Jimmer's wedding, part II
So...I thought it'd be good if I finished telling about Jimmer's wedding. "Part I" was about the temple portion of the wedding. This section will cover the reception. Part III will cover the end of our trip. (There were no cameras allowed at the reception, so I only have the two photos I bought from the professional photographer. At $10 per photo, they were expensive, but you'll see why I bought them later. And I still haven't scanned them. That's on the agenda, but I'm posting this anyway. I'll add the photos when I post part III.)
Jimmer and Whitney had their reception at the Cherry Hills Country Club. I'm not sure if Whitney's family has a membership there or if they rented it. It's well-known in Denver. It's also very expensive: memberships run from $40-95,0000 per year. (I went online to find out their rules...as in, "Can my crazy kids come to this event?" And while online, I read about memberships. That price is crazy. Think of how many hungry people could be fed for $950,000 per year. Insane.)
Anyway, there was a "reception" followed by dinner and dancing. We drove into the driveway and were greeted by several valets. (I think there were four, one for each door of the Burb. One of them commented, "Wow! There are a lot of you." They were friendly and efficient.) We entered the building and stood in a line, where we were greeted by "CougarRich". (Whitney's dad's Twitter name.) (Side note: Caleb had been debating what tie to wear; I insisted he wear the BYU one because I knew it would work. Caleb grinned when CougarRich shook his hand and said, "That tie's approved here.") There wasn't an actual receiving line; in fact, we didn't see Jimmer and Whitney at all during this part of the reception. We did, however, visit with Uncle Al, Lindsay, Aunt Susan, and Brandon Davies. And we were there with my parents, which was also great. We really enjoyed our conversation with Brandon. He's friendly, humble, and personable. I can see why he and Jimmer became such good friends.
When we walked from the receiving line into the open, airy room where the reception was, we immediately noticed servers wearing white gloves and holding trays of lemonade. It was really nice to just know it was lemonade! No guessing or smelling necessary. And, it looked really classy. We were also offered all kinds of h'ordeuvres. The room was the room we'd later dance in; it had a dance floor and an entire wall of windows, which looked out onto the huge patio (which was more like a terrace or maybe even a terazza). The entire thing overlooked the golf course lake and it was gorgeous....trees, greenery, elegance...I'd been afraid the country club would feel stuffy and confining, but this felt wonderful.
The dinner was held in a room that was stuffy and confining. It was long and narrow and filled with more than 25 tables seating 12 people each. Plus, there were heavy drapes on the windows and dark wood accents...never my favorite touch. The side of the room that opened into the country club lobby was made of two huge doors which slid open and closed. Once we were all gathered and seated--a process in itself--the doors were pulled closed and a mini-program (Wonnacott style) began. Whitney's dad introduced the wedding party as they walked through the doors. It was fun to hear a little more information about each person, since most were mutual BYU friends of Whit's and Jimmer's, but after ten minutes I was ready to eat.
Dinner was good: an amazing salad of greens, toasted almonds, cranberries and a great vinagrette-type dressing; bread; prime rib anc shrimp with mashed potatoes and delicious carrots.
The best part of the meal was finding everyone I recognized. I spent some time trying to ID everyone in the wedding party. I listened to a few little speaches given by friends and family members. I even thought about giving one, but the mic was overflowing with praise for Jimmer; I didn't feel I could add a lot more. (Not that he's not worthy of it. He has amazing character and really proved that in the NBA. I just didn't have anything to add.) So I started watching people. I realized my dad was seated with eight or ten guys from New York. I'm slow, and I hadn't met all of them, but after awhile I realized they were the Angelinas/Glens Falls crew: friends of TJs and Jimmers. Many of them were employees of Angelina's pizzeria which is located in Queensbury (neighboring city of Glens Falls, and the largest town near my hometown of Stony Creek). Later I learned that they'd been flown to the wedding specifically to make the food for the "rehearsal dinner" (party). If my brother had still been at Angelina's, I would've seen him. As it was, I got to meet my second cousin,Craig Fredette, for just the second time. It was good to talk with him. I could talk to family members forever. I was struck by the differences between he and my Uncle Craig (his grandfather). This Craig seemed to resemble his mom more, while my Uncle was a true Fredette. And, of course,my Uncle Craig didn't have earrings. That's okay, though...I was glad to get to know Craig a little. The whole thing made me miss NY. Sure wish I could visit there more often.
