The British Slant on the Wedding Day

Or course, during the Royal Wedding week, all the British press was thrilled to be giving their spin on the jolly nuptials. Cristen and I had so much fun going through all the papers and some of the early magazines. Hang on, and I'll give you a glimpse of what they had to say.

The day before, the military had a practice at dawn,

and we all studied the parade route that was in the Thursday paper.

The Times had its typical "no frills" coverage

but all the other papers relished in their descriptive and amusing headlines.

At every turn, there was talk of a "knees-up," which just refers to a lively party, usually with dancing!

I Wills

The Kiss

times two.

Along the parade route, we all participated in The Wave as we call it in America, but in Britain, it is called The Mexican Wave.

They all fell in love with Pippa,

and she was referred to "Her Royal Hotness" in more than one report.

Didn't take long for rumors of sparks between Harry and Pippa

to surface.

Many comments about the clothing filled the papers, especially Kate's beautiful wedding dress which was compared here to Grace Kelly's.

Then there were the winners and the losers in the fashion world.

"Sure those hats were wise, ladies?"

"Maybe Posh thought she was at a funeral", referring to Victoria Beckham's frock,

and then there was great fun picking out the "style queens" and the "court jesters!"

Reports from the Middleton's home town party.

The Day After reports,

including stories of the Middleton's going home with their pockets a little less full.

Somehow The Mail acquired all the horseshoes used by the Household Cavalry during the Wedding Parade, and you too, can have a chance at winning one of them!

My favorite headline of all was this one. We've Lost the Empire, Can't Win World Cup, But When It Comes to a Royal Knees-Up, WE'RE GREAT BRITAIN!

So, I have an extra copy of The Sun's Souvenir Edition that was printed the day after the wedding, so if you would like it, I'm going to give it away to one of my readers. Just leave me a comment here before Wednesday, May 11, and I'll pick one of you at random.

If one of my British readers is the winner, I'll happily send you a unique American magazine instead, that you would enjoy, since you probably have your own stack of newspapers too.

Good luck!

Wrapping Up the Party

Today, I spent the day saying good-bye to London for a few weeks. This week has been unforgettable and the images of everything I saw, heard and experienced will remain with me always. It was a party London will not soon forget.

Cristen and I spent some relaxing time going through stacks of newspapers and magazines,

I wrote my best wishes at the book at Peter Jones,

and I made one more trek to the Abbey, to see the beautiful floral decorations and trees that have been left behind for the week. The Abbey was adhering to a strict no photos policy, so I can't share any of my photos with you, but I can tell you that Westminster Abbey was dressed up in all its glory, shining like I've never seen it before, as rays of sunlight flooded through the stained glass windows. 

Perhaps you've heard in the many reports that have aired since that day, that almost simultaneously as they were pronounced husband and wife, the sun broke through the clouds and rays of sunlight fell through the Abbey. Some guests have since remarked that the burst of light was a symbol that William's mother, Diana, was looking down with pride and approval of the wonderful union that her sweet young man has made with his adoring princess.

.

Just outside, we signed a book of good wishes for the happy couple.

We had the amazing chance to view all the trees and enormous floral arrangements that decorated the Abbey. There were 6 field maples and 2 hornbeam trees that flanked the aisle, of heights reaching almost 25 feet, softening the church.  The floral designer, Shane Connolly, said that Kate Middleton was eager to use seasonal British flowers in the arrangements. Almost 30,000 flowers, most which were taken from Windsor Great Park's Valley Gardens adorned the altar area in neutral colors of white, cream and green.

Daily Telegraph

Her bouquet was surprisingly small, made up of myrtle, lily of the valley, sweet William, and hyacinth. The myrtle was taken from two sources: from a plant at Osbourne House that has been there since it was planted by Queen Victoria in 1845, and from another that was grown from the myrtle in Queen Elizabeth's wedding bouquet in 1947. Every royal bride since Queen Victoria has had a sprig of myrtle in her bouquet.

