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t notice how strikingly beautiful the ballroom looks. The floral centerpieces are mounted on golden stands displaying a vivid mixture of pink, lavender, green and red flower petals. The pale green linens on the tables give the room a feeling of being in an outdoor, garden setting. The favors feature a lavender ribbon tied in a bow on a small white box with the Bride and Groom’s name and their wedding date in a handwritten font. The cake is set with four tiers and the frosting looks like a heavy, white ribbon that is rolling over the edges. The head table is on a riser with white lights illuminating the tablecloth from underneath the table. The appetizers are displayed with a touch of flair that clearly showcases the passion and creativity of the chef. The lights are slightly dimmed and the music playing in the background is a mixture of vocal jazz artists from the 40′s and 50′s singing songs about love. The catering staff begins to pour champagne as the MC tells the 200 guests in attendance that the Bride and Groom and their wedding party are almost ready to make their grand entrance. Suddenly, the music volume goes up dramatically and the DJ begins to talk as if he’s announcing the monster truck show on Sunday. The wedding party is introduced one couple at a time using just their first names. The Best Man is named John. He is the Groom’s Father, but unless you were a friend of the Groom’s family, you wouldn’t have known that because the DJ fails to mention it. After the Best Man’s toast, it’s time for the Bride’s Father and Stepfather to give a formal toast. The DJ takes the cordless microphone from the Best Man and walks to the center of the dance floor and introduces these two important men by saying, “Who wants it?”, and then holds the microphone out at arm’s length. Two men stand up and walk to the dance floor and make formal toasts, but unless you were a friend of the Bride’s family, you wouldn’t know their names, or which one of them was her Father or her Stepfather. During dinner, the music is so loud that the guests have to shout in order to carry on a conversation. When the meal ends, the guests begin to get restless and it’s a full 20 minutes from the time they have all finished eating until the special dances begin. The guests are overheard saying “When does the fun begin?” The First Dance finally starts and when it ends, it’s time for the Father/Daughter Dance. The DJ announces the Father/Daughter Dance and begins to play the specially selected song as the Bride stands on the dance floor waiting for her Father to join her. But he’s nowhere to be found. “Where’s Dad?” asks the DJ on the microphone. A few moments later, one of the guests runs out and locates the Father of the Bride in the restroom. When her Father finally makes it out to the dance floor, the DJ starts their song all over again after making a wisecrack at Dad for not being ready. When it’s time to cut the cake, the MC invites the guests to gather around. But suddenly there’s a commotion over near the cake as the photographer begins to make a frantic cutting motion with his hand and it becomes evident that there is no knife at the cake table. The Bride’s Mother rushes over and tells a catering staff member, who disappears into the kitchen and then comes back with a knife so the Bride and Groom can finally cut their cake. When everyone is invited to dance, the DJ tells the guests that they all have to come out to the dance floor if they want the Bride and Groom to have a long and happy marriage. He then guides them through a series of group dances as the Bride and Groom begin to shake their heads and it becomes obvious that these were songs that they neither liked nor had requested. There are many times throughout the remainder of the evening when the dance floor just remains empty. One by one the guests begin to bid the Bride and Groom farewell. Soon, more and more guests are leaving. They have the ballroom for another hour and when the reception is over, they share their Last Dance with 20 of their closest friends. The day has ended, they are now married, they had a good time, and their reception was “okay.”

As the Bride and Groom walk down the hallway on the way to their honeymoon suite, they pass a ballroom where another wedding reception has been going on at the same time as theirs. As they pass by, the doors swing open and they see 150 guests dancing, laughing, and enjoying themselves. They overhear a couple saying to each other as they leave the room, “That was the best wedding reception. Ever!”

The Bride and Groom look at each other and begin to wonder what was so different about this reception

Compared to their own…..”What did they do that we didn’t?” they asked themselves….. let’s talk about setting up a time to discuss your vision for your day do not miss out on ….. the best wedding reception ever!