Debra + Richard's Disney Wedding 2014

[djsmith]

I should add that while we were at the courthouse Lori from Loftis productions came to steam mine and my sisters dresses. There was a slight hiccup in her appointment book that she thought she was booked for the next monday not monday the 2nd of june. But all was well in the end. Lori was just setting up as we arrived back from the courthouse. I ended up sitting speaking to her the whole time she was at the villa and she is just a lovely sweet person. I hate small talk and i avoid it as much as possible but speaking to Lori wasn't forced it felt like chit chat between new friends and i was intriqued to hear about the other things she does for work like finding props for comercials that she was working the shoot of. Lori ended up steaming not only mine and my sisters bridesmaids dress but she also steamed my mums dress and all the mens shirts as an apology for the confusion. Would highly recommend Lori Loftis Productions despite the small appointment error she was an absolutely lovely person, she did a perfect job on my dress that had been stuck in a case for months and went above what she was required to do everyone elses things too.

 

[djsmith]

Tuesday 3rd June 2014
Day before the wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!
Busch Gardens and back to the villa to get ready and have an early night.

So we were all up extra early and excited because it was busch gardens day love busch gardens it has some of the best rollercoasters in florida and because its a little bit of a drive away we tend to just go once per holiday. As always we got lost on the way to busch gardens. We've been so many times but we just can't go the same way or get there without getting lost each time! get there in the end though as always.
Everyone was excited for this because not only has it got amazing rollercoasters its got other rides that the whole family can go on like the dodgems and river rapids and loads of animals to look at too.

my mission for today was to get a proper picture of the 11 of us from before the wedding then get one at some point after the wedding. Well that was not to be. We did get one of the parks photographers to take some pics. but the photographer somehow messed up and all his pictures went missing. so when we went to the photo point at the end of the day i was gutted to say the least when there wasnt any pictures and it was too late to take any more. So this is the closed we have to a pre wedding group shot. The only people that r missing r my mum and dad.

some more pics from throughout the day.

We got home to the villa pretty early, prob bout 7ish. Tonight Richard was going over to the other villa with his family so we weren't together the night before the wedding. tradition and all that eh. So we made sure he had everything ready that he needed, everything he needed was packed for our honeymoon and went over what was all gonna happen and when the next day. Then we said goodbye. I chilled at the pool for a little bit with my sister/bridesmaid Vicky and her boyfriend/bestman Andy before going for a shower and trying to get an early night. Turned out that while I felt really relaxed and steady about the big day it just took my mum to come in asking questions about if everything was ready and checking details of when things were happening to cause all my emotions to bubble over and i had a mini breakdown and argument with mum. I knew myself everything was sorted and i just wanted to go to bed. Me and my mum can have quite a volatile relationship when we spend too much time together and spending barely a second apart in 5 days was taking its toll. Going through everything and double checking everything so it was all ready to go settled us both down and i finally got into bed and went to sleep.

 

[djsmith]

WEDDING DAY TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
4th June 2014
Getting Ready @ the villa.

Up early and feeling incredibly calm and relaxed. I got into my shorts and my bride to be shirt and gave everyone else their shirts.
FSIL and FMIL came over just before the hairdresser and makeup artists arrived at half 7 in the morning.

We had weddings by crystal for hair and make up. Crystal Walters came to do my hair and airbrush makeup and her colleagues Peggy came to do hair and Melissa came to do makeup for everyone else. I can not recommend weddings by crystal highly enough. the woman were so nice to use all and it wasnt awkward the chat between everyone just flowed and everyone was happy with their makeup. I had been emailing with crystal a lot before we came to florida as me, my mum and sister had hair trials with our local hairdresser. So i sent her loads of pictures and discussed everything with her before hand. We even discussed about directions to the villa so everyone knew exactly where they were going.
So Melissa and Peggy got started on doing hair and make up.

Crystal arrived at 8am to start my hair and makeup. She began with the airbrush makeup. I paid the little bit extra for the airbrush makeup for the flawless coverage that it should provide and i have to say it did it perfectly. I never ever wear makeup at home i mean like once a month for a night out if you're lucky. So i was a little worried that after having suncream on for a few days that my skin would be getting clogged up a little and that the airbrush makeup would feel caked on. It was the complete opposite. When Crystal was spraying the airbrush foundation on it did feel thick, but as soon as it set minutes later it felt so light that i soon didnt even feel like i had any make up on. Crystal then finished off my makeup and did my hair including fitting and securing my tiara.

connor came over to show us his kilt, he was dead chuffed with his outfit for the day and u couldn't wipe the smile off the wee handsome boys face!

