TWO YEAR Wedding Anniversary…Where has the time gone?

Two years ago today I married Mr Bishop. 

When I think back to that day I have the happiest of memories - it truly was one of the most magical days of my life. Everything about the day was beautiful - from the way the barn looked when we'd finished working our 'vintage tea party' theme on it, to how stunning my bridesmaids looked, and what a show-stopper our cake was: I just loved every bit of it. 

Being surrounded by all of my most favourite people, as they watched me marry the love of my life was just incredible - and two years later I'm even happier than I was that day. I didn't even think that was possible!

You can see the post from our wedding full of the official photos from the day here.

Since our wedding our life has changed so drastically - we went through some really rough times after our wedding - losing our first baby on our honeymoon was not the best way to start married life. That heartbreaking time however, made us so much stronger as a couple, it made our love and commitment to each other a force to be reckoned with, and it made the arrival of our beautiful son Bert even more amazing & special than we could have ever imagined. 

Almost one year ago we became parents - and that has been the best journey I think we'll ever embark on together as husband and wife, and now Mummy and Daddy. Liam is the most amazing Dad - better than I could ever have imagined - he is so natural at it, so loving, and so much fun - Bert's face lights up when his Daddy enters the room, and so does mine. 

I love you Mr B.

Last year, on our first anniversary I was heavily pregnant with Bert - we celebrated by visiting a Buddies diner for the first time, you can read all about it here. 

COTTON WEDDING ANNIVERSARY (Two Years)

Liam has surpassed himself this year on the gift-front. I have been totally spoilt rotten with the most thoughtful gifts. The 2 year milestone-symbol for wedding anniversaries is 'cotton' and we both used that theme to drive our gift buying this year…

I bought Liam an awesome pair of Marmite themed PJ bottoms (he LOVES pyjamas, and all of his favourite pairs are now far too big since his weight loss) so I knew he'd love these and use them lots. I also bought him the obligatory boxer shorts, again, ones that fit after all the weight he's lost. 

Liam's gifts to me were so thoughtful that they made me cry. 

He gave me…

• A beautiful navy and white stripe cotton nautical beach bag for our holiday
• The most amazing cotton biscuit themed tea towel, which I'm going to frame
• A pair of avocado socks!! (these are so funny and made me laugh out loud - I am obsessed with avocados!)
• A bag of fluffy stuff cotton candy…yum yum
• A collection of wooden cotton reels 
• And a special message from Dot Cotton! Hahaha! 
• A packet of cotton seeds so I can grow my very own cotton plant
• And a lovely personalised card, what a treasure. 

These gifts really sum up my wonderful husband. He is so thoughtful, so romantic, and he works so hard to look after his family and keep us all smiling. He is also the funniest person I know, this is probably my most favourite thing about Liam - he genuinely makes me laugh every single day! Liam knows me better than anyone else in the world, and loves me anyway. You can't ask for more than that, can you?

My husband, the silliest man I know and the love of my life! (sorry, puke!)

Tonight we're off out for dinner at a new restaurant in town called 'BBQ Bobs' which smokes all its own meats American BBQ style, and then we're heading to the cinema to see The Inbetweeners 2 movie, I can't wait! 

Here's to the next two years Mr B ….I wonder where we'll be in two years time?

Mrs Bishop

xxxx

We have been treated to some other lovely gifts today as well…

This beautiful personalised tea towel from my amazing Mother and Father in law! Thank you Ruth & Paul - we love it! What a thoughtful gift xxx

These stunning flowers from my cousin/best friend/maid of honour Vicky - thank you honey they are absolutely stunning! 

Surrey/Sussex Based Photographer Barney Warner....COMPETITION TIME!!

Barney Warner Photography

Barney Warner - Photographer

Entrusting someone to capture your most special moments on camera is a big deal. Every couple dream of getting the 'perfect' wedding shots or of getting some stunning family portrait images taken, and sadly, sometimes can be greatly disappointed with the final images. I always find it best to hire a photographer on recommendation - and today I want to recommend the wonderful Barney Warner photography to you, my lovely blog readers! 

Barney is based in the Sussex and Surrey area of the UK (the area I was born and grew up in) and we hired him (after many recommendations) as our wedding photographer. I cannot tell you how wonderful he, and his wife Emma were. Not only did they produce some absolutely STUNNING images, but they were also the friendliest and most relaxed and fun photographers ever. They didn't boss people around (which I've witnessed at other weddings) and they really seemed to genuinely enjoy the day themselves, joining in and having fun with us all, all the while staying professional and capturing magical moments on camera. 

