Life Update: A Wedding and A Bad Back

Big fat fail on the blogging front so far in 2011!! I'm so annoyed!

In my defence I've had the dreaded lurgy which lasted for two weeks and left me sounding like Mutley with a tres annoying barking cough, and then I put my back out on Sunday.

"How did you do that?" I hear you ask..... well it pains me (ha!) to admit that I fell out of bed. Which would be embarrassing enough in itself, but I was actually dreaming of being at the Zoo. It was one of those vivid dreams that makes you feel really involved and emotional. The Zoo then flooded and I was trying to rescue the animals... a split second later I was on the floor and the "elephant" that I was clinging onto actually turned out to be the bedsheets! I have to admit that it is quite funny.

The verdict is that I've torn the ligaments in my lower back (from trying to hold onto the elephant I expect!) and my gosh it hurts. My GP wanted to sign me off work for a week so that I can rest it, but I honestly can't afford to lose a week's pay this soon after Christmas so I've been dosing myself up with tablets and going into the office - on the condition that I sit at my desk and stay there!

I know that I must be mad going into work feeling like this. My long-suffering colleagues deserve a gold star this week too!

In between the Mutley illness and the Bad Back I went to my good friend Jenny's wedding. My best friend Louise and her hubby came over from Germany for the occassion and so the old gang of us were all together again. The whole day was wonderful from start to finish and I was honoured to have been asked by Jen and Adrian to read a beautiful text during the ceremony. I almost started crying after making the mistake of catching Jen's eye but took a deep breath and got to the end... aaaand I didn't trip over my floor-length dress! I was very proud of myself :)

Jen and Ade had the fantastic idea of planning some games inbetween Afternoon Tea and traditional speeches etc, and the "evening" part of the day. Afternoon Tea was amazing btw. Home-made cakes, cupcakes, jam tarts and scones sitting on shabby-chic cakestands with little pots of various home-made jam, and beautiful tea and coffee pots dotted along the tables... I was in heaven!

The children had a little games room just off the main reception room so they were happy (although it wasn't long before they discovered the balloons. One of my worst fears is a child plus balloon!) and we had a wine tasting game followed by a charity quiz.

Our team won the quiz!!! Jen and Ade kindly donated £50.00 towards a charity of the winning team's choice, and we chose the Cystic Fibrosis Unit at Papworth Hospital in memory of my cousin Mike. Another wedding guest donated another £25.00 which was an unexpected and wonderful gesture. I was quite emotional at that point. I'm so pleased that the unit at Papworth will benefit from their generosity.

This is what I wore:

from asos

Don't you just love it when you go back in to look and it's in the bloody sale?!

I haven't included a photo of myself wearing it because I don't have any photos of myself that don't include other people, and I didn't want to upload wedding photos without asking Jen and Adrian first - hopefully I'll edit this later or create a separate post and show you some pictures!

Am I rambling? Yes. As usual a massive post! Is this even making any sense? It really is the tablets :(

xx

Road trip countdown!!

I'm so excited at the moment as I got the all clear today to travel to my best friend Louise's wedding in Germany on Thursday!!

Lou moved to Europe whilst studying for her MA and has settled near Stuttgart with her wonderful fiance Gerhard. Lou is so fluent in German that she now has to think of the English equivalent. Wouldn't it be amazing to be so proficient in another language? I went over to stay with them last year and was so embarrassed by my broken schoolgirl German that I vowed to learn more... that lasted all of three weeks and I've forgotten it all again now apart from the basics - oh dear!

Lou and Gerhard make a fantastic couple and I'm so pleased that they found each other. Lou jokes that it is an added bonus that Gerhard LOVES Little Britain and Gavin & Stacey haha! He really seems to "get" and love the British sense of humour - a match made in heaven!

Anyway, I am pleased to announce that Lou and Gerhard have asked me to translate the service into English so that Lou's friends and family can keep track. I have promised her that I will refrain from any Vicar of Dibley antics (we love that show!) and I just hope that I will manage to get through it without crying... I never used to cry at weddings but have needed a truckload of tissues in recent years - fingers crossed!

It will be VERY strange though, because I have to stand next to the Registrar and repeat her address, and I will actually say that they "are lawfully husband and wife". A bit of a responsibility but I'm so honoured that they asked me!! I'm sure I'll never repeat the experience.

The other exciting news is that we are having a change from flying and have decided to make an occasion of it and are driving there - my first ever road trip!!! If anything it will be cheaper than flying. I am travelling with my friend Jen and her partner Adrian but won't be helping with the driving as they have a manual car and I can only drive an automatic. My important job is to supply sweets to keep up morale :)

We are leaving at 7am on Thursday morning to beat most of the M25 traffic and have to be at Folkestone for 10am to catch the Chunnel. I have never been on it before (trying not to think how unnatural it will be to travel under the English Channel).

After arriving at Calais we will then proceed through France, Belgium and The Netherlands before reaching Germany, and then we stay on the Autobahn for hours... and hours... and hours....

Providing we don't get too lost, we should reach our hotel by 8pm on Thursday night. Not bad, considering we will have been in 5 countries in one day!

There are quite a few of us heading over to Germany but aside from our friends Lucy and Martyn and their boys, we are the only ones who are going on a big road adventure. Martyn has family in Northern Germany and they are leaving the UK tomorrow to break their journey there.

I plan to be SUCH a tourist and will no doubt take zillions of photos of various random landmarks along the way (note to self: save some of the memory card for the actual wedding day!!)

The wedding is at 11am on Friday morning, followed by photos at a local Schloss, a champagne wedding breakfast and then the actual wedding reception which begins at 4pm. From then on in it is an all-nighter finishing at 6am. Not sure if I will see the night through - it's been a few years!! Oh, and it is also German tradition to have a free bar at a wedding. With this in mind I will DEFINITELY not be seeing 6am!!!

Most of Saturday will be spent resting, and then we are all heading into the local town for a beer festival called Gockles Fest (Roast Chicken Festival). I kid you not. They had a Raddish Festival while I was there! Perhaps we should embrace some of their community spirit and have jolly gatherings like that here too!

Then on Sunday, we leave after breakfast to catch the 4pm Chunnel crossing. I'm sure it'll be a weekend to remember. So excited!!!

I have tomorrow off work as Annual Leave so will pack then. Have to get Gizmo cat to the Cattery for 4pm so am already bracing myself for the inevitable chase/coercing/begging to get him into his basket. Then for the inevitable peeling-claws-from-top-of cage-where-cat-is-hanging-on manoeuvre! Poor Gizmo cat. I will spoil him when he comes home :)

One question: Why on earth is travel insurance so expensive if you have a health condition? Declaring my CP cost an additional £12 even though I am not on medication for this and neither do I experience any consequential health problems. I don't even use any walking aids but just happen to walk with a slightly different gait. It seems unfair but I guess that's life...

xx