So as people began to be finished with their hair and makeup they began to disappear to go get dressed. The plan was to be ready for half past 9 as the first limo was due to arrive by quarter to 10. then the second at 10. Somehow we felt like we were running late and since it was just me to get dressed everyone left the villa and my sister helped me into my dress it turned out that the limo had arrived a little early, which was the reason we thought like we were running late. I was a little sad mum didn't have time to be part of that moment but she had been at all my fittings so she'd seen me in my dress a few times. It wasn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things. From the window I could peek out and see people beginning to appear in the street to get into the limo. Although Vicky kicked into bridesmaid mode and kept shouting me away from the window lol After being ready for a few minutes my dad came across with connor after they had said bye to everyone else. My dad's face was priceless when he seen me and we both fought back the tears. The other limo arrived but we couldn't get into it until the first limo had left. I paced up and down the livingroom with Connor and my dad laughing together and Vicky the bridesmaid shouting at me to stay away from the windows incase i was seen. It felt like it took ages for the first limo to leave and i was just impatient to get going. Finally we were able to lock up the villa and get into the limo.
Vicky snapped this pic of my dad and Connor justs before getting into the limo. Connor was so excited about everything for today and he just didn't stop smiling at all.

 

[djsmith]

WEDDING DAY!!!!!
LIMO TIME

So in the first limo went Hubby to be, best man, mother of the groom, father of the groom, sister of the groom and her husband and my mum mother of the bride.

Limo 2 was me and my sister (bridesmaid) and Connor (pageboy) and my dad. In the limo we were all a bit quiet but generally relaxed. I tried sitting really still for fear of wrinkling my dress or messing up my hair or something like that. I dunno why i did this. We mainly chatted to Connor about being in the limo and where we were going and what was gonna happen etc. His excitement was so adorable! I think my sister asked me how i was feeling at one point and if i was nervous. I really wasn't. I was just relaxed and pleased our day was finally here and i couldn't wait to get to the swan and get everything started.
We didn't take any pics in the limo as we travelled to the swan

Oh i forgot to say in the first limo my mum took a lot of stuff for us. She took the cake topper and our forever frame for the sand ceremony so that she could give these to our planner to get set up when she arrived at the hotel. She also took our suitecase for our honeymoon. We stayed at the swan hotel on the wedding night and for a few nights after so we had everything we would need packed into a case and my mum checked this with bell services at reception when she arrived at the hotel. In my limo my sister took my bag with my props, money, booking confirmations etc in it all the little things i thought i might need for the day.

 

[djsmith]

WEDDING DAY
arriving at the Swan hotel

So when the first limo arrived at the swan they were met by my planner Kristin Kimberlin and David and Vicki Arndt our photographers. I assume my mum passed our luggage to bell services and the other items onto our planner. Everyone then got some pictures taken at the front of the swan in the sun.
Rich.

Rich and his parents.

Rich and his parents and his sister

Rich and my mum

all the boys (except my dad and wee Connor)

everyone from the first limo

We pulled up in the second limo just as everyone was finishing getting their photos taken. it was a good job my limo had blacked out limos so Rich coudn't see me, but it was really nice to be able to sit in the limo and watch him before the ceremony. I hadn't seen him since the day before and while i could tell he was a little nervous in front of the camera it was nice to see him smiling.
After a minute or so the group all went inside (except for my mum) and we were able to get out of the limo. Without me even really realising David and Vicki were quickly snapping away as we got out of the limo.

Straight away Vicki and David came over and Vicki gave me a big hug! i'd been speaking to her for over a year and it was like meeting an old friend. then my mum came to join us for some pics at the limo and at the front of the hotel.

Kristin and her assistant then came over and introduced themselves and gave me and my bridesmaid Vicky our flowers. The flowers were beautiful and we got some more pictures taken before heading into the hotel.

