As you will know, if you read this blog, my new husband (drum roll…) and I are outdoorsy people. Our favourite holiday together is skiing. While enjoying a three-week holiday in Canada on the Powder Highway, taking in Sunshine Village, Lake Louise, Kicking Horse, Revelstoke, RED Mountain, Whitewater, Fernie, Kimberley, Panorama and Norquay, we got engaged and married (within two days).
It was in Whitewater ski resort, in British Columbia, on Saturday that G got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. After more than eight years of being together I thought I’d say yes! We already know we get on well and we are best friends. We have the same dreams and, really, we just get each other.
It was a perfect proposal in a beautiful ski resort a week or so into our holiday.
Two days later we took advantage of the wonderfully simple and straightforward marriage laws in Canada to tie the knot. A marriage licence is easy to buy (100 Canadian Dollars) with only the need for our passports. You simply turn up at an office that sells the licences and then make use of it within three months.
A marriage commissioner is required for the ceremony and the brilliant Lynn Rogers, of Fernie, obliged. She more than did us proud.
The ceremony is more like a civil / Humanist format and apart from a few legal sentences, we were able to write our own vows. We kept it short but poignant.
We were able to choose a superb spot for the ceremony on a mountain in Fernie Alpine ski resort, also BC. The Lost Boys Cafe at the top of the Timber Express Chairlift kindly let us have a corner of the outside deck. We also asked a local photographer, Jesse Bell, to take some photos.
While the day seemed destined to be overcast and snowy, as we said our vows at 11am the sun came out and when we turned to look, the view over the resort and valley was spectacular.
Only G and I were there although we did gather a wee crowd on the deck, including an English couple we had met the night before in the hotel and, by coincidence, a group of Scottish skiers who were enjoying a coffee in the cafe. They later hosted us for a few drinks by way of an evening reception.
My daughter, Havana, had already given us her blessing to be married, which meant a lot to both of us. She is thrilled to have G as her a step-dad!
The wedding was ideal for us. We both wore our ski kit and apart from a lovely bouquet, collected by Lynn from The Green Petal in Fernie, it involved none of the usual pomp and fuss of a full-on marriage. I didn’t even wear make-up and had a (new) pompom hat to flatten my ski-mad hair! I am not against big weddings (for other people) but I had been married before and neither G or I have the energy – or funds – to pull off something big enough for all of our friends and family. We will be throwing a fun party instead once we get back home.
Why let the bouquet go to waste?!
Getting married outdoors and with my one true love against a backdrop of fabulous scenery made the event truly special. After a glass of Champagne and a few photos we skied off to enjoy the slopes of Fernie for the rest of the day.
PS We have very practical silicon wedding rings! Made by Enso. They are so light and comfortable.