The party begins!

This morning Tim suggested that while he is off to work for an hour that I knock out a T minus 1 blog . . .

What's to say? Everything appears to be in place. Families are starting to gather--Tim's mum arrived by train yesterday and we greeted her at Kings Cross station. How happy she was to see us, a wide smile and dancing eyes as she hugged each of us.  I thought I detected a bit of wistfulness in her face, seeing Tim for perhaps the last time as a bachelor, her pride and joy taking on a new wife. She asked me to take care of him; I said I would. I meant it. She generously offered flowers for the register table; I said no matter. It was a lovely gesture to ask. Small talk on arrival plans, dinner that night (for her, at a Chinese restaurant in Acton, west London, with family), the planned barbeque on Sunday, all this amid the bustle of commuters around us at Platform 2.

It was a brief encounter; they were off to west London in our car so there'd be ample transportation for Saturday, we back to north London via the bus to have dinner and await Robyn and Jimmy's arrival. They landed during our dinner at the local kebab shop, Robyn and me exchanging a flurry of texts about queues and baggage and where the arrivals point for pick up is. We'd arranged a car service to make it a bit easier on all of us, and had a slight snafu when Tim changed the time for pick up to be an hour later owing to a conversation we'd had with James about two-hour queues at passport control--there was a public sector strike on which included the border agency staff. Well, naturally, having changed the time the queues were surprisingly short and Robyn and Jimmy arrived at the meeting point a full hour earlier than the car. Fortunately the wait was just 30 minutes after Tim called them again to get a car there. The traffic was light in London, too, so they quickly arrived at their hotel and Tim and I managed to hop off the bus literally minutes before--I hadn't even sat down yet in the lobby!

Ah, the hug, the warmth, the immediate reconnect. R&J checked in, planted their luggage in their room and headed back down for a bite to eat--Virgin Atlantic's food (beef stew) was hours ago, and it was now just passed 10 pm BST. The pub at the hotel was willing to stay open a little longer to get their food order, and Tim bounded to the bar for drinks all around. We sat, relaxed, and began what was almost two hours of conversation. The flight was mostly uneventful--a few screaming children, but otherwise a swift flight that left Newark minutes early and arrived on time in Heathrow. A few conversations about family matters--Elena fine after minor surgery; Debbie doing well and the cancer-free declaration for her throat a relief. Alyssa's graduation come and gone and now a summer to reflect on what to do next--most certainly a gap year for her before possibly returning to school. Who's coming, who's not, to the wedding. And then, a few strokes before midnight and we depart, Jimmy having said his good night slightly earlier to shower and lie down in a quiet, hopefully comfortable environment compared to the plane! Tim and I hop on the bus back; I am happy (and he is tired).

T minus 1. What's on my agenda? I want to pull the weeds from the front garden. I want to watch Andy Murray's semi-final match. I want to relax . . . drink plenty of water, rest up, and spend the day with Tim just puttering about the house. And we will most certainly see Robyn and Jimmy, too; dinner is planned at a place near Angel called Frederick's. I need to buy a few items at Boots; I can do that on the way or earlier, depending on my mood. I will consider what to pack for our overnight stay at the St Pancras hotel. Oddly enough I've avoided walking into the hotel because the first time I want to go I want it to be special . . . though we are considering dropping our overnight bag there before the wedding. We'll see.

I will smile often at the thought of tomorrow's events; I am truly looking forward to all of it.

It is a beautiful, sunny day; the front garden awaits! I promise photos soon.