Today the Fourth Nur Brother arrived! Haider, brother number three came back with his son, Yakub. They had left for Paris after spending one night in Glasgow last Thursday.
Meher left early in the morning for a dentists appointment and decided to get a massage afterwards. She was then beckoned to Friday's event venue to confirm the placement of the dance floor!
Father Dear and Jejums went to pick up 25 helium balloons, which we will use for decorating the house before the final guests arrive on Thursday.
Aino Phuppo, Mother Dear, Ayesha and I left for Glasgow at 1.30 to get our henna out on for the wedding. At the same time Aamer Chacha and Baba Jan left to pick up number four and son from the airport.
(I asked Baba Jan to count off the arrivals on his list- he assured me he has crossed off the names as his children have arrived at McNur Manor.)
Tomorrow the count will be complete :)
Before heading to Glasgow, Ayesha and I went to drop Poppet off at Kennedy farm. There's too much traffic and excitement for her and she will stay there until the wedding is over.
By the way, our Henna looks SHA-MAZING! Let's hope the colour doesn't fade before Friday :( On our way back home, we stopped at Kennedy farm and gave Sally some Pakistani sweets as a thank you for looking after Poppet and lending us the flat and caravan. She is truly a life saver :)
The henna ladies arrived back form Glasgow to find the house in full swing. One too many cars were parked int he driveway and when we entered, we found Mother Dear's niece and her family paying their respects to Baba Jan. 20 minutes after that, our family friends, the K.P's arrived. 5 mins after that, Ann arrived to pick up her Henna ceremony dress. Tea, cake, samosas, Russ Malai and a few channas later, Lakshmi and I went upstairs to choreograph and practice a couple of dances for the Henna ceremony. Usually, by now, I would have choreographed and taught too many dances to all the cousins but since we haven't had any time (or cousins :P ) that hadn't happened…
But Lakshmi is amazing and said she would like to do a couple of dances. We managed to finish one song in about 40mins and the excitement is rising. NOT LONG TO GO NOW!!!!
Once all the visitors had left, we all sat and helped Haider Chacha unpack his suitcases and then dropped the two younger brothers avec son to Medowview Bed and Breakfast of the night.
Then I went upstairs to massage Baba Jan's feet and tuck him in to sleep :)
The last task (after writing this blogpost) was to create a playlist for the DJ to give him an indication about the kinds of songs we want him to play for both events.
Tuesday, 29 July 2014
Eid Mubarik
Today it is EID! It is the end of Ramadan, the month of fasting and we all celebrate by eating more food than usual… Usually, we don't really celebrate Eid because there aren't any other Muslims in our area to help us eat.. But this year, things are different! We have many people to share our joy and help us lick all the plates clean. After cleaning the entire house top to bottom,
we all showered and put on new clothes. Needless to say, we all looked FAB.U.LOUS.
The rest of the day was spent having numerous conversations with Baba Jan about Persian poetry and how he wants to download some poetry onto his iPad- which he calls "Dabba" - (box in Urdu)
Later we ate out in the garden, enjoying the thousands of flowers Ammi has planted all around. A delightful day, indeed!
P.S. Last night, some ingrate, non- educated-deliquent, climbed over our gate and broke it… He also cut the wires to the lights draped over the trees outside. We were quite heartbroken- it took a lot of effort, time and not to mention, money to get the job done. Gavin and Ross, the electricians, were upset as well. Although we couldn't see in the CCTV "who done it", but we found out what time the ligths went off- it's been reported to the Police, but I doubt anything will come of it :(
(5)
The rest of the day was spent having numerous conversations with Baba Jan about Persian poetry and how he wants to download some poetry onto his iPad- which he calls "Dabba" - (box in Urdu)
Later we ate out in the garden, enjoying the thousands of flowers Ammi has planted all around. A delightful day, indeed!
