Wedding Recap II: The Reception!
My father lives next door to a wonderful couple named Cindy and Bob. They are the kind of people who make a pitcher of margaritas on Sundays, just in case people happen to pop by. The kind that change the wreath on their front door according to season and greet everyone with a hug. They are also the kind of people who let their next door neighbor’s daughter have her wedding reception in their backyard. Except it’s not a backyard. It’s an amazing lakefront ranch.
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| All photos are by Jason + Anna Photography, unless indicated otherwise. |
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| photo by Senka Burich. |
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| Senka Burich |
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I saw Cindy a month or two after the wedding, when Vin and I flew to down to visit family for Christmas. “Bob and I have been to a lot of weddings before, and I’ve been to some pretty fancy ones,” she told me. But your wedding was magical, because everybody danced with everybody.(Senka Burich photo).
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| Jason + Anna |
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| Jason + Anna |
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That was my favorite thing about our reception too. Our families and friends had never really spent time together before the wedding–my people are in Texas and Vin’s are in New York–so we were amazed not only by how well everyone got along, but by how much they all genuinely seemed to enjoy one another (photo by Jason + Anna).
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Midway through the reception, one of Vin’s relatives was found crying softly to himself outside the tent. When asked about the tears he said, “I’ve just never seen my family this happy before.” He’s nine.
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| photo by Jason + Anna |
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| photo by Jason + Anna |
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| My grandfather danced with my new mother-in-law (photo by Senka B). |
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| My aunt danced with Vin’s cousin. (photo by Senka B.) |
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My mother did the do-si-do with her best friend, then did high kicks with one of mine. Then the Texans linked arms with the New Yorkers and taught them how to do the Cotton-Eyed Joe. (photo by Jason + Anna)We were both overjoyed to dance and spend time with our guests, our families, our communities our friends. Our people. |
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We have really good people. More than half our guests had to buy a plane ticket to celebrate with us, A handful even bought cowboy boots to party in. |
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| And party we did. (photo by Jason + Anna) |
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| photo by Jason + Anna |
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| photo by Jason + Anna |
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My 85-year-old grandpa stayed up dancing till midnight. He hasn’t done that since the Eisenhower administration. (photo by Jason + Anna)
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Shots were poured. Cops showed up to tell us to turn down the music. The chef, a bridesmaid and a New Yorker all fell into the koi pond. One friend had to crash on dad’s couch for the night. It certainly wasn’t the fanciest of affairs. It was an explosion of joy and a hell of a good party. (
photo by Jason + Anna).
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| We didn’t cut a cake or throw a bouquet or remove a garter, but we did have a livestock auctioneer help us earn some quick cash for our honeymoon with an old-fashioned auction dance. That’s Cindy’s husband Bob. He also did our blessing during the ceremony and poured tequila shots for friends. He wears many hats…mostly stetsons. (photo by Jason + Anna) |
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| My brother paid 100 bucks to dance with me, even though he knows full well I would have gladly done it for free. Back in the day he would have paid $100 to get out of dancing with me, so the act was particularly touching. |
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And like I knew they would, the crowd went wild when it was Vin’s turn to be auctioned off. His friends pooled their money together to improve their odds. Twenty dollar bills started flying in the air. He went for $350.
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I would have paid triple. (photo by Senka Burich)
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And then my secret wedding wish came true. Our friends charged toward Vin and lifted him off the ground. I can’t remember ever feeling so happy or proud.
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I had married a good man. |
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In the words of Vin’s brother, he is “our favorite friend, our favorite brother, our favorite son.” The kind of man people want to put on their shoulders.
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I hesitate to use the word perfect to describe anything. But that night was.
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Except for one thing. The next day I realized I’d barely danced with the groom at our wedding reception. (photo by Michael Ou) |
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No big deal. He’s not going anywhere. (photo by Joe Tillman) |
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Love-
Jonathan