Now Mum and Alan were Married, they got to ride back to our Flat which was now Alan's home too, in the special wedding car that had been hired for them. I was most miffed that I wouldn't get to ride with Mum and Alan but as it was mostly their special I only sulked a little as I didn't want to spoil it for them.
My brother and I arrived back home before Mum and Alan, and our home was now full with family and friends in the living room as we waited for mum and Alan to return.
I was allowed to keep my dress on although my brother Andrew had to change as he really didn't want his suit to get spoilt. I think he really do feel he was a mini James Bond 007, and I found this particularly funny and did tease him about that, but not too much as I really didn't want him to get annoyed with me today of all days!
Everyone gathered in the living room all with a glass in their hand laying in wait, for Mum and Alan to arrive home. Just as they both came through the door with Alan carrying mum over the threshold and down the long hallway we had they stood together as man and wife smiling in the living room doorway.
Everyone erupted into Rapturous claps and cheer, shouts and wolf whistles, and a toast was made to the happy couple Anne and Alan Doughty.
Mum went to change into a more suitable outfit as records were put on and people chatted and laughed waiting for mum to return to declare the wedding buffet open.
Alan's friends clapped his back, and made cheeky, naughty jokes about balls and chains and other things my brother and I didn't yet understand as it was adult talk and we knew it wasn't for us to hear.
More laughter and giggles and mum came back into the livingroom in a beautiful emerald green dress which caressed her slim frame slenderly. Alan walked over and kissed mum just like I had seen in movies on tv, and once again everyone clapped and cheered for the Bride and Groom. By this point I was getting rather hungry and in all the excitement had decided that myself and my friend Lys should eat. So I grabbed Lys by the hand and we skipped off down the Hallway together to the kitchen.
My brother Andrew was standing guard at the Kitchen doorway as he couldn't stand all the noise it was too much for his little ears so mum had asked him to make sure nobody passed into the kitchen until she was sure everything was laid out and ready.
My brother said I could take a look but I must not touch anything or I would be in big trouble! Lys and I nodded our heads in unison as we stepped into the kitchen to admire the buffet laiden table, oh Wow! We both looked at each other and grinned and giggled excitedly. Such a gorgeous spread of food, we clearly both thought, and we couldn't wait much longer!
Suddenly mum and Lys mum Zoe came into the kitchen so Lys and I scuttled quickly under the buffet table not wanting to get my brother into trouble and waited to see when would be all clear to come out again. Lys and I giggled excitedly as we sat on the floor listening to mum and Zoe moving about putting finishing touches to the buffet.
The music in the living room by this point had been turned up and it was a little more louder than before. Family and friends started to spill into the kitchen and help themselves to food.
Lys and I waited for our moment and every now and then dared each other to reach out and up to the table from under the tablecloth to see what we could grab to eat.
Oh dear! We got caught red handed on our very first attempt and were ushered out into the hallway to sit on a chair each and wait for food to be given to us, as neither of us was quite tall enough to actually reach the buffet table, and mum explained as patiently as she could that she really didn't want the tablecloth and all it's contents to end up on the kitchen floor after all her hard work!
So Lys, my brother and I sat and had food handed to us on paper plates and we sat munching away happily all of us swinging our feet and feeling so very grown up indeed. Drinks of Orange Squash were given to us and we gulped them down eagerly as quickly as we could and got the attention of a passing adult and kept asking for more.
The photographer was lurking and as we both finished and handed back our empty squash cups, the photographer snapped us both with cheeky looks on our faces and orange squash moustaches as well! Mum still treasures that particular picture of me and Lys to this very day!
As evening drew in, much dancing and chatting and laughing ensued and my brother and I grew tired and needed our beds. Mum and dad couldn't afford a proper honeymoon and my brother and I were to stay with Lys and her parents at their house so mum and alan at least had one night of married life to themselves, and Andrew had to return to Boarding School the next day and me to school, So my brother and I said goodbye to everyone, hugged and kissed mum and Alan and left home to spend the night at Lys and her parents huge house in Burden Lane.
Andrew and I had been there many times before and it really was the most hugest house we had ever seen. It had a huge hallway with a big long staircase and a banister that one day I was determined to ride down just like the kids in movies did!
Off we were all ushered to change into our nightclothes, clean our teeth and be ready for bed. I was to share with Lys as she had a spare bed in her bedroom and Andrew was to share with Neil, Lys older brother who Andrew got on extremely well with.
Into bed Lys and I climbed whilst her mum Zoe made sure the bedroom was warm enough for us to sleep all snug and cosy. I loved Lys bedroom as she had a very old fireplace in one of the bedroom walls and in it behind a large wooden front hinged cleverly made dolls house front was several floors with furniture and dolls and all the objects that could possibly be needed for a dolls house. This was my favourite toy that Lys had, and whenever I came to play with Lys I always wanted to play with her dolls house as I had never seen one built into a bedroom wall before!
My brother was just across the upstairs hallway and Neil had planes on his wallpaper and a plane dangling from the ceiling which I thought was quite cool. My brother fell asleep before I did as I was still so excited from the most amazing day we had all had I couldn't sleep a wink for a quite a while that night.
I waited for Zoe, Lys mum to say goodnight and switch off the bedroom light, before saying to Lys that I couldn't sleep and quietly crept from my bed in the dark, and it really was very dark in Lys bedroom, but I could just about make out with the night light in the room where to move so I could get to Lys dolls house.
Just as I opened the door to the huge Fireplace Dolls house, the bedroom door creaked open and Lys mum Zoe, caught me about to play!
Oops! I thought to myself, I really shouldn't be out of bed and now I have been discovered oh hells bells! Zoe tutted and told me nicely to get back into bed so I ran to my bed and jumped in quickly as Zoe came and tucked me back in. I yawned the biggest yawn ever and Zoe exclaimed oh my! you are a tired young lady, it has been a very long and exciting day but now you must get some sleep or you will be tired tomorrow Joy. I nodded sleepily and turned over and shut my eyes, and fell fast asleep in a flash dreaming of fairy princesses and queens and kings and princes and James Bonds having a wonderful banquet to celebrate the love of the Queen and King Fairy of the Newly Named Doughty Family.
YOU ARE READING
Apples of Life
Non-FictionAs a young girl I grew up in a household that was a 1 Parent Family with a Deaf Brother and a Hard Working often Harassed Mum, which often led to poignant, sad, happy and indeed some very funny moments of which helped to shape the core of our Family...