P.S. Last night, some ingrate, non- educated-deliquent, climbed over our gate and broke it… He also cut the wires to the lights draped over the trees outside. We were quite heartbroken- it took a lot of effort, time and not to mention, money to get the job done. Gavin and Ross, the electricians, were upset as well. Although we couldn't see in the CCTV "who done it", but we found out what time the ligths went off- it's been reported to the Police, but I doubt anything will come of it :(
(5)
Three Out Of Five
Today my Dad's youngest brother arrived :) Ayesha and I picked up Aamer Chacha (Father's younger brother) from Glasgow airport and then went to Silverburn. Despite (or maybe because I was) using a SatNav, I got lost four times. After asking directions twice and using what was left of my brain, we arrived at Silverburn and met the rest of the family there.
The only reason I wanted to go to Silverburn was because the shoes I ordered from Amazon for the wedding haven't arrived yet!!! I found the perfect shoes on sale at Dorothy Perkins.. or so I thought.
Meher said they wouldn't match the dress and Mother Dear declared that they were much too high!
As Mother and daughter began to argue over why my shoes were not suitable, I (being Swtizerland as usual) removed myself from the situation before things got out of hand.
The only reason I wanted to go to Silverburn was because the shoes I ordered from Amazon for the wedding haven't arrived yet!!! I found the perfect shoes on sale at Dorothy Perkins.. or so I thought.
Meher said they wouldn't match the dress and Mother Dear declared that they were much too high!
As Mother and daughter began to argue over why my shoes were not suitable, I (being Swtizerland as usual) removed myself from the situation before things got out of hand.
After the afore-mentioned heated discussion, I drove Baba Jan, Aamer Chacha and Ayesha back to Maybole. On the way back, I stopped at Ayesha's friend's house and dropped her off there to play for a few hours. Once we got back home, my friends, Lauren and Joe came for an impromptu cup of tea and slice of cake. It was a lovely, unexpected surprise and it was great to see them.
The house was jumping as the guests talked, laughed and caused general merriment. The conversation continued late into the night and everyone went to bed, filled with food and happiness.
(6)
Monday, 28 July 2014
Sat Sat Saturday
Today was spent getting things in order as usual. Between loads of laundry and impromptu trips for a spot of sight-seeing to Girvan, the day sailed by hour by hour.
Baba Jan is getting used to the Scottish weather and the McNur Manor. It's nice to see him so relaxed and happy.
(7)
Baba Jan is getting used to the Scottish weather and the McNur Manor. It's nice to see him so relaxed and happy.
(7)
Saturday, 26 July 2014
Fri-egg Day
Today was spent pampering Baba Jan and Aino Phuppo.
At breakfast we managed to consume a considerable/ impressive amount of eggs…
Then, Mum and Aino Phuppo went to town and did a spot of sight seeing and shopping. And we took Baba Jan for some ice-cream. Later, we sat outside in Mother Dear's fabulous garden, enjoying the weather, flowers and company.
This time next week all systems will be go-go-go!
Let's hope the weather isn't too warm/ too wet!!
(7)
At breakfast we managed to consume a considerable/ impressive amount of eggs…
Then, Mum and Aino Phuppo went to town and did a spot of sight seeing and shopping. And we took Baba Jan for some ice-cream. Later, we sat outside in Mother Dear's fabulous garden, enjoying the weather, flowers and company.
This time next week all systems will be go-go-go!
Let's hope the weather isn't too warm/ too wet!!
(7)
Be our guest, Be our guest, put our service to the test!
Our first set of guests arrived today:
Baba Jan (Grand dad, Father Dear's Dad)
Aunt (Dad's Sister) Annie
Uncle (Haider) and his son (Yakub)
Before they arrived, I took Ayesha into town to get our nails and eyebrows done.. Then a surprise trip to the hairdresser to make Ayehsa look like a queen! Also, I booked us appointments for next Friday!
Meher, Mother Dear and Father Dear went to pick up the travellers from Glasgow airport and Ayesha, K homehodeja and I stayed at home and waited.. and waited.. and waited and waited. They arrived late at night and there was much fun to be had, including a tour of our home, cups of tea, gifts and gossip.
Overall a brilliant day. It was amazing to see Baba Jan and Annie Phuppo after such a long time. Haido Chacha and Yakub are away to Disneyland Paris for a title trip before the wedding and will be back on Tuesday. They stayed in Glasgow since they will be flying from there early tomorrow morning.