 

[djsmith]

WEDDING DAY
more pre ceremony shots.

so we headed into the hotel lobby where Kristin was waiting. I love the expression on her face as we walked towards her.

We then took a few quick pictures at the swan fountain in the lobby.

Next we headed outside again towards the dolphin hotel. We walked past the courtyard where everyone was beginning to gather. It was fun peeking a look at Rich and the courtyard while trying to hide from him too (with Kristin and Vicki's help and guidance too). while dashing past the courtyard windows i noticed how beautiful it was. The flowers on top of the pillars were breathtaking and blew me away. Raining Roses and JustMarry knocked it out of the park with my flowers and they were better than i could have imagined. Anywayz once outside again we found some nice flowers and shrubs and David and Vicki began snapping away again.

I love this pic that David snapped while Vicki was taking pictures of me and my sister. Connor was so pleased with his sign and he felt so important with it. He held it proudly in front of him even when he wasn't being photographed. He was busy telling my dad about his special sign that auntie Debbie (me) made for him to carry so uncle richard knows when we're coming in and was pointing out the little crystals on it.

After a while Kristin came out to let us know it was almost ceremony time! we headed back inside guided again by Vicki and Kristin so I wasn't spotted by Richard. I remember peeking through the windows again and being blown away by how beautiful the set up was.

 

[djsmith]

WEDDING DAY
Ceremony Set Up.

Ok so I think now is a good time to share the ceremony set up etc.

speaking to my mum about the wedding after we'd arrived back home one thing she said was because we were stood in front of the table or next to it during the ceremony it meant the guests didn't have that good a view as we were more in the middle of them instead of in front of the them. So they had a side on view kind of. If i had known while planning I would have asked my planner to move the table to the side, meaning we would stand closer to the fountain.

So as you may know after much debate we picked a flute and guitar for our music. It was perfect! the two instruments work perfectly together and our songs were breathtakingly beautiful on them. Another great decision.

 

[djsmith]

Ceremony Time

So we (Me, Vicky, my dad and Connor) waited inside the doors to the courtyard and chatted with Kristin while we waited. She talked us all through what was gonna happen and who was gonna walk first and set my dad up next to me holding my arm through his. After a few minutes Kristin opened the doors and we heard the music start. I loved how my chosen aisle song, can you feel the love tonight, sounded so so soft on the flute and guitar. We waited a few seconds and then Kristin directed Connor to walk along and down the aisle. She then waited until Connor was in the courtyard before instructing Vicky to make her entrance then finally me and my dad. I remember smiling at Rich, clinging onto my dad as we walked and trying to soak it all in. When we reached the courtyard we stood for a moment as the song finished almost in perfect time.

Richard's smile when Rev Ron asked everyone to stand for the entrance of the bride

As I reached Richard his smile was as big as mine. Rev Ron took over asking my dad to "give me away" with a kiss on the cheek and placing my hands in Richards before everyone took their seats.

Rev Ron talked about what marriage means, and we said our vows.

we'd both done really well holding in the emotions. I always knew I'd cry during the ceremony, if not before it and i felt i dont quite well to make it to the vows before the tears started. I think Richard made it to almost the end of the vows before he shed a few tears too. We're both an emotional couple and there was really no avoiding it. After the vows we exchanged rings. This was a little more complicated than i think most normal wedding ceremonies go. Andy the best man was in charge of looking after the rings, so he had them in his sporran. But with Connor being our ring bearer/page boy we had given him the role of bringing the rings to us during the ceremony. Since Andy is my sisters boyfriend he was sitting on the left hand side with my sister and parents. Connor was the furthest away from him sitting on a chair at the other end with his parents. So Andy had to get up, walk across to Connor to give him the rings, then dash back to his seat.

Connor then got up and brought the rings up to us. Connor first tried to give us the rings before Rev Ron stretched out his hand and I asked Connor to give them to Ron. He gave the rings to Ron then went back and sat down. I'm really pleased we decided to let Connor do this. It made him feel like he was involved and important and he was very proud of the role he had in our wedding.

After the rings we moved onto our sand ceremony. Rev Ron talked about what the sand ceremony was and what it represented. While we poured our sand into our frame the music began again. We had chosen you'll be in my heart from Tarzan and again I was blown away by how beautiful it sounded on the flute and guitar.

