters. 

Suzy dressing her sister the bride

When she was ready, she walked down the stairs and I took another video. 

Here comes the bride

We walked towards the swimming pool for a session of family photos and that's when her father saw her. Only he knows how he felt. I felt as if a dream was coming true. 

Family photo session

Olivia was driven to the registry office in nearby Boadilla in Copi's car. I presume the 3 "girls" enjoyed every moment. 

The bridal car

Meanwhile the groom was getting ready at their flat accompanied by his mother Merche, his brother Alberto and his nephew Ruben. With them came little Elliot and Juliet looking gorgeous. I caught them on camera when I arrived at the Registry Office - no church, boohoo

Miguel and his family arriving

Miguel was in for a surprise. He thought his greatest buddies, Lolo, Karlanger and Jovi who were his colleagues at RTVE in Valencia were not coming. But Suzy made it happen and they were there on his big day. Here they are together with Elliot and Juliet. It is thanks to them that Oli and Miguel met so they had to be with us on Friday. 

Surprise for Miguel - his greatest friends from Valencia were there with him on his big day

True to tradition, the bride was accompanied by her father and that is the photo I have chosen for this week's very special blog post. I know Friday was all about them, but this blog is written from my perspective and nothing made me happier that day then seeing Olivia being accompanied by her father. 

The session was short and Olivia made us all laugh when instead of saying "Yes, I consent", she said "No, I don't", then laughed out loud and had us in stitches. She soon rectified her words and said the right words. The magistrate told them how as a married couple they had to perform family tasks together at which moments Oli shoved her elbow into Miguel. That had us laughing too. Later Oli said she couldn't resist saying "no" to shock us all. After the not so serious marriage instructions, finally it was time to exchange rings and this is the moment when they finally tied the knot. 

Exchange of rings

The ceremony was soon over but we had a great reception and party to look forward to. The bride and groom were instructed to hide somewhere in the house before making their entrance as there was a surprise for them. 

There were already people on the lawn when I arrived and Gloria was still there adding some final touches. Everything looked beautiful with all the decoration and hydrangeas . It was very hot though and they would soon wilt - boo hoo. 

Here are some pics for you to get the idea. 

The decoration

Only when everyone was there could we start. I had organised silent fireworks for their reception. The men were given the coloured smoke torches and the women had bags of rice. They came out the wrong way but it didn't matter. This is them when they made their appearance. 

The bride and groom make their entrance

You can see the full effects here in this video taken by one of Miguel's ex colleagues. 

From what I can judge in this picture, they were very happy with the surprise coloured smoke and fire. It was great fun and a wonderful start to a wonderful reception.

The bride and groom kissing after the surprise entrance

Only then could the party begin. And here is our son-in-law, Miguel, on his wedding day in our garden with his father-in-law. 

Father-in-law and son-in-law

All in all there were about 40 guests, just immediate family and friends of the bride and groom. As the bride's parents we didn't invite any of our friends. The only family on our side were José Antonio and Dolores, who are Oli's god parents and one of their sons and his family. It was lovely to be together and we took this photo. I later realised Suzy is not in it - boohoo again. 

With some of Eladio's family at the wedding on Friday

I had prepared a schedule which we tried to stick to. This was it:

Bride and groom entrance with silent fireworks

Food and drink 

Speeches from the father of the bride, the god father and Miguel's friend Carlos

Toast with champagne

Waltz - father with the bride, the groom with his mother and then swapping until everyone dancing.

Suzy singing

Speeches - mother of the groom, my speech

Piñata moment

Cake moment

Speech from the bride and groom

Cocktails and karaoke

Here are some photos of these precious moments. 

The piñata moment

The beautiful and delicious cake

The bride and groom cutting the cake with the help of Juliet hahahaha

There are many more photos and videos of the day and we haven't even seen the professional ones yet,  but here is one that stands out - it's of Oli and me.

The bride with her mother

 I don't know what we were saying but I remember the moment. The reception lasted until quite late at night but as it was a day wedding, thankfully we weren't up until the early hours of the morning. We went to bed at about midnight, leaving the garden in one huge mess - boohoo. 

The bride and groom went home. They didn't go on honeymoon as they have two small children, hahahaha. It doesn't matter. What matters is that they are now legally husband and wife. It took them a while but they finally tied the knot. All I can say is that I hope they will be as happy as we are.

Saturday dawned and there was an awful lot of clearing up to do which took up most of the day. The caterers weren't coming until Monday but we couldn't leave the garden in such a mess; like a wedding hangover. I only wished people hadn't stubbed out their cigarettes in the grass - not right.

Yesterday was a family day again as we were joined by the bride and groom and our grandchildren and we had a great day together, mostly by the pool. I somehow managed to rustle up a decent lunch and an improvised dinner. Yesterday was the first time I went in the pool and we had it all to ourselves which was bliss. When the day was nearly over and just before getting into bed, I went and had a midnight swim - skinny dipping of course. 

And today is Sunday and we have nothing planned so far. I hope just to rest and chill out after all the excitement. 

I hope I haven't bored you with details of the wedding but I'm sure you understand just how important it was to us as a family and this blog is all about our family; not just me, hahahaha. 

Cheers then till next Sunday,

Masha