Our woodland wedding

I can’t quite believe it’s been a whole four years since the day we got married. Looking through wedding photos on our fourth anniversary brought back some of my most happy and most heart breaking memories. Something I don’t talk about often is while deciding to organise an impromptu wedding, we knew we didn’t have time to waste. My Dad had been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour the previous year, and I just couldn’t imagine having a wedding without him. I knew how much it would mean to him to celebrate our wedding day with us, so the day we got engaged we decided (at the top of Arther’s Seat overlooking Edinburgh) we were going to have the celebrations at my parents house that summer, in 5 months time.

Looking back I’m not quite sure how we managed it all. At times it felt like some very human survival instinct to not give up had taken over, as we did the four hour trips up and down the country to my parents house every other weekend to get things prepared and spend time with my Dad. The journeys back again were always the hardest.

The ceremony

Despite what we were going through, it was the most perfect day. After getting ready at my parents home, we headed to the gorgeous Morritt Arms only a 5 minute drive away, where we had a personal human based service. Family and friends read poems that resonated with us, we lit candles as a symbol of our new journey together and said our personal vows to each other, before the official ‘I dos’ and exchange of rings.

Poem

Maybe...We are supposed to meet the wrong people before meeting the right one so that, when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift

Maybe... it is true that we don't know what we have got until we lose it, but it is also true that we don't know what we have been missing until it arrives

Maybe... the happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way

Maybe... the best kind of love is the kind you can sit on a sofa together and never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had

Maybe... you shouldn't go for looks; they can deceive. Don't go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile, because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

Maybe... you should hope for enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy

Maybe... Love is not about finding the perfect person, it's about learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.

- Maybe, by anonymous

Into the woods

I will always feel so lucky we were able to have our wedding celebrations at my parents home, a historic converted mill that really was like something taken straight from a magical fairy-tale. Nestled away at the bottom of a hill, on the edge of the river and surrounded by lush alpine forest, it was the kind of place no matter how may times you visited it never failed to take your breath away.

Marquee celebrations

It was by all means a DIY wedding. The styling was influenced by hours of Pinterst searches (you can find some of my inspirations here) with all the little details coming together with some much appreciated help from friends and family. Our beautiful woodland wedding cake was made and stunningly decorated by my very talented sister in law Sarah, and the flowers were arranged in a beautifully relaxed way with the help of a family friend Kay, who has the creative talent of being able to turn her hand to just about anything. I think my favourite part of the styling was the simple laid-back trestle tables, I loved that they made it feel as though you were passing the roast potatoes down the table, on a cosy Sunday at home.

I’ve been wanting to write about our woodland wedding for some time, but haven’t felt I could until now. Thanks to our wonderful photographer Gareth Newstead all the little details, shared moments and real emotions were captured so beautifully to be treasured for many anniversaries to come.