(8)
Lights, Camera, Action! (and more lights)
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I spent running around the house with two electricians in tow. It became my job to put up fairy lights around the house in order to decorate it for the wedding :)
Monday and Tuesday- Ayesha and I untangled a THOUSAND lights and leads and handed them over to the professionals to hang up around the outside of the hoooooose.
Monday and Tuesday- Ayesha and I untangled a THOUSAND lights and leads and handed them over to the professionals to hang up around the outside of the hoooooose.
As seen below, yours truly climbed the big tree to wrap lights around it.
Also, the sun is scaring the locals… I'm not sure they know how to deal with the 'heat'…
Wednesday- Today the inside of the house was decorated by the light of a million fairies! It looks fabulous! We've got flowers and lights all around the bannister. If possible, our home looks even more magical than usual :)
(11, 10, 9)
(SINGLE DIGITS!!?!?!!??)
Go, Go Gadget Glasgow!
Meher came back from London last night. She's got her flat all sorted out- unpacked and set up- ready for the newly weds to come back to from their Honeymoon (OOOOOoooooohhh!!!)
We went to Glasgow once more to pick up some more clothes and to get our hair done. My hair is now a delicious apple red. Nom Nom Nom.
On our way back we stocked up on some Biryani and Chicken tikka- ready for the first set of guests who will be arriving on Thursday :)
Before we came home, we stopped at Meadowview B&B to confirm spaces for guests and to allocate rooms for everyone who will be staying there.
(12)
We went to Glasgow once more to pick up some more clothes and to get our hair done. My hair is now a delicious apple red. Nom Nom Nom.
On our way back we stocked up on some Biryani and Chicken tikka- ready for the first set of guests who will be arriving on Thursday :)
Before we came home, we stopped at Meadowview B&B to confirm spaces for guests and to allocate rooms for everyone who will be staying there.
(12)
Bollywood Bang Bang
Lynsey, Freya and Kat came to see us today- they had to pick up their dresses. I would have taken the dresses to them but it made sense for them to come here- The seamstress in charge of sewing the wedding dresses should not call her self a seamstress. She has single handedly managed to ruin ALL of the clothes given to her. And poor Mother Dear has had to fix them at home.
There are many choice words I would like to use and hurl them at this so-called seamstress but I am tired of ranting about her.. Let's move on.
The afore-mentioned three ladies enjoyed a beautify lunch Mother Dear had prepared for them and then tried on their dresses- which unsurprisingly, had something wrong with each of them. Wonder Mother fixed them all and the gals left in the evening, filled with yummy food, gossip and with Bollywood-esque fabrics trailing behind them in a very becoming manner.
(13)
DRAW!!
After Lauren left and I did my mandatory cleaning of the entire house with Mother Dear, I sat down at my desk to work. I have to finish three illustrations before the end of next week and haven't had the time to do so. Things are taking their time, but the illustration is taking shape… Hopefully I can find some time to document proceedings on my art blog..
(14)
(14)
Lauren, Llamas and Love
My dear friend Lauren came to see us today! She was coming to Ayr to drop off some work for an exhibition at MacLurin Gallery and decided to come visit on her way back. She also came to take Kathryn's dress with her- it needed a few adjustments and we picked it up from Glasgow and brought it back to that Lauren could pass it on to her.
We tales and talked, ate and drank lots of tea.. and watched copious amounts of "Say Yes To The Dress". For those of you who don't know what it's about- it's a TV show where different brides come to 'Klienfields" a wedding dress shop to choose their wedding dresses. It's great watching. I get to pass judgment and not worry about getting told off. Brilliant :P
Lauren was going to drive back to Comrie but we convinced her to stay and took her for a drive to Culzean and then later on, to Sally's farm. Sally is the lovely lady who is giving us her one bedroom flat for all my friends coming to stay for the wedding. She also has a caravan which she is letting us use :)
And she has a farm… and that's where we got Poppet from!
We walked to her farm and Sally showed us where the flat is. It's just perfect. Having the flat is a BIG load of my mind!
