I do, take two!

As I've said before, I love a good wedding! A vow renewal is no exception, especially my own parents!! On May 12th, we were lucky enough to see our parents say their vowels again, something that we ended up naming 'I do, take two!'.

My parents married way before myself and my siblings were born. I've seen photographs, a lovely wedding in a cute little church in Palermo, Italy, the place that we are originally from. My Mom once told me that the pastor that did their ceremony was brand new, and they had been the first couple that they had married. She said that it had amused her as she'd walked up the aisle, looking between him and my father, she hadn't been able to tell which of the two was more nervous. Luckily this time, my Dad didn't look anywhere as near nervous... You could tell that he was excited to be saying his vows all over again with the woman that he had spent the majority of his life with.

The night before the wedding, we separated off into two groups. The guys took my Dad over to Isabella and Oliver's house for a poker night, and us girls had a DIY spa evening at our parent's family home, after a cute girly dinner date. This also gave Isabella and I the opportunity to add any finishing touches to plan for the following day.

The next morning, we were all up early and preparing the garden for the ceremony. It felt like we had so much to do in such a little amount of time, as well as getting Mom into her dress that Isabella had been dedicated to hand-sewing and stitching, and doing her hair and make up. Typically, when you're trying to get something done in a rush, you end up with accidents. In a way we were lucky; we didn't have anything too serious happen, nothing that jeopardised the day and stopped it from going ahead. JJ on the other hand, would've disagreed about the lucky part. He dropped a 200 pound table on his foot and spent the rest of the day limping... and his flip-flops looked pretty comical with his suit.

JJ and I.

Mom decided against having bridesmaids this time around, wanting to stay true to the first time that they had wed. They'd had nobody but a maid of honour, and a best man, both of whom were able to be there again this time around. I wore a stunning dress that was also specially made by my sister Isabella. The hand-stitched flowers along the left side were so intricate, and worked perfectly with the lace.

My sister's also both wore dresses designed by Isabella, ones in which she made especially for the occasion. Isabella's was a beautiful baby blue gown, and Indiana opted for a more comfortable flowery mini-dress.

The ceremony in itself was beautiful. My parents wrote their own vows this time around, and while my Mom talked about how much she was in love with him and how happy she was that she had been able to love him and raise a family with him for so long.... My Dad however, joked about how lucky he was to still have somebody that loves him after he's been treading oil around the house in his work boots, and forgetting to mow the lawn on his days off. I found myself both laughing and crying throughout the short ceremony, my heart feeling almost like it was going to burst out of my chest with love and pride.

Deciding against a big meal, Cathy and Artur had decided on a BBQ style dinner, and everyone had picked at the food when they felt like it. Drink, of course, was available all day long, and by 3PM, we'd run out of champagne and had to turn to the spirits; something which proved lethal for my brother Beckett (nobody dared ask him how he was feeling the following morning).

My parents shared their first dance to a song called Unchained Melody, by the Righteous Brothers. Never being those who enjoyed too much attention, they were quick to invite everybody else to join them on the dancefloor, sharing the moment with their family and friends.

We spent the rest of the night together as a big family unit. Catching up with old friends and relatives that we hadn't seen in a while. We danced, and laughed and (shockingly) sang, the night away until the very early hours of the morning. Although it might not have seemed much to some, it was actually a very beautiful day for the De Rosa's, filled with love and moments that all of us will cherish forever.

Immy x