In Drew’s room

…preparations…

…and a touch of liquid courage…

…while Gracie supervises, all bedecked in a fancy new collar.

And what is Gracie’s reward for putting up with all of this pageantry?

BUNNY!!!!!!

Oh, and a card. BUT BUNNY!!!!!

Meanwhile, back in Allison’s room…

Fliss and the girls start getting Allison ready.

Something borrowed, something blue, something leopard print.
There is actually a pretty entertaining sequence involving these that Utah law prohibits me from sharing with you.
You should be sure to ask Allison about them the next time you see her though.
Love ya, Allison!

Proud momma.

And then its off to the wedding site! Which, at The Canyons means…

…a gondola ride!

A brief moment to reflect at the top of the gondola.
“What does the future hold?”
“What will our children look like?”
“Did I leave the oven on?”

Stuff like that.

OK, brides – here’s a hot tip, so listen up.
If you have a young member of your bridal party – let’s say a ring-bearer…

…who is active and curious and you’re not entirely certain of his focus on the task at hand…

…it does WONDERS to bribe them for a job well done!

Letting them walk the dog down the aisle is a pretty good inducement as well.

We’re ready for liftoff!

OK, grooms – pay attention. Real men cry at their wedding. End of story.

And usually…

…everybody else does too.

Laughter is good too though.

Every Blooming Thing did the flowers and it was just gorgeous! Seriously, just jaw-dropping.
There’s a reason that they’re Florist of The Year. No, not in Utah….in the country.

Cake by Carrie’s Cakes. Perfect, in other words.

And of course there was a place for Gracie.

The toasts.

Funny…

…occasionally embarrassing…

…always heartfelt….

…and genuinely moving.

So these are their very unusual (and very cool) rings alongside Allison’s personal totem that she kept in her bouquet – her lucky bee.

First dance.

They had secretly prepared and they really kicked it up.

Which brings me to the band.

I had not had the pleasure of seeing The Sensations in action before and we were all in for a RIDE!

The Sensations bill themselves predominantly as a soul band.
But when I walk in and see a horn section, a percussionist, keys, three singers and brothers on both bass and kit, well there’s really only one thing I’m hoping for.

Funk.

You see, I grew up in the Detroit area, and one side effect of that is that I love 70′s funk.
When it comes to funk, I am a junky. Hit me on the one and you’ve got my attention. And keep your Doobie out my funk!
Have I made my point?

So when I saw them setting up I asked them off-handedly if they would be dropping some P-Funk on us (or some other feeble attempt at sounding hip).
They laughed and said that they’d see what they could do. I figured they were just making conversation, but I swear I saw a glint in Craig’s (drummer) eye…

Anyway, more on that later. For the next 3 hours Darrell, Renata and the band put everyone through their paces with DEEP renditions of soul, R&B and disco favorites.

Bandleader Darrell kept everyone motivated…

While Nick, Dan, Skip, Amp, Craig, Randy and Anthony laid down the law…

…and the law was ‘dance!’

Everyone followed the law.

Allison & Drew and company had arranged a sort of make-shift photo-booth for polaroids complete with a TON of costumes.

Allison’s bridesmaids had thought that she ought to have a special costume just for the occasion, so they bought her this really beautiful mask.

The mask started to make its rounds amongst the guests.

….and eventually bits of costume from the downstairs photo booth started to find their way to the dance floor…

…bit by bit…

…until it was basically Mardi Gras.

And then the band got into them.

And it was about that time during a song break that I heard a voice over the microphone ask
‘Hey, where’s your photographer?!! There he is! Mitch, this one’s for you!”

And they launched into a blistering rendition of Ohio Player’s ‘Fire‘ which merged into Parliaments ‘Give Up the Funk‘!

Darrell & Renata lead the crowd in their own signature dance number – ‘The Sensations Stomp’ or something like that.

After the demonstration of The Sensation’s funkmanship, Craig asked over the mic
“Is that funky enough for ya, Mitch!?”

It was. It was funky enough. Even for me.

Thanks guys!

Gracie was secretly hoping that they’d play ‘Atomic Dog‘, but she settled for petit fours.

Naturally it wouldn’t be a party if the band didn’t end up on the bar.

After the band had to say goodnight, Allison & Drew had everyone form a circle.
I wasn’t entirely sure what was happening but as the circle began to close in on itself – with ME in the middle – I had to make a quick choice!

So I hit my back in time to get some ‘under-handed’ shots of every guest doing a mass hand-huddle over my head.

I liked the movement and color on this one.

Allison & Drew – THANK YOU, to you and your families, for allowing me to be part of your extraordinary celebration, and for treating me as one of your guests.

And as always…

Good girl, Gracie!!

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