At the farm we saw…
We tales and talked, ate and drank lots of tea.. and watched copious amounts of "Say Yes To The Dress". For those of you who don't know what it's about- it's a TV show where different brides come to 'Klienfields" a wedding dress shop to choose their wedding dresses. It's great watching. I get to pass judgment and not worry about getting told off. Brilliant :P
Lauren was going to drive back to Comrie but we convinced her to stay and took her for a drive to Culzean and then later on, to Sally's farm. Sally is the lovely lady who is giving us her one bedroom flat for all my friends coming to stay for the wedding. She also has a caravan which she is letting us use :)
And she has a farm… and that's where we got Poppet from!
We walked to her farm and Sally showed us where the flat is. It's just perfect. Having the flat is a BIG load of my mind!
At the farm we saw…
Good day :)
(15)
Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Visting Vednesday
So many visitors today.
Okay, only three.
But it still felt like a lot…
First our electrician, Gavin came to see where we wanted lights for the wedding. His family and him have fast become our good friends. Gavin's always there to help and he know exactly how to handle a bunch of crazy Pakistanis ;)
Second, Wilma and Jim- our neighbours who lived at the end of the road when we lived in Knoweholm in Ayr. They're a lovely couple and it was great fun chatting to them. Mother Dear showed them around her blossoming garden and we were treated to repeated choruses of, "Oooooh!" and, "Wooowww! Beautiful, beautiful!"
Father Dear came back during Wilma and Jim's visit and announced he's on call and will be leaving again at 6pm - once he left, Mother Dear called Lorraine (Jeju's HeadTeacher and our favourite teacher, loveliest friend and life-line ) and invited her over to come choose her dress for the wedding. And so she did. She left a couple of hours later- all set with clothes, matching jewellery- the whole nine yards :) another happy customer! Lorraine, I'm sorry; Lady Lorraine, also brought pictures of her OBE ceremony- and showed us pictures of her shaking hands with the Queen and receiving her life-time achievement award for working with special needs children. What a lady! Lorraine is by far the most amazing person we know- she has so much love and wisdom to give. And we are privileged to have her as a friend. She has changed the lives of countless families with her constant care, love and guidance. We owe her A LOT…
I think we may have organised over 50 dresses, with matching accessories and we've still got about 20 more to deliver...
Between visitors I've only managed to trace the afore-mentioned illustration and transfer it onto another piece of paper. STILL NO COLOUR. Time is running out. My deadline is on the 20th!!!
(HELP)
(16)
Okay, only three.
But it still felt like a lot…
First our electrician, Gavin came to see where we wanted lights for the wedding. His family and him have fast become our good friends. Gavin's always there to help and he know exactly how to handle a bunch of crazy Pakistanis ;)
Second, Wilma and Jim- our neighbours who lived at the end of the road when we lived in Knoweholm in Ayr. They're a lovely couple and it was great fun chatting to them. Mother Dear showed them around her blossoming garden and we were treated to repeated choruses of, "Oooooh!" and, "Wooowww! Beautiful, beautiful!"
Father Dear came back during Wilma and Jim's visit and announced he's on call and will be leaving again at 6pm - once he left, Mother Dear called Lorraine (Jeju's HeadTeacher and our favourite teacher, loveliest friend and life-line ) and invited her over to come choose her dress for the wedding. And so she did. She left a couple of hours later- all set with clothes, matching jewellery- the whole nine yards :) another happy customer! Lorraine, I'm sorry; Lady Lorraine, also brought pictures of her OBE ceremony- and showed us pictures of her shaking hands with the Queen and receiving her life-time achievement award for working with special needs children. What a lady! Lorraine is by far the most amazing person we know- she has so much love and wisdom to give. And we are privileged to have her as a friend. She has changed the lives of countless families with her constant care, love and guidance. We owe her A LOT…
I think we may have organised over 50 dresses, with matching accessories and we've still got about 20 more to deliver...
Between visitors I've only managed to trace the afore-mentioned illustration and transfer it onto another piece of paper. STILL NO COLOUR. Time is running out. My deadline is on the 20th!!!
(HELP)
(16)
Poo-Poo Tuesday
Most of this day was spent picking up Poppet's poo- I'm going to start calling her Poopet.
