'I lost the ring three months after our 'Reggae' wedding'

BRIDE: Bernadette Omondi

GROOM: David Liech

DATE: February 6, 2016

GUESTS: 800

CEREMONY: Don Bosco Church, Upperhill

RECEPTION VENUE: Fadhili Gardens

PHOTO SHOOT: Hemingways, Karen

BUDGET: Sh5 million

FIRST DATE

Bernadette: I had been seeing David around since the time I cleared high school as we lived in the same neighborhood in Lang'ata. That was 13 years ago. I noticed his show of interest when I left for campus soon after.

At the time, he had a friend who was going out with one of my friends and since they were all close friends with my brother, we would hang out together. He took the opportunity to start talking to me and we became good friends.

David: Whenever I would go visiting the brother, I would admire her secretly. We soon became friends and one night in 2001 while we were out, I asked her in no specific terms to be my girlfriend.

Bernadette: He did not officially ask, 'will you be my girlfriend' but I felt the implication of the request that night. Five years later, we had our first child.

THE PROPOSAL

David: I officially proposed to her last year over the Easter Holiday. We drove to Diani Baobab Resort, Kwale County where I proposed with two rings.

Bernadette: I knew the proposal would happen someday but this came as a surprise since he had not even hinted at it. For all I knew, the drive down to Diani was a normal family holiday since we taken our two kids with us.

Some relatives, his best man and one of my childhood friends had tagged along. There was nothing unusual about the night. After dinner, we went for a stroll in the beach after putting the kids to bed. It was there under the full moon that he went on one knee and popped the question. The two diamond rings were symbolic of the two kids I had given him.

THE DRAMA

Bernadette: I lost one of the rings three months later. To date, it still remains a mystery how I lost it. All I recall is getting home from work one evening and when I glanced at my finger, the ring was missing. He, however, replaced the ring in December by buying me an entirely new set of diamond rings.

When we started going out, I noticed he was a reggae die hard fan. I, on the other hand, could not stand it. But over time, his love for that music genre and culture rubbed off on me, so much so that our children have dreadlocks. So when he suggested a reggae and Caribbean theme for the wedding, I was up for it. I had 13 bridesmaids to symbolise the 13 years we have been together.

Shopping for my dress was an uphill task. I knew that I did not want a white wedding gown as I find them a bit cliche. I wanted a gold dress. So David booked me a flight to the UK to shop for my dress in November. I shopped around, trying numerous dresses from different shops but nothing tickled my fancy.

Then in the fourth shop, after trying too many dresses, the attendant asked me exactly what I was looking for. All I could say was 'nothing white'. I was in luck, for in store was a Vera Wang gold dress, the exact one I had envisioned, and it was the only remaining piece. Back home, I had my cousin add the needed embellishments to suit the wedding's reggae theme.

David: When I went to her village Siranga, Siaya County together with some of the groomsmen to pay dowry, we were clad in vests for it was hot on that day. The villagers seemed reluctant to welcome us. I guess they expected us to be in suits in that scorching sun.

On the wedding day, we got late for the church ceremony by over an hour. The officiating pastor was not impressed, more so because the church where our ceremony was being held is busy and we were holding up other activities.

IN HINDSIGHT

It is important to be of the same mind with your planner and to trust that they will do a good job, otherwise you will be at loggerheads with them, trying to show them how to do what you paid them to do.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS

Bernadette: When my son played the violin to the song Milele by Elani as I walked down the aisle.

WORDS: Rose Kwamboka

PHOTOS: Elvis Ogina