Utah Wedding - The Reception

Welcome back - this post is a continuation of several about the wedding for my daughter, in Utah. We're going to focus this post on the reception. It was held at an amazing location. I'm sure everyone says that - I'm telling you the truth. We partied down at The Point - a top-floor reception center located at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, on the campus of the University of Utah. Anyone who knows me (and particularly, where I went to college) will understand just how difficult it was to write that last sentence. The fact that I actually handed money over to the U of U is a true sign of how much I love my daughter ; )

Despite the fact that it was located on the campus of the second-best school in Utah, the reception center was amazing. The view from floor-to-ceiling windows was breathtaking. You could see the entire Salt Lake Valley below (as with the other posts, I'm relying on family member's photographs to illustrate this one).

Even G-Man loved the view:

The entrance to the main room was beautifully decorated with votive candles, flowers and a series of the couple's engagement pictures.

We formed the traditional "receiving line" and proceeded to greet each guest as the entered. I had the opportunity to meet more of the groom's family, as they mostly live in near Salt Lake City. I queried each one for "dirt" on the groom - but they all maintained that he was actually a really nice guy. I suppose my daughter made a good selection, for sure.

The receiving line lasted for about an hour. At that point, all the parents were starving ; ) I also wanted to make sure that my daughter ate something. I remember my own wedding, and you get distracted with all the wonderful people wanting to congratulate you. We made our way to the food table. I'm now about to testify of the goodness of the food at The Point. I would be happy to appear in a commercial - the food was that good. We only ordered "finger food" as the reception was held in the evening. We had mushrooms stuffed with cheese, slices of fruit, a tomato bruschetta that was soaked in balsamic vinegar:

Yeah, the food really was this good. I'm drooling, as I write this post....

Everyone had a great time...it was fun to walk to each table and see people enjoying themselves (and the food):

My brother, son, brother-in-law, sister and youngest brother

Then, it was time for the "first dance". The bride and groom took to the dance floor, and we got to see another glimpse of how much they care about each other:

Then, as is my right as her father, I had the chance to dance with the bride. It's the first time that my daughter and I ever slow-danced with each other ; )

We then opened up the dance floor to everyone, and they had a great time. The little kids were, surprisingly, the most eager to get out and dance. Here's a short video, stitched together from several small clips (more dancing pictures further down):

Then, it was time to cut the cake. We all knew that neither the groom, nor bride, would attempt to smear cake all over the other. It was a respectable - if not boring - event:

The nice thing, was that the "groom's cake" was actually a collection of eclairs from the same bakery. The groom showed excellent taste with this one:

Then, it was back to the dancing!! Most impressive? 1) My sister, who just had foot surgery, two days before, workin' that cast on the dance floor. 2) My sister-in-law, who was seven months pregnant, shakin' everything she had.

Yup, that's my son...

My brother-in-law in the "Soul Train" line (if you're too young, look it up)

OK, I have about a million pictures of dancing...it's something we really, really, really like to do. We stopped for a moment, to throw the bouquet:

Nice toss!

Then, sadly, it was time for the bride and groom to leave. We formed a "gauntlet" that they had to run through, complete with exploding confetti:

What a great parting shot. We had a great time and were all together to celebrate the creation of this new family. I loved it all!