Apart from picking up poo, we spent our day with our lovely family friend, Dawn and her three awesome kids- Neven (7) and Olry and Oriana (3 yr old twins)
They brought their dog, Bella too who Poppet was ecstatic to see- it was quite funny- Poppet was trying her best to mirror all of Bella's movements and Bella was playing it cool.
Before Dawn arrived, Meher left for London- she'll be back on Saturday. She's going to get the keys to her and Carl's new flat (WOW) and going to set up home before all the wedding etc. so when they return from the honey-moon it's ready to move into straight away.
Anyway, Meher left at 9.30am and a courier arrived at 11am to take all her six suitcases (5 and half of them filled with shoes.. ahem) down to LANDAN.
We had a lovely afternoon with Dawn and her family, she tried on her dress for the wedding and paraded around Nur Household. The rooms upstairs were heaving with dresses meant for our friends/family and everyday we have people visiting to come pick up their dresses. Slowly, but surely, the rooms are starting to empty :) all in time for the guests arriving next week!!!!!!
I tried to finish the illustration I'm working on- it's still a line-drawing. Four days since I started it. It's getting ridiculous- I must paint it soon, or die trying.
(17)
Apart from picking up poo, we spent our day with our lovely family friend, Dawn and her three awesome kids- Neven (7) and Olry and Oriana (3 yr old twins)
They brought their dog, Bella too who Poppet was ecstatic to see- it was quite funny- Poppet was trying her best to mirror all of Bella's movements and Bella was playing it cool.
Before Dawn arrived, Meher left for London- she'll be back on Saturday. She's going to get the keys to her and Carl's new flat (WOW) and going to set up home before all the wedding etc. so when they return from the honey-moon it's ready to move into straight away.
Anyway, Meher left at 9.30am and a courier arrived at 11am to take all her six suitcases (5 and half of them filled with shoes.. ahem) down to LANDAN.
We had a lovely afternoon with Dawn and her family, she tried on her dress for the wedding and paraded around Nur Household. The rooms upstairs were heaving with dresses meant for our friends/family and everyday we have people visiting to come pick up their dresses. Slowly, but surely, the rooms are starting to empty :) all in time for the guests arriving next week!!!!!!
I tried to finish the illustration I'm working on- it's still a line-drawing. Four days since I started it. It's getting ridiculous- I must paint it soon, or die trying.
(17)
Monday, 14 July 2014
Monday Makes Me Want To Run Away
I wish we could all run away separately to different corners of the world and the a break for a few days… not think about cleaning the house, making the beds, taking more trips to glasgow and forget the wedding for a few hours. It's alright to dream, isn't it?
Anyway, I digress. Today Mother Dear and Meher took yet another trip to Glasgow- to pick up some more dresses belonging to a few guests who are coming to the wedding… Ayesha and I went into town to find shoes to match our dresses. NO LUCK. We went to five different shops- all filled with "Back To School" stuff and there wasn't a single decent pair of shoes. Since I don't enjoy shopping anyway, not having reaped any fruit (or shoes) from our trip, I left town in an irritable mood. On the way back home, Ayesha and I went into a local restaurant on a whim. The food was lovely but we had to take the dessert back home otherwise we would have been late for Jeju's carers leaving.
Jeju was in top form when we got back and watched Snow White with us- actually, Ayesha and I tried to watch Snow White whilst Jeju made the most noise she could- she laughed, blew raspberries and sang songs and every now and then tried to throw the television remote off the bed.
In the evening I went to Zumba and came back and took Poppet on a walk. We spotted a cat in our garden and I tried to encourage her to chase the intruder. But the silly dog was too caught up in smelling the grass and couldn't give a rat's ass about the cat.
I'm going to take it upon myself to teach Poppet some bad habits- she's way too decent. In the future, words in Poppet's vocabulary will include:
"ATTACK!"
"EXTERMINATE!"
and if i'm feeling less gracious than usual…
"ANNIHILATE!"
