As the night drew to a close, S. and I had a few surprises in store…
My little sister and three of her friends (girls who I consider adoptive sisters since I’ve known them so long) performed a kick ass tribute dance to OK GO – A Million Ways to be Cruel. Random, offbeat and fun it was a complete smash hit and without a doubt, was one of the best wedding gifts S. Monster and I received.
For our big send off at the end of the night, thanks to the restrictions of the reception site, I had stumbled across the genius idea of using glow sticks. The original plan had been to have the glow sticks passed out right before our farewell. Due to a happy accident though, they were passed out much earlier and I’m so glad they did!
Everyone went wild with reckless abandon after the glow sticks made an appearance. The few people that were reluctant to join in before were now in the midst of the action.
{Who says you can't have a wedding and a rave party?}
{Sexiest photo EVER}
All to soon it was time for the night to end. Our family and friends lined up, forming a tunnel encased in a soft purple glow to see us off. Running hand in hand, we took the final steps of the long beautiful journey that led us here. As we came out the other side, we embraced the next bright and shiny new adventure that awaited us as husband and wife.
From the very beginning of the wedding planning, S. Monster and I’s number one priority for the reception was to have fun. And for us, that meant throwing a kick ass dance party which was made possible thanks to our amazing band, The Buzzcatz.
When it came to the entertainment, it was of the utmost importance to me to have music that everyone would enjoy. Not only did the Buzzcatz deliver that with a blend of classic big band swing, soul, jazz, blues and rock and roll—they did it all with personality and charm to spare. Jaws dropped as Ricky, the lead singer, performed a Louis Armstrong impersonation for the song “What a Wonderful World” that was so dead on even Satchmo himself would have tipped his hat.
Music is a powerful tool and it has always played a huge part in our relationship. It has provided countless inside jokes and was the cause of many spontaneous dance parties. Mostly though, music helped us get through all the time spent apart.
So when it came to picking the music for our first dance, there was never any contest. For us, it was a song that was a constant source of comfort in the toughest of times and summed up so perfectly everything we went through. Michael Buble’s “Home”
Another summer day
Has come and gone away
In Paris and Rome
But I wanna go home
May be surrounded by
A million people I
Still feel all alone I just wanna go home
Oh, I miss you, you know
And I’ve been keeping all the letters that I wrote to you
Each one a line or two
“I’m fine baby, how are you?”
Well I would send them but I know that it’s just not enough
My words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that
Another aeroplane
Another sunny place
I’m lucky, I know
But I wanna go home
Mmmm, I’ve got to go home
And I feel just like I’m living someone else’s life
It’s like I just stepped outside
When everything was going right
And I know just why you could not
Come along with me
'Cause this was not your dream
But you always believed in me Another winter day has come
And gone away
In even Paris and Rome
And I wanna go home
Let me go home
Let me go home
I’ve had my run
Baby, I’m done I gotta go home
Let me go home
It will all be all right
I’ll be home tonight
I’m coming back home
Words can't describe how completely at peace I felt in that moment. It was our first dance as husband and wife. We had made it....we were finally home.
If I was at peace while dancing with S. Monster, I was nothing short of a hot mess while dancing with my father (as you will see in the pictures). I was so overwhelmed with emotions for who, aside from S. Monster, is the single greatest man I have ever known. I am so blessed to have extremely close relationships with both of my parents, but there is no denying that I am and will always be, daddy’s little girl. As I stood there with my father, swaying to our song, I completely lost it.
Once the sentimental portion of the evening was over and the tears dried, it was time to really get the party started....
Out of the 125 guests in attendance that night I could probably count on one hand the number of people who weren’t dancing. From 5 year olds, to 80 years olds, and everyone in between was busting a move.
Under stars and twinkle light adorned trees, on a brick covered floor, we danced and laughed the night away.
On top of having great music everyone would enjoy, it was important to me to throw in some quirky offbeat choices that highlighted S. Monster’s and I relationship along with our nerdy/ uber awesome personalities.
One of the things I enjoyed the most about planning the wedding was picking the songs that would be played during the Bands breaks. Details that I’m sure no one else noticed, but I loved them all the same. It was an eclectic mix ranging from jazz rendition of ‘The Spiderman Theme Song’ to a few favorite Spanish tracks so we could get our salsa on.
Without a doubt though, one of my favorite offbeat songs from the night was the one S. Monster and I cut the cake to. It was our “unofficial” song. A song that can only be described as our musically equivalent ying to our “official” song Michael Buble’s Home yang.
What incredible song is this you ask? Why it is the Pillows “Ride on Shooting Star.” And because this song is so totally awesome, I have embedded it here for your viewing and listening pleasure. Enjoy!