Getty Images

One of the highlights of our visit today to the Abbey was seeing Kate's bouquet which was returned to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This has been a tradition since the time of the Queen Mother's wedding to the future George VI in 1923, when she left her bouquet at the grave in honor of her brother, Fergus, who was killed in action in 1915. Since that time, royal brides have  either left their bouquet as they leave, or have returned their bouquet after bridal portraits. The tomb holds the body of a soldier killed in the First World War and has come to symbolize those who have lost their lives in war.

Touching, and poignant. A sweet finale to a beautiful beginning for the future of the young royals and the hope of blessed days ahead.

Announcing the Arrival of The Little Prince

In the midst of all the royal celebrations, I would love to introduce you to our brand new Little Prince, my grandson Jackson Alexander, who was born on April 17, weighing in at a hearty 9 lbs. and 1 oz.

His daddy is very proud to welcome his first son,

and big sister, Jordan, is becoming more and more infatuated with the little guy every day.

We can't tell you enough how "over the moon"

we all are at this little bundle of blessing from God.

Sweet dreams my Little Prince,

and may the angels of the King of Kings protect you as you live and grow amongst us all. We are so grateful for your life.

P.S. Your Gigi is so thankful that you came 11 days early and gave her the chance to go and be a part of the Royal Wedding celebrations. I'll have a lot of stories to share with you someday.

Surprise Royal Spin

This was one of my favorite moments of the day. Just more proof  how fun this new couple is going to be to watch in the days to come.

It was a day of memories--a once in a lifetime experience, a wedding celebration like no other. London was ready for a party.

I left my house at 6:40 AM to meet friends and make our way to the Mall which leads to Buckingham Palace. I know that many of you in the US got up much early, so you may not appreciate that early hour, but I did have to walk a couple of miles to claim our viewing spots.

On our way, we passed near the Goring Hotel where the Middleton family was staying, and saw the white canopy which would hide Kate as she would discreetly leave the hotel a few hours later.

When we parked ourselves along the street with the other one million people who were on the streets of London today, we met some interesting characters who made our party even more memorable.

Little princesses came to see the Princess Kate they all idolize.

Along the way, we found several wedding couples,

and a very special princess who had stepped into the loo for a bit.

We made great friends with our parade route neighbors, Alex and Monica,

and stood patiently 7 hours in all to see all the spectacles of the day. We were positioned about 6 people deep,

so any pictures we got were just quick glimpses of the wedding party, in between a sea of cameras. The crowd roared in delight when Kate Middleton drove by on her way to the wedding, and we got the first peek at that divine dress designed by Sarah Burton, as many had surmised the last few weeks.

As the ceremony took place, those of us on the parade route had copies of the wedding program so we could follow along as the wedding was broadcast from loudspeakers.

After the wedding, the newlyweds, now entitled the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, came back down the Mall in a 1902 State Landau, an open carriage that had carried Princess Diana and Prince Charles down the same route years ago. Disappointing pictures, since you can tell that my camera focused on the camera in front of me instead of the royal couple,

so I'll also share Cristen's photo she took, as they stood at the Horse Guards Parade to get their view.

Harry and the 2 young pages came next,

followed by Pippa Middleton and the young bridesmaids.

The queen and Prince Philip opted for a glass carriage, with the intention of keeping the focus on the young newlyweds, and not on them.

They were followed by the two sets of parents of the bride and groom, now in-laws to each other.

The coach buses carried "minor royalty."

As soon, as the procession passed, we all headed towards the palace to see the royal family step out on the balcony of the palace, to greet all 800,000 of us waiting.

Cristen grabbed this shot, as they greeted the crowds. Didn't you love the way Prince William blushed when he kissed his new bride?

And as the day draws to a close here in London, I think the wedding of the much loved William and Kate has once again proven, "Fairy Tales Do Come True."

There were many moving moments of the day, but one especially resonated with me. It was when we all joined in with the wedding guests to sing a rousing, if not musically perfect, rendition of "God Save the Queen." Hope you enjoy this peek into the street scene of one of the biggest parties London has ever seen.

Click twice to see full screen.