(18)
Anyway, I digress. Today Mother Dear and Meher took yet another trip to Glasgow- to pick up some more dresses belonging to a few guests who are coming to the wedding… Ayesha and I went into town to find shoes to match our dresses. NO LUCK. We went to five different shops- all filled with "Back To School" stuff and there wasn't a single decent pair of shoes. Since I don't enjoy shopping anyway, not having reaped any fruit (or shoes) from our trip, I left town in an irritable mood. On the way back home, Ayesha and I went into a local restaurant on a whim. The food was lovely but we had to take the dessert back home otherwise we would have been late for Jeju's carers leaving.
Jeju was in top form when we got back and watched Snow White with us- actually, Ayesha and I tried to watch Snow White whilst Jeju made the most noise she could- she laughed, blew raspberries and sang songs and every now and then tried to throw the television remote off the bed.
In the evening I went to Zumba and came back and took Poppet on a walk. We spotted a cat in our garden and I tried to encourage her to chase the intruder. But the silly dog was too caught up in smelling the grass and couldn't give a rat's ass about the cat.
I'm going to take it upon myself to teach Poppet some bad habits- she's way too decent. In the future, words in Poppet's vocabulary will include:
"ATTACK!"
"EXTERMINATE!"
and if i'm feeling less gracious than usual…
"ANNIHILATE!"
(18)
Sunday, 13 July 2014
MY, OH MY...
So it's been more than a month since I updated this. I apologise- so, in order to play catch up quickly and not to ramble too much, I shall be recounting what happened every week rather than every day…
Week One- 12th June to 19th June
Meher went to London to attend a Welcome Night for her Masters :) I don't know how Meher managed to apply and get accepted whilst planning a wedding. Only she could. We're all very excited and proud of her <3 <3 <3 <3
she will be gone for the weekend and get back in a few days.
Also, every year, my Aunt and her family spend their summer holidays with us. This year, because of Ramadan, they won't be able to stay for longer than a couple of weeks but my Aunt will come back for the wedding in August..
On the 19th- the day my Aunt arrived, I took Lauren, Lynsey, Freya and Kat to get dresses for the reception. They couldn't believe their eyes- or their stomachs- we went for dinner afterwards ;) I hope they're all happy with their purchases and as we all left with our purses considerably lighter, there was a happy and content feeling in the air- mostly due to the food. :P
(50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43)
Week Two- 20th June to 27th June
This week was spent opening and reading all the lovely RSVP cards we received. It's Ayesha's job to collect all these cards and notes and paste them into an album Mum got for Meher and Carl's wedding as a memento.. The postman must think we are crazy- not only are we getting a shed load of 2-D mail, but we have been receiving many packages as well- countless items and objects "WE HAVE TO HAVE AT THE WEDDING" which I hope won't be forgotten on the day(s) including garlands of fake flowers, fake petals and crystals for table setting, and fairy lights. Also, it seems Mother Dear has taken it upon her self to buy all of Ayrshire's stock of garden plants. Douglas (our gardener) and Mother Dear have been planting plants left, right and centre…
Another thing that came by post this week was Emma's present- it's her birthday on the 25th and she's hosting a soiree on the 27th :) It'll be nice to let my hair down ;)
(42, 41, 40, 39, 38, 37, 36, 35)
Week Three- 28th June to 5th July
My friend Mairi is leaving Scotland and moving to NORWAY!! Tonight (28th) is her leaving party and I made her a little elephant as a keep sake. Photos will be up soon on my art blog.
And this week has other big news- the ENTIRE Nur family is going on holiday… together… for the first time in over a DECADE. Two out of three of our visiting cousins will be coming with us too :) All of Sunday (29th) was spent packing for our week away :) We have booked a Centre Parcs Getaway and that's exactly what it turned out to be - a perfect getaway to escape the mounting tension of planning the wedding. We only went for five days but it was fabulous. Everyone there was lovely and so accommodating for Jeju's needs- she loved the swimming pool! Unfortunately on the last night, both Jeju and I were extremely unwell and spent lots of time bringing up all the food we ate during our time at Centre Parcs. Thank God it happened on the last night we were there and not the first!
(34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 28, 27)
Week four- 6th July to 13th July
The 4th was our last day in Centre Parcs- we left on the 5th… Spending almost an entire week without phone signal can be tricky when there are so many of us who was to do different things and need to stay in touch to meet up again but somehow we survived :P we came crashing back down to reality on the 5th as we travelled back to Maybole- we stopped at Gretna to meet up with my Aunt, Uncle and third cousin to swap over children and suitcases. My Aunt and her family drove down to London after we met up with them and then flew back to Pakistan. Next time we see my Aunt, the wedding days will be upon us!
