There’s been a big gap between posts as I have been back in Australia (the Gold Coast more specifically) for two weddings and one day in Sydney to pack up more things and fly them here.

In spite of it being a whirlwind tour and Mr Shallot catching a chest infection on the flight over, it was a relaxing trip.

The weddings were a good excuse for a visit though it was a little sooner than we had initially planned. The first wedding was my brother’s and the second was a good friend of mine and I was a bridesmaid at that one. Talk about contrasts.

The similarities – they both had a bride, groom, flowergirl(s), vows, speeches and food was involved.

The differences –
My brother’s wedding was in their backyard under a gazebo that he and his bestman had erected the day before. Between he and his new wife, they have four girls ranging in age from six to 10. They looked gorgeous in their matching pastel flowergirl dresses that were made to have them looking like princesses. They had little baskets full of rose petals which they tossed as they walked up the isle. After the vows, the bridal party and families went to have photos taken. We then all had a few beverages and some nibblies and were able to catch up.

The second wedding was on a large scale and featured vows in a church, an afternoon tea, photos and then a reception dinner. This wedding was more formal. As mentioned, this was for a long-term friend (27 years!) so it was great to be involved. It started for me at 6am having my hair and make-up done. Technically, it actually started a few days before (beauty treatment-wise) as I had a manicure and pedicure with my toenails painted in “It’s All Greek To Me” by Opi – a bright pink colour which perfectly matched the base fabric in the dress (it had a layer of tightly woven black beaded lace over the top so the overall effect was more burgundy). Pink was the theme for this wedding and it was everywhere including on the ribbons of the stretch limo! It took me back to our Barbie playing days so I included that in my speech.

In between the weddings, we visited and visited and visited (apologies to those that we could only see briefly). Very lucky to have been able to spend a whole day with one of my aunties and two of my uncles after my brother’s wedding. It’s not often that we are all together and unfortunately one of my other aunties was recovering in hospital after surgery (yes, she is ok). We also spent time with Mr Shallot’s family and now will be coming back again next May for another wedding – yep, Mr Shallot’s brother is getting married.

I’m now officially relaxed and ready to begin work next Tuesday (the Monday is a public holiday for the 10th anniversary since the handover). I’m really excited about starting and can hardly wait to see a second salary coming in! Will certainly make it easier for any upcoming holidays!

* Thanks to Alex Lloyd for the title to this post.