I'll let the images speak for themselves - here are some of my favourite images from our special day, all taken and edited by Barney Warner Photography....

Such happy memories! 

Not only does Barney offer wedding photography he also does portrait photography. 

We recently took our little man Bert to Barney to have his first ever professional photos taken. I can't tell you how wonderful the whole experience was. Barney and Emma made it so much fun, popping Bert into fun poses, and being really patient and gentle with him. And yet again they haven't disappointed on the images - they've captured our boy beautifully, and we will treasure the images forever.

Barney's photos do the talking...

The awesome Barney is offering you lovely blog readers a chance to win an amazing prize ... 

If you are based in the Surrey/Sussex area and fancy winning a family portrait shoot with Barney Warner Photography for up to 5 people including images up to the value of £230 then please enter the rafflecopter giveaway below.... 

Entries must be in by 30th November 2013

Best of luck!!

Mrs B

xxx

a Rafflecopter giveaway

First Wedding Anniversary & a trip to a Buddies USA Diner

This time last year I was getting ready to marry Liam! 

I cannot believe how fast a year has gone, and I cannot quite take in all that has happened in one short year. Our wedding day was absolutely magical, and I will never quite get over just what an amazing day it was - such happy memories! 

Outside the farmhouse

in the barn during speeches

me outside the registry office

me and my lovely mumma! 

the beautiful barn

my four gorgeous bridesmaids, and lovely hubby! 

I treasure my wedding photos so much, and have regularly looked back at them over the last year to reminisce. 

After the wedding Liam and I went through a really tough time when we lost our first baby due to a miscarriage at the end of our honeymoon, it was such a sad time for us. but ultimately made us stronger,  and made us fight harder for what we wanted, a baby.

And now, a year down the line our Little Mr is one week away from being due, and I look like a beached whale! Exciting times!

the beached whale look

We nervously anticipate the birth, and I have absolutely everything crossed that we soon get to meet a healthy little bouncing baby boy, and all our dreams come true. 

One Year Anniversary

Everyone has been telling Liam and I to enjoy our 'last chance' to go out alone as a couple - encouraging us to go out to eat, go to the cinema etc before the baby is here and we will apparently have no social life, or sleep ever again! Lol. So, not one to turn down advice, we headed off last night for an anniversary celebration meal to a Buddies USA Diner in Northampton.

We had the place recommended to us by my lovely friend Liz, who knows that Liam and I love a fun night out, good hearty food, and are big fans of American food culture (think Man vs. Food). The diners are spread all round Northamptonshire, and boast a huge menu full of American-esque cuisine (burgers, waffles, donuts, fries, soda floats etc!)...this place is SO American you can even opt to have your burger served in a donut. Yes, a donut!

Liam and I arrived to the hustle and bustle of a true 'diner' atmosphere - the only thing that was missing according to Liam was that the waiting staff weren't on roller-skates! 

I could literally only JUST fit into the booth with my very large bump, and had to sort of sit sideways for the duration - the booths certainly aren't made for American waist sizes (if you know what I mean!) 

hubby gearing up for his feast

my 'please don't take a photo of me' face

Firstly, we ordered drinks - American-stylie!

a coke float for me :-)

and a coors light for Liam

Next, we studied the amazing menu at great length ... this is just a snippet of the hamburger menu...amaze...

After taking advice from Liz, a well-seasoned Buddies visitor, we decided to skip appetisers, and head straight for a burger and dessert. Liz recommended the medium size burger for me, and she was spot on - Liam went for a large, with loaded fries (he's far more Adam Richmond than me!)

There is so much choice it's overwhelming, but again after seeking advice about whats best we chose:

LIAM: The Large AMERICAN MAC Burger (loaded with Mac & Cheese), with cheese and bacon loaded fries and beans

LUCY: The Medium Donut burger (a burger loaded with cheese and bacon, served in a donut instead of a bun!) with fries and a corn cob. 

Liam's FEAST

Lucy's FEAST

The food was insanely good - proper stodge! Haute cuisine is lovely - but sometimes you just really fancy a great big dirty burger, right? I loved having mine served in a donut - the bacon and cheese went really well with the sweetness from the donut (think bacon and maple syrup) and the beef burger was so juicy and meaty. I'm glad I stuck with plain fries instead of loaded, as I wouldn't have been able to eat any more. 