Once we got back home to reality, Father Dear reminded Meher to get the paper work for the wedding sent off. We went in to Ayr to take them to the county buildings but they informed us that since the wedding will be taking place in Glasgow, we will have to take all the paper work to the Glasgow office. Sigghhhhhh… More trips to Glasgow. No paperwork, no wedding- and so Meher set off to get it all done early next morning but her train was delayed an HOUR! Our poor bride-to-be reached the Office in time for her new appointment and everything is settled. Let's hope we're not late for the actual ceremony...
This week also woke me up to all the work I still have to finish for a client! I contacted her and found out my next deadline and have been making work ever since.. or trying to find time and space enough to do so. Between re-arranging all the rooms every three or four days for guests, and planning the wedding of the year, it's been difficult to sit down and create ground-breaking work. But i'll try.
On the 11th, I FINALLY got to see the inside of Ayr Racecourse, Princess Suite- where the reception will take place. WOW. IT'S AMAZING. I got chills when I saw the space and couldn't wait to see it on the day. The caterer, who is also in charge of decor, gave us all the information about how the space will be set up, where the guests will arrive from, where the bride and groom parties will get ready etc. etc. and everything started to fall into place. I suddenly found myself hyperventilating as I realised two things-
1. The wedding is really close now
2. The Princess Suite is too big a space and I won't be able to do all the running around in heels and I'll have to re-think my shoes.
12th June- We took MORE people to the Asian shops today, including Kathryn and Lauren, who had to pick up their dresses, Dawn, who wanted to get one and Mark who became the first (and only) Non-Asain male friend to buy clothes from the Asian side of Glasgow. We got many odd looks in "Laali Fashion" - where we went to choose Mark's clothes. Maybe it was because I'd brought in four Non-Pakistani friends, two of whom were male. Or perhaps, it was due to the fact that Mark, un-elasticated trousers fell down in front of a few people as he modelled them in front of his friends. Whatever the case, we had a ball and later we all went for dinner. As everyone went their separate ways, Meher, Ayesha and I went to see the caterer/decorator at his warehouse to choose our decorations for both events. It's tiring work and we got back at 10.30 pm. Everything is organised and we couldn't be happier.
All that is left is confirming the DJ and meeting with the photographer.
Remember our original list? CLOTHES, CAKE, CATERER, CALLAWI… well we can tick off ALL of these items on the list. It feels good :)
(26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, 19)
NINETEEN DAYS??? WHAT.
Week One- 12th June to 19th June
Meher went to London to attend a Welcome Night for her Masters :) I don't know how Meher managed to apply and get accepted whilst planning a wedding. Only she could. We're all very excited and proud of her <3 <3 <3 <3
she will be gone for the weekend and get back in a few days.
Also, every year, my Aunt and her family spend their summer holidays with us. This year, because of Ramadan, they won't be able to stay for longer than a couple of weeks but my Aunt will come back for the wedding in August..
On the 19th- the day my Aunt arrived, I took Lauren, Lynsey, Freya and Kat to get dresses for the reception. They couldn't believe their eyes- or their stomachs- we went for dinner afterwards ;) I hope they're all happy with their purchases and as we all left with our purses considerably lighter, there was a happy and content feeling in the air- mostly due to the food. :P
(50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43)
Week Two- 20th June to 27th June
This week was spent opening and reading all the lovely RSVP cards we received. It's Ayesha's job to collect all these cards and notes and paste them into an album Mum got for Meher and Carl's wedding as a memento.. The postman must think we are crazy- not only are we getting a shed load of 2-D mail, but we have been receiving many packages as well- countless items and objects "WE HAVE TO HAVE AT THE WEDDING" which I hope won't be forgotten on the day(s) including garlands of fake flowers, fake petals and crystals for table setting, and fairy lights. Also, it seems Mother Dear has taken it upon her self to buy all of Ayrshire's stock of garden plants. Douglas (our gardener) and Mother Dear have been planting plants left, right and centre…
Another thing that came by post this week was Emma's present- it's her birthday on the 25th and she's hosting a soiree on the 27th :) It'll be nice to let my hair down ;)
(42, 41, 40, 39, 38, 37, 36, 35)
Week Three- 28th June to 5th July
My friend Mairi is leaving Scotland and moving to NORWAY!! Tonight (28th) is her leaving party and I made her a little elephant as a keep sake. Photos will be up soon on my art blog.