Once the sand ceremony was finished, Rev Ron said a beautiful indian wedding blessing. He then said the famous "I now pronounce you man and wife you may now kiss you're bride" and we happily obliged. He then introduced us to everyone as the new Mr&Mrs Bell and we walked up the aisle.

We're finally married!!!!!! <3

 

[djsmith]

once we walked out as a married couple our family then followed up the aisle. we unintentionally ended up with a receiving line kind of thing where we stood and all our guests hugged and congratulated us. It wasn't planned but it was quite nice especially with only 9 guests.

Our planner Kristin then invited us back into the courtyard for cake and mimosas. Along with the swan's catering staff member everyone was poured a mimosa. We then began speeches. Andy our best man went first.

Next was my dad's turn for a speech. to say it was emotional was an understatement. I wasn't prepared for how much emotion he would feel on my wedding day. I hadn't considered the fact that his eldest daughter was getting married, the first of his two daughters. so que the tears.

Dad's speech had everyones tears flowing. Once speeches were over it was cake time! We cut the cake and posed for pics. We then fed each other a piece of cake which was interesting and fun. A kiss with a mouthful of cake is definitely not something i have ever done before.

The catering woman then cut everyone a piece of cake and we all sat down and ate it. The cake was beautiful and everyone complimented its taste. while we enjoyed our cake and mimosas David and Vicki were busy snapping away as usual. They took our rings and a programme and did lots of interesting things with them with like putting them on the noses of mickey and minnie from our cake and making a hidden mickey shape with our programme. (see above post).

 

[djsmith]

Then it was post ceremony pic time. David and Vicki started off with pictures in the courtyard.

Then it was group picture time with all our families.

 

[djsmith]

and some more.
Best Buds

all the boys

all the girls

 

[djsmith]

Then we took some more couple pictures.....

we then headed over to the east courtyard for more pics.

then we walked out to the middle of the hotels between the swan and dolphin. As we walked Vicki stopped us outside Il Mulino. She remembered that while talking about our plans that I had said we were dining at Il Mulino later on in the evening. So she got us to stop and take a few pics in front of the restaurant.

Then we carried on outdoors.

Here's a little proof that David and Vicki r always clicking.......

we took a few more pics around this area before heading inside and out to the front of the hotel where we took a few more pictures while David went to get the car.

like i said D&V are always clicking away.......

then it was time to say goodbye to Paul our videographer. He'd been following along with us and got some footage for our video. Paul had been everything I had hoped for from a videographer. Like I'm sure I've said before we're shy people and not comfortable in front of cameras. While it was easier to become comfortable in front of a digital photography camera because I do like to take pictures to create memories but being in front of a video camera (even one held by a family member while on holiday) has always let me to smile and keep my mouth shut, saying as little as possible. I dislike the sound of my own voice and apart from during the ceremony I didn't want a camera and a microphone picking up everything I said. Rich just doesnt like being in front of either of them but he did it for the memories and because he knew how much they meant to me. He knew we couldn't not have videography and photography and of course professionals would do so much better than just family attempts. So anyway we never noticed Paul was there almost all of the time except the few times he asked us to do specific things. I was a bit sad we hadn't had chance to chat and get to know him better during our day but at the same time i was glad he had been so quiet and professional being in the background and not in our faces exactly how we had wanted it. We said goodbye and silently hoped for a quick turn around on our sneak peek and full video.

 

[djsmith]

POLY PICS TIME!
So in the jeep we climbed and off to the Polynesian for our next lot of pictures. It felt strange being in a car in a wedding dress with two people i had only met that day. At the same time it also felt like being with friends. We chatted as we travelled and D&V had kindly brought drinks with them which were very welcome. I hadn't thought about keeping our fluids up while we went everywhere picture taking so i was very glad they had.
When we got to the poly David dropped us at the front door and went to park the car. After a few minutes David returned and we walked through the hotel and out a door towards the pool and dock area. I was shocked at how the construction for the new lobby had effected the area. The construction walls reached all the way to the ceiling and the natural light was blocked out. the lobby was dim and quite dark. It wasn't anything like i remembered when we had looked around a few years before. I was pleased once we got outside again to be greeted by the theming and tropical flowers and the sound of running water that made me love the feel of the resort.