The best part of the dinner was seeing my cousin Dan. I love Dan! I'd heard he might be there, but had decided he hadn't been able to come. Then, as I was finishing my meal, I looked up and...voila..there he was, standing against the wall with his son Zach. WOW! He'd driven from Vernal and arrived after the dinner had started. He only stayed about an hour before driving home so that he coud work the next day. (Dan used to drive a truck, so driving isn't difficult for him. He actually went to school to become a pilot and minored in Spanish...but he's driven a truck and worked for the Utah State Patrol. He's now a supervisor for a company called Nalco.) Anyway, we had a great time talking. He asked about my kids; I pointed them out. It'd been five years since the Fredette reunion at Bear Lake, so he was surprised to see what they looked like. I have always loved Dan and I was grateful to get to see him. I don't mind living in NE Colorado, but I do mind not living by anyone I love!
During the dinner Jimmer and whitney greeted every single guest. They went from table to table, followed by the photographer, hugging everyone & talking with them. Jimmer was looking for Taylor and Caleb and took extra time with them.
After the dinner we went to the dancing room. First everyone gathered around while Whitney and her dad danced to Tim McGraw's "My Little Girl". Then Jimmer and Aunt Kay danced. After that Jimmer and Whitney danced. Then Jimmer kept dancing, doing several "solos". I knew he liked to dance, but since I'd never seen him live, this was a treat. He'd choreographed a couple of songs and he really did do a good job. (His older sister, Lindsay, was a ballerina who danced for her talent when she won the Miss Teen New York title, and his brother TJ is a musician--but I was gone from home when they were teens so I missed all of their shows) The crowd on the dance floor consisted of Jimmer and Whitney's closest friends, who were mostly BYU athletes, and family members. It was really neat to see their comraderie and to watch them have such a great time together. A little later, we noticed that Isaac really wanted to dance. He just seems to feel music, and he''s practiced few moves at home,so I encouraged him. He was reluctant, but eventually a woman noticed him and dragged him onto the dance floor. He hesitated for just a few minutes and then seemed to loosen up and relax. And he just kept dancing...one song turned into two and then into six. I was amazed that he wasn't self-conscious in front of his audience, but they were good to him, giving him space and attention and encouraging him. His performance was really memorable!
Jimmer and Whitney had their reception at the Cherry Hills Country Club. I'm not sure if Whitney's family has a membership there or if they rented it. It's well-known in Denver. It's also very expensive: memberships run from $40-95,0000 per year. (I went online to find out their rules...as in, "Can my crazy kids come to this event?" And while online, I read about memberships. That price is crazy. Think of how many hungry people could be fed for $950,000 per year. Insane.)
Anyway, there was a "reception" followed by dinner and dancing. We drove into the driveway and were greeted by several valets. (I think there were four, one for each door of the Burb. One of them commented, "Wow! There are a lot of you." They were friendly and efficient.) We entered the building and stood in a line, where we were greeted by "CougarRich". (Whitney's dad's Twitter name.) (Side note: Caleb had been debating what tie to wear; I insisted he wear the BYU one because I knew it would work. Caleb grinned when CougarRich shook his hand and said, "That tie's approved here.") There wasn't an actual receiving line; in fact, we didn't see Jimmer and Whitney at all during this part of the reception. We did, however, visit with Uncle Al, Lindsay, Aunt Susan, and Brandon Davies. And we were there with my parents, which was also great. We really enjoyed our conversation with Brandon. He's friendly, humble, and personable. I can see why he and Jimmer became such good friends.