Liam devoured his plate, and was more than happy with his choice - creamy mac & cheese, in a burger, with chips and more cheese with bacon - what more could any man ask for?

Believe it or not, after that we still had room for dessert - and I'm sooooo glad we did! 

Liam's choice: The BIGGEST piece of Banoffee Pie I've EVER seen.  

it was literally a quarter of a pie! 

and the scrummiest hot Bourbon & Pecan pie for me, with Vanilla ice cream....words cannot tell you how scrumptious this was. 

dessert heaven

We joked when we finished that at least if I went into labour that night I would have eaten the biggest carb-fueled energy-boost sugar-filled meal to give me the energy to get the baby out! :-)

I think the photos speak for themselves, but I honestly can't recommend Buddies enough - they are incredibly family friendly, with a full children's menu, fast, friendly and efficient service, and very good value for money - our total bill came to under £36 last night. We will definitely be returning - with Baby Bishop in tow - if for no other reason than to sample their extensive breakfast menu, and to try another awesome burger combo! 

How do you celebrate your anniversaries?

Would Buddies be the top of your list?

Mrs B

xxx

Wedding Gifts & Baking Therapy!

This week has been a real mixed bag... 

I returned to work on Monday, which hasn't been easy (physically or emotionally) but the week is almost out, and once the weekend is here I'm planning to totally chill! 

Excitingly, on Saturday we had our wedding gift delivery from John Lewis, which was like all our Christmases and birthdays rolled into one!! 

We were so touched and delighted by everyones generosity & are so pleased with all the fab gifts we picked! We spent all weekend unwrapping, and finding places for everything. 

I thought I'd share a few of my most favourite gifts with you ... 

Our new baby! Kitchen Aid mixer from my lovely Mummy! :-) 

Gorgeous English Rose Cath Kidston bedspread from my lovely sister! 

Two totally awesome house bedside lamps from Philippa, Penny & Liam's work friends

Sweet Mr & Mrs frame from Gemma & Anthony 

Rob Ryan couples mug (only make sense together) from my Mother & Father-in-Law

Amaze-balls ice cream scoop with sprinkle storing handle! from Danni & Charlie :-)

That really is just a few highlights, we got so many amazing gifts and are truly blessed to have such awesome family & friends! 

BAKING THERAPY

In order to help get through the past month of tough-ness I've been busy baking my heart out. 

Baking really is therapy to me. I get to zone-out in my favourite room of the house (kitchen), be creative & ultimately get lots of pleasure from feeding others (especially husband) said creations! 

Added bonus is I now get to use our awesome Kitchen Aid mixer...! 

I baked a giant cupcake for WI on Thursday last week, it was our groups one year birthday & we had a bake-off competition at our AGM. I decided to make a cupcake as I thought it was very 'WI' and decorated it with handmade sugar roses, as our group name is The Scone Roses! 

I was pleased how it turned out as it was a first attempt. Really fun to do and best of all I won the competition! :-) But I must admit there were only 7 entries, and all were scrummy! 

My winning Scone Roses WI Birthday Giant Cupcake! 

I couldn't stay out of the kitchen after that, and so here are my other bakes of the week.....

Carrot cake made from Felicity Cloake's 'Perfect' recipe in The Guardian 

Jam Tarts (Strawberry & Lemon)

Profiteroles and Choux buns! (first attempt at choux pastry too, it was YUMMA!)

That's a hell of a lot of 'treats' in a week - luckily being back at work has meant back to walking 4 miles a day, and back to having a staff-room full of friends willing to 'try' my kitchen efforts. (Although, I must admit it was only the carrot cake this week that made it in to work!)

OTHER RANDOMNESS....

I treated myself to a gorgeous new book last week - it's a beautiful hard back edition of the new 'The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit', based on Beatrix Potter's most enchanting character the mischievous bunny in the blue coat! It has been written by the wonderful Emma Thompson (Actress: Nanny McPhee, Sense & Sensibility etc) and it is the sweetest thing! Lovely to see one of my favourite childhood characters being bought back to life! 

(Also note my awesome Cath Kidston soldier PJ bottoms featuring in this picture!)

And finally, my little kitty Pickle otherwise known as Fluff-Face sitting in the laundry bin, as cats do! Cute picture & thought I'd share. 

Hope the over-all loveliness of these pictures have bought a smile to your week!

Love

Lucy 

xxxxx