and while this picture was taken David caught Richard's expression and snapped this photo. Like i said, they're always clicking!

we took some snaps at the dock then walked around to the beach. we spent quite a long time at the beach, and i love the shots we got. What you can't see in the pictures is how intense the sun was. By this point i'm guessing it was probably between 1 and 2pm and the sun was so bright that we were standing with our eyes closed until Vicki would shout something like we have a little cloud! eyes open! until they said ok and we could close our eyes again. The shots i have of me looking at the castle are some of my all time favourites. BUT in reality i'm not actually looking at the castle. I'm standing with my eyes shut lol

and some more unposed moments that david and vicki caught, one with me showing richard how well my flowers were holding up in the heat out of water for so many hours and that around the edges of the leaves they should be wrinkling but they weren't. The other is Rich helping me to put my shoes back on after being on the sand since I couldn't bend down and fasten them myself.

 

[djsmith]

We then decided it was time to get out of the sun and head to the contemporary resort. So we headed back inside and waited for the monorail. This was another thing i was excited for. MONORAIL PICS! We were lucky that it wasn't busy, being mid afternoon most people were out for the day or at the pool for the day. So we had a whole section of the monorail to ourselves

 

[4under4]

I think the monorail pics are the best so far. You seem more relaxed and that really comes through.

 

[djsmith]

We got off at the Contemporary resort. I'd never been here before except passing through on the monorail to the magic kingdom. D&V lead the way through the hotel to the fantasia shop. We followed them and i think i spent the whole time looking around taking it all in. We took a few pics outside the shop with the big mickey ears before heading out to the viewing balcony.

once out on the balcony i was amazed at the great view of the castle you got. Again the sun was blazing in our eyes. We went back to the same technique we used on the beach, closing our eyes and opening them with a smile when told. I think its a little more obvious in these pictures how hot and bright the sun was.

this was the first instance my hair began to lose its shape. When i look back at the photos i notice a few of the curls have began to straighten and my fringe had came loose. It only took repositioning of my kirbie to fix my fringe and we continued.

Another favourite me and my glorious bag!

Next we headed indoors and downstairs. We found the mickey ears statue and got some great pictures there.

By this time we didn't realise it was after 3 and the strong afternoon sun and heat was really getting to us. We were glad when D&V said we were going back inside for a while! We headed for the disabled bathroom. Vicki helped me out of my wedding dress and i changed into some shorts and vest top that i had brought in my bag. We then went back up to the fantasia shop. D&V took my dress and hung it up in a few places before bringing it back to me. Me and Vicki went back to the bathroom and got me back into my dress and returned to where we'd left Rich and David.

They also snapped this photo while we were taking a breather. I have to say it was nice to be out of my wedding dress for a while. I hadn't realised how hot it was until I had it off.

This time when i returned in my dress with Vicki D&V took my flowers and shoes and all our props and we were able to sit on a bench and relax. As families passed by us a few little girls got excited and smiled and waved. Many people said congratulations as they passed.

When D&V came back Vicki said she'd been admiring my nails all day and just had to take a picture of them. I loved my nails

.
We were now done with our photography. We got the monorail back to the Poly with D&V where we would get back in the car and they would drop us off at the swan. Although we were finished with our picture locations D&V never stop snapping so we got some more monorail pics and some more pictures at the poly while we waited on the car. I think you can see the tiredness of the day in us here in these pics. We hadn't stopped all day and had spent a lot of time in the sun without eating anything or drinking much.

 

[djsmith]

I think the monorail pics are the best so far. You seem more relaxed and that really comes through.

thanks! I love our monorail pics. We're not a posing couple so the ones they got that are natural and unposed are some of my favourites. Wow i'm slowly getting through this planning journal almost done with wedding day!

 

[djsmith]

So David&Vicki dropped us off at the swan, we said our goodbyes and waved them off. We then went inside to find our families. It didn't take long, everyone was sitting in the hotel lounge just past reception. We said hello to everyone then set about checking in to our room. It felt very odd standing at reception checking into a hotel in a wedding dress. We were told that Kristin had arranged for our flowers and cake to be delivered to our room and that it should be there. We took our keys and headed upstairs. This is where the suprises began.
Our keycard (with my name and our date of our stay on it, we stayed from the 4th to the 8th but for reasons i can't remember we needed a new keycard on the day before check out)

the sign that greeted us as we got out the elevator.

