When our loved ones gathered for our daughter’s christening, we had an extra surprise that left them gasping! By Kerry Hill, 37
As I carefully unwrapped the white cake decorated with roses, I wondered if it would be a pink or a blue sponge inside.
I was expecting my second baby with my partner Dan, but we didn’t yet know if we’d be having a brother or sister for our daughter Rosa, two.
We’d invited close friends and family to our local park for a gender reveal party.
‘Anyone for cake?’ I said.
But as everyone gathered to watch us cut the cake that would tell us, Dan suddenly whipped out a little black box from his pocket.
Then he dropped to one knee and said: ‘Will you marry me?’
I gasped in surprise then said: ‘Yes!’
Once the ring was on my finger, it was time to cut the cake.
‘It’s another girl!’ I said, as the first slice revealed the pink sponge inside.
We decided to wait until after the baby was born before setting a date for the wedding.
A few months on, our daughter Daisy arrived and we became a happy family of four.
We knew we wanted to have the girls christened when Daisy turned one, so we began making plans for that, and we started researching options for our wedding at the same time.
'I can't give you away in demin'
During the COVID-19 lockdown the previous year, Dan’s nanna had sadly had a stroke, and with us both having several elderly relatives, we wanted to get the wedding sorted sooner rather than later.
Although we’d always dreamt of getting hitched in Las Vegas, it would take us years to save for that, so we looked at the register office instead.
But then an idea hit me. In fact, it had been staring me in the face all along.
‘Why don’t we just do the wedding and christening at the same time?’ I said to Dan.
‘I think that could work,’ he replied.
We’d already talked to our local church about the christening, so now I called the vicar and said: ‘Could we get married on the same day?’
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘That’s a lovely idea.’
Then we decided to add an even more exciting element to our plan.
‘Let’s keep it a secret from the guests,’ I suggested.
‘Brilliant idea!’ Dan said.
So, we sent out invites to family and friends for the christening, but kept our planned nuptials a surprise.
When the day finally arrived, I had my hair and make-up done while Dan put his suit on and got the girls ready.
I popped my wedding dress in a bag, so I could get into it just before the ceremony.
Then, full of nervous excitement, we left our home in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, and headed to the church.
For the first 15 minutes, I stood at the door, greeting guests as they arrived for what they thought was the christening.
Then quietly, without anyone noticing, I slipped away with my friend, Dianne, who was the only one in on the secret, to get ready in a little room off the main church.
After zipping up my gown, and with just five minutes to go, there was still one thing left to do.
I needed someone to walk me down the aisle, and I knew exactly who.
Dan went to fetch my stepdad, Mac, telling him I needed help with something.
When he walked in and saw me in my blush-pink dress, his eyes widened in shock.
‘Oh my God — you’re getting married!’ he said, astounded. ‘I can’t believe you’ve kept this a secret.’
‘I wanted to ask you… Will you give me away?’ I said.
Never one to dress up, Mac had rocked up to the church in his jeans.
‘I’m in denim, Kerry!’ he said. ‘I can’t give you away wearing denim.’
He took a bit of convincing, but I managed to talk him round.
Butterflies filled my stomach as I took Mac’s arm and got ready to give my guests the surprise of a lifetime.
Moments later, the sound of the wedding march filled the air and the church doors flew open.
There were mutters of confusion as people turned to see what was going on, then gasps of shock as they saw me in my wedding gown and the penny dropped.
‘Oh my God!’ I heard my mum cry.
People started laughing in delight and it was the greatest feeling in the world.
Seeing Dan waiting for me at the altar with a huge grin on his face was the icing on the cake.
Cheers erupted as we made our vows and were pronounced man and wife.
With the surprise wedding over, we went straight into the girls’ christening. Then Mum took the girls so Mac and I could walk back up the aisle together.
After a quick photoshoot, we headed to a local hotel with our guests for our reception.
As we chatted to friends and family, none of them could believe we’d kept it secret all that time. No one had suspected a thing, which was brilliant!
It was an absolute blast, and our guests loved it as much as we did.
Now, nine months on, Dan and I are loving married life.
I’m so glad we pulled off our surprise wedding. It was worth it to see the look on everyone’s faces.
It definitely made it a day to remember!