Wedding Day

Monday March 19th 2012

As soon as they woke up in the morning the boys were dressed and out the front door to play in their snow pile. Connor was busy stockpiling snow balls and preparing avalanches to hit his unsuspecting enemies and digging for buried ice glasses. While Ryan was building a snow penguin.

After our buffet breakfast we checked out of our warm room and took our luggage to the Dressing room and stored it in our locker in preparation for our stay in the Ice Hotel tonight. We were extremely pleased to find we had definitely been given And Yet She Moves as our room.

It was then time for another snow ball fight - read as war without rules. Team alliances went out the window pretty quickly. We also attempted to build a family snow man but the snow was just so soft that we couldn't compact it enough for it to stay in any recognisable shape. David did enjoy being a snow angel and getting buried in the snow.

We then had a little bit of time to relax in the Ice Hotel Warm Reception area. David and the boys went and had a sauna. They loved it. All that was left was time for a quick lunch and then to get ready for the wedding vows.

At 4.30pm the Wedding Coordinator and the Priest met us in the Warm Reception area. We walked over to the Chapel with the Priest. She opened the doors and led us into the Chapel singing a hymn in Swedish. Connor and Ryan walked down the aisle side by side with Ryan carrying my eternity ring. David and I followed behind them holding hands. When we reached the end of the aisle the boys each sat on one of the ice pews while we moved forward and stood on a reindeer skin at the altar. 

The Priest welcomed us to the Chapel and spoke briefly about marriage. Connor then stepped forward and read two bible readings including one from our wedding 17 years ago - Corinthians 13. Connor also wanted to say some words himself. He did a wonderful job. He spoke beautifully and his own words were very special. Once Connor had said his words Ryan also stepped up to the altar and said something - he had decided at the last moment that he too had something to share. His words were also lovely and special. It was incredibly special that both our beautiful boys were not only present but were able to be such an important part of our day.

Next after we consented to our vows, Ryan brought the ring forward to be blessed and we exchanged simple vows. This was followed by a declaration, prayer, the Lord's Prayer and finally a blessing. Our ceremony was completed with a beautiful song called "Warmth" sung in Swedish.

After the ceremony we spent a long time having photos taken by our photographer in the Ice Chapel, outside the Ice Hotel as the sun set and then inside the Ice Hotel. We will receive the photos in the next few weeks. It will be great to have some high quality photos to remember not only this moment and day but our stay at the Ice Hotel.

When the photos were finished we had some down time before walking to the Old Homestead for dinner. When we arrived we found that they had decorated our table and that we had a small gift from the Ice Hotel - a copy of a book about the hotel and its designs.

We had a lovely meal and then walked very briskly back to the Ice Hotel and collected our sleeping bags. We changed out of our clothes and made our way into our room only wearing our thermals and snow boots - a funny but not a pretty sight I'm sure.

Our room was beautiful and peaceful. We all jumped into our sleeping bags and snuggled down for the night.