I knew i hadn't booked any upgrades but i was sure the receptionist had said floor ten and the room number she gave us matched that. So we carried on and found our room number. It took forever to get in the door and after several attempts we concluded that either there was a problem with the keys or the receptionist had given us the wrong room number. Rich went back to reception and confirmed we were at the right door. My Dad and Rich came with someone from bell services who opened the door for us. The room inside was amazing. (note some of these pics were taken the day after wedding hence why some things are unpacked and the flowers are in water etc)
Entrance.

living area.

bed and big tv

massive his and her bathroom!! with walk in closet and walk in shower/wet room. and robes and towels.

There was a problem though. Our flowers and cake were nowhere to be seen. So this time my dad went down to ask reception about it. He came back with my mum and the news that we had an adjoining room and that the flowers and cake were definitely delivered. An adjoining room! we hadn't even noticed that our keys worked in both doors and that there was a door in our room that we hadn't noticed or tried to open. We opened the adjoining door to find the things we were looking for plus another living room space and bathroom with a bath, closet and a small kitchen like area with sink and fridge. This was also when we found some gifts! Not only had we been upgraded to the honeymoon suite but we also had complimentary champagne and chocolates! Here are some more pictures of our honeymoon suite.

Pretty flowers

we had sent the majority of the cake back to the villas with family.

While my dad had been downstairs at reception Rich had helped me out of my dress so i could go to the toilet, then he helped me back into my dress. I realised this was the only toilet break i had had all day since getting up all those hours ago in the morning before hair and makeup arrived. Once we looked around the room we noticed the time. We had a table booked for 5pm at Il Mulino and it was now 4:45pm. This was then I realised that D&V who we had only paid for until 3pm had in fact not dropped us back at the hotel until almost 4pm! When Vicki facebooked me some sneak peeks from her iphone later on that night I thanked her for the extra time they had put it that we hadn't even noticed. She said she knew how much the shots i had asked for meant to me and they made sure we got them.
We then went downstairs and met everyone else and headed to Il Mulino. We were seated in a quiet corner of the restaurant as i had requested and our server came to greet us. It turned out he was from liverpool in england, but had lived in the states for most of his life. He was a lovely man, chatty and helpful and friendly. He even stood up on a chair to take a group picture for us.

Il Mulino was great and the food was amazing. We left well and truly happy and full.

 

[djsmith]

Before everyone got taxis back to the villas we had to show them the honeymoon suite! So we took everyone upstairs and showed them around. While we were in the room Richard's mum brought wee Connor over to me and said he wanted to tell me something. He got all shy and ended up whispering it into my ear. he said auntie debbie now that the wedding is finished you're my real auntie Debbie! awww he's too cute! i dunno where he got the idea from because since he was born i was always auntie debbie to him but he made me smile anywayz. Its amazing what five year olds can understand and come out with.
So finally everyone said their goodbyes and headed to reception to get taxis. Rich helped me out of my dress again and i put it away in the closet. He got changed out of his kilt and back into comfortable close we headed down to the hotel shop. we had a quick look around then bought some popcorn
and took it back up to the room. We sat on the balcony (one of 4) to wait for the fireworks and eat a bit of popcorn.

awww hubby can be romantic, he stole a rose from our flowers and brought it out to me with a wee sly look.

 

[djsmith]

Honeymoon Day 1
Thurs 5th June 2014

we didn't set the alarm, just woke up and chilled for a little before going downstairs for the bus. We caught the bus to the Magic Kingdom then walked over to the contemporary hotel. My mum and dad had booked us a parasailling session as a wedding gift.

