Little Italy

Thursday 23rd January- Bella’s wedding- the reason we are here.

Started with breakfast at a nice restaurant and then off to do some sight seeing around San Diego. Rose wanted to see some ‘wall art’ ie graffiti and we managed to find one is the spots she was keen to see but as it was in a car park she couldn’t get good photos. Then on to an ultra fancy hotel on the waterfront which is famous for being the longest standing wooden hotel and was built in 1887. Then Darren wanted to see a Vietnam memorial but we suddenly got stuck in traffic so had to rush back to the hotel to get our wedding finery on then drive out to San Diego Ecclesial Hall about 40 minutes away. We made it in plenty of time.

The hall has been decorated beautifully with flowers and white chairs and apparently quite a lot of friends and family had helped with everything particularly Rhonda, a sister from San Diego who had only been baptised this year and became the wedding coordinator (she is actually an accountant 🤣).

Sean Eustis was the marrying brother. All the grandparents and parents walk down the aisle at the beginning of the wedding before the bride and bridesmaids. As soon as the music started for Bella to walk down the aisle my eyes started leaking. She was so beautiful. The bridesmaids wore a lovely shade of green while Isla had on a dusky pink dress.

Karen Simons and her daughter Ellie were there to take the photos and it was lovely to catch up with them.

We also caught up with Christian and Jennifer Russell and Sean and Rebecca Eustis as well as Mike and Myra Stickney, the groom’s parents. We also caught up with Sharnie Kirkwood Tunnell who still has her Australian accent. Rosie Oosthuizen was there also having married another Tunnell, Seth who was also the MC at the reception .

It was also lovely to catch up with Rebecca Abel Hunter. Uncle Ron and Aunty Mary Abel and their family came and stayed with us in April 1983, just before my mum died in the June. Then not long after Uncle Ron died of a heart attack so I’ve always felt we had a close bond and we connected on FB some years ago. It was great to see Rebecca again in person and meet her husband and children.

The reception was about half an hour away in the garage of friends of the Eustis family which has been specially converted for events. It looked lovely decorated with flowers and fairy lights. We had wood fired pizza and Caesar salad and there was a donut wall for dessert! The speeches were all lovely and most of them tear jerkers. We were sitting near Ruth Tunnell the matriarch of the Tunnell family and opposite Levi and Jess Gelineau who it was lovely to meet.

The young people and some older people carved up the dance floor after a first dance by Lance and Bella, a father daughter dance by Matt and Bella and a mother son dance by Myra and Lance. Grandpa Elton also got right into the dancing at one stage which was a sight to see.

We farewelled the happy couple with a sparkler tunnell and they drove away in Lance’s car which had been done up by Elliott Riley Harry and Jack with seran wrap (glad wrap) all over the doors, a donut on the antenna and red food colouring in the windscreen wiper water.Read more