A Wee Morning Wedding

 It's cliche, I know, but ... I have a thing for the Royals. As a girl, I stayed up in the wee hours to watch Princess Diana get married. I was truly captivated.

 At the time, my Aunt Mary was living in England and would send me little bits of British memorabilia. The books on Diana and Sarah Ferguson's weddings were my most favorites. (I can't help but wonder if they will make a companion book on William and Kate. Dear British readers ... will you keep your eye out for me??)

I particularly loved the back page in each book where there was the official family photo with a key to indicate who was who. And oh, those hats! I believe, actually, that my favorite belonged to the Queen Mother. (That's her on the left in the seafoam green.)

So, while everyone has been rolling their eyes this past month over all of the royal who-ha, I've been secretly thrilled. The anticipation was delicious. What would her dress look like?

Last Thursday night, I set two alarms. One for 1:50am and one for 2:00am. Just in case. I was going to watch William and Kate. In the early morning darkness, I watched Princes William and Harry and various guests arrive and marveled at the stunning transformation of Westminster Abbey. The trees! Inside! And remembered how I once sat for a church service in that very same place, about 20 feet from where the Queen herself was now seated. Sweet giddy-ness!

And right before Kate was due for her appearance, I woke my own girls up. We cuddled up with tea and cookies and took it all in. The soon-to-be princess? Stunning. Her dress? Sheer perfection. We watched every minute until they drove off in their carriage before tucking ourselves back in bed. 

Felt like a bit of a midnight secret ... just for us girls.