And this week has other big news- the ENTIRE Nur family is going on holiday… together… for the first time in over a DECADE. Two out of three of our visiting cousins will be coming with us too :) All of Sunday (29th) was spent packing for our week away :) We have booked a Centre Parcs Getaway and that's exactly what it turned out to be - a perfect getaway to escape the mounting tension of planning the wedding. We only went for five days but it was fabulous. Everyone there was lovely and so accommodating for Jeju's needs- she loved the swimming pool! Unfortunately on the last night, both Jeju and I were extremely unwell and spent lots of time bringing up all the food we ate during our time at Centre Parcs. Thank God it happened on the last night we were there and not the first!
(34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 28, 27)
Week four- 6th July to 13th July
The 4th was our last day in Centre Parcs- we left on the 5th… Spending almost an entire week without phone signal can be tricky when there are so many of us who was to do different things and need to stay in touch to meet up again but somehow we survived :P we came crashing back down to reality on the 5th as we travelled back to Maybole- we stopped at Gretna to meet up with my Aunt, Uncle and third cousin to swap over children and suitcases. My Aunt and her family drove down to London after we met up with them and then flew back to Pakistan. Next time we see my Aunt, the wedding days will be upon us!
Once we got back home to reality, Father Dear reminded Meher to get the paper work for the wedding sent off. We went in to Ayr to take them to the county buildings but they informed us that since the wedding will be taking place in Glasgow, we will have to take all the paper work to the Glasgow office. Sigghhhhhh… More trips to Glasgow. No paperwork, no wedding- and so Meher set off to get it all done early next morning but her train was delayed an HOUR! Our poor bride-to-be reached the Office in time for her new appointment and everything is settled. Let's hope we're not late for the actual ceremony...
This week also woke me up to all the work I still have to finish for a client! I contacted her and found out my next deadline and have been making work ever since.. or trying to find time and space enough to do so. Between re-arranging all the rooms every three or four days for guests, and planning the wedding of the year, it's been difficult to sit down and create ground-breaking work. But i'll try.
On the 11th, I FINALLY got to see the inside of Ayr Racecourse, Princess Suite- where the reception will take place. WOW. IT'S AMAZING. I got chills when I saw the space and couldn't wait to see it on the day. The caterer, who is also in charge of decor, gave us all the information about how the space will be set up, where the guests will arrive from, where the bride and groom parties will get ready etc. etc. and everything started to fall into place. I suddenly found myself hyperventilating as I realised two things-
1. The wedding is really close now
2. The Princess Suite is too big a space and I won't be able to do all the running around in heels and I'll have to re-think my shoes.
12th June- We took MORE people to the Asian shops today, including Kathryn and Lauren, who had to pick up their dresses, Dawn, who wanted to get one and Mark who became the first (and only) Non-Asain male friend to buy clothes from the Asian side of Glasgow. We got many odd looks in "Laali Fashion" - where we went to choose Mark's clothes. Maybe it was because I'd brought in four Non-Pakistani friends, two of whom were male. Or perhaps, it was due to the fact that Mark, un-elasticated trousers fell down in front of a few people as he modelled them in front of his friends. Whatever the case, we had a ball and later we all went for dinner. As everyone went their separate ways, Meher, Ayesha and I went to see the caterer/decorator at his warehouse to choose our decorations for both events. It's tiring work and we got back at 10.30 pm. Everything is organised and we couldn't be happier.
All that is left is confirming the DJ and meeting with the photographer.
Remember our original list? CLOTHES, CAKE, CATERER, CALLAWI… well we can tick off ALL of these items on the list. It feels good :)
(26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, 19)
NINETEEN DAYS??? WHAT.
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