It was comforting being at the contemporary and remembering the great time we had there the day before made me smile. We had breakfast/lunch at the contempo cafe, nothing exciting just burger and fries, but its what we like. We then went downstairs and out to the pool area. We checked in for our parasailling and since we were a hour early we grabbed frozen cocktails and relaxed near the dock.

soon it was parasailling time. We were on the boat with 2 members of staff and another group a brother and a sister. They went over all the safety precautions etc and what to do what not to do and the brother and sister went first. Then it was our turn. The view was amazing from up so high and there was so much you could see. It always gave a perspective of just how spread out walt disney world is. I could see several of the hotels and i was suprised to be able to see all 4 theme parks as well as our hotel but the views into the magic kingdom were my favourite.

eventually it was over, and we were back on the boat and back on solid ground on the dock. We then decided to go look at the shops. We bought a few small things and while at the desk paying there was a guy training up what i assume were college programme students. He was explaining the pin trading to them when he noticed us (and i'm assuming our just married badges). He asked us to wait a minute and said he had someone on the phone for us. After a moment he put the speaker phone on and out came a special message for us, from mickey and minnie! Disney magic at its best! its something you don't hear about very often nowadays.
While in the shop we decided that we should spend the rest of the day at epcot, then we could watch the fireworks and it wouldn't take long to head back to the hotel. We caught the monorail to TTC then switched monorails to epcot. I love how the monorail loops through epcot before stopping at the station to allow us off. We got off the monorail and of course spaceship earth is the first thing you see. I told Rich we were going on it. I knew it would bore him to death but I wanted him to experience everything once. So our first ride as a married couple turned out to be spaceship earth. Yeah its a little boring but it was nice to cuddle up in the little booth cars and just take it all in.

Rich looks bored already

Next we headed to mission space and test track. After spaceship earth i had to give Rich a bit of an adrenaline rush, even if it was only to disney's standards. So we went for mission space first. I made a point of not telling him much about either of the rides apart from you go in a spaceship and you design a car and test it out. I wanted him to form his own opinions of things. Turns out he thought both were great!

We then went over to the innoventions pavillion and got some fast passes. There wasn't much left. We ended up not even using the fastpasses we had. I hated that i spent the whole time watching the clock because of the fastpasses and in the end as our first time approached and we were no where near where we needed to be I decided to just forget about them. So we explored world showcase at our own pace starting off in canada then working our way around. we spent quite a lot of time in the UK pavillion. while i dont think this is anywhere near a representation of our country but more just a representation of england in the olden days, it was nice to explore it as this was something i hadn't really done before. We stopped in the rose and crown pub for a drink. thats another thing i'd never done was eat or drink in that pub.

imagine that we left britain and came all the way to florida to have a drink in a british pub lol! So after our drink we carried on around world showcase exploring the countries. We stopped in America for something to eat. We carried on and waited in a 40min queue for Maelstrom! normally i wouldn't wait that long for maelstrom but Rich had never been on it so we waited.

I'm pleased we waited in line and rode maelstrom since it'll be frozen by the next time we visit. After that we continued around world showcase and then onto the land area of the park. I wanted to do captain EO. i'd never done it and i recently heard that michael jackson was in it. I'm a fan so i fancied seeing it. but it was not to be as it was too late in the day and this area was closed. I'll live without seeing it. So we went to finding nemo. Again it was nice to get onto the clam and cuddle up for this slow ride. We then spent ages in the aquarium and visited turtle talk. This was another first for me and i must admit we found it hilarious!

As it was growing dark when we left nemo, we walked back towards world showcase to look for a spot to watch the fireworks. We got ice creams and found a space to wait, we started on the popcorn while we waited and soon the fireworks began. It was nice sitting watching them, i still prefer wishes though.

Once the fireworks were over we caught the boat back to the swan and went back to our room for the night.

Families were meant to be at seaworld and shopping today. It turns out for the next few days my family and Richard's family didn't really speak or spend any time together. With me and Rich in disney my family continued to be up in the morning as planned and left the villa to go wherever was planned but richard's side of the family didn't do the same. apparently there were several reasons each day why they weren't ready to leave. they would then promise to get in touch when they did make it to the park, but this never happened. I don't know if it was the early morning and the on the go pace of the holiday that was getting to them or that they didnt want to spend anymore time as a big group or maybe there was something else. while we stayed in the villas Rich stayed in the villa with my family so he could be with me. Maybe at the start of the holiday Richards family got up each day because he was with us and they wanted to spend time with him or because they weren't sure where they were going and it was all new. But by this stage they were more familar with everything and where now going to places they had been before. whatever the reason what happened happened and while i was kind of aware of what was happening (via texts with my mum) we just left them to it and got on with enjoying our honeymoon together.