When we walked from the receiving line into the open, airy room where the reception was, we immediately noticed servers wearing white gloves and holding trays of lemonade. It was really nice to just know it was lemonade! No guessing or smelling necessary. And, it looked really classy. We were also offered all kinds of h'ordeuvres. The room was the room we'd later dance in; it had a dance floor and an entire wall of windows, which looked out onto the huge patio (which was more like a terrace or maybe even a terazza). The entire thing overlooked the golf course lake and it was gorgeous....trees, greenery, elegance...I'd been afraid the country club would feel stuffy and confining, but this felt wonderful.
The dinner was held in a room that was stuffy and confining. It was long and narrow and filled with more than 25 tables seating 12 people each. Plus, there were heavy drapes on the windows and dark wood accents...never my favorite touch. The side of the room that opened into the country club lobby was made of two huge doors which slid open and closed. Once we were all gathered and seated--a process in itself--the doors were pulled closed and a mini-program (Wonnacott style) began. Whitney's dad introduced the wedding party as they walked through the doors. It was fun to hear a little more information about each person, since most were mutual BYU friends of Whit's and Jimmer's, but after ten minutes I was ready to eat.
Dinner was good: an amazing salad of greens, toasted almonds, cranberries and a great vinagrette-type dressing; bread; prime rib anc shrimp with mashed potatoes and delicious carrots.
The best part of the meal was finding everyone I recognized. I spent some time trying to ID everyone in the wedding party. I listened to a few little speaches given by friends and family members. I even thought about giving one, but the mic was overflowing with praise for Jimmer; I didn't feel I could add a lot more. (Not that he's not worthy of it. He has amazing character and really proved that in the NBA. I just didn't have anything to add.) So I started watching people. I realized my dad was seated with eight or ten guys from New York. I'm slow, and I hadn't met all of them, but after awhile I realized they were the Angelinas/Glens Falls crew: friends of TJs and Jimmers. Many of them were employees of Angelina's pizzeria which is located in Queensbury (neighboring city of Glens Falls, and the largest town near my hometown of Stony Creek). Later I learned that they'd been flown to the wedding specifically to make the food for the "rehearsal dinner" (party). If my brother had still been at Angelina's, I would've seen him. As it was, I got to meet my second cousin,Craig Fredette, for just the second time. It was good to talk with him. I could talk to family members forever. I was struck by the differences between he and my Uncle Craig (his grandfather). This Craig seemed to resemble his mom more, while my Uncle was a true Fredette. And, of course,my Uncle Craig didn't have earrings. That's okay, though...I was glad to get to know Craig a little. The whole thing made me miss NY. Sure wish I could visit there more often.
The best part of the dinner was seeing my cousin Dan. I love Dan! I'd heard he might be there, but had decided he hadn't been able to come. Then, as I was finishing my meal, I looked up and...voila..there he was, standing against the wall with his son Zach. WOW! He'd driven from Vernal and arrived after the dinner had started. He only stayed about an hour before driving home so that he coud work the next day. (Dan used to drive a truck, so driving isn't difficult for him. He actually went to school to become a pilot and minored in Spanish...but he's driven a truck and worked for the Utah State Patrol. He's now a supervisor for a company called Nalco.) Anyway, we had a great time talking. He asked about my kids; I pointed them out. It'd been five years since the Fredette reunion at Bear Lake, so he was surprised to see what they looked like. I have always loved Dan and I was grateful to get to see him. I don't mind living in NE Colorado, but I do mind not living by anyone I love!
During the dinner Jimmer and whitney greeted every single guest. They went from table to table, followed by the photographer, hugging everyone & talking with them. Jimmer was looking for Taylor and Caleb and took extra time with them.
After the dinner we went to the dancing room. First everyone gathered around while Whitney and her dad danced to Tim McGraw's "My Little Girl". Then Jimmer and Aunt Kay danced. After that Jimmer and Whitney danced. Then Jimmer kept dancing, doing several "solos". I knew he liked to dance, but since I'd never seen him live, this was a treat. He'd choreographed a couple of songs and he really did do a good job. (His older sister, Lindsay, was a ballerina who danced for her talent when she won the Miss Teen New York title, and his brother TJ is a musician--but I was gone from home when they were teens so I missed all of their shows) The crowd on the dance floor consisted of Jimmer and Whitney's closest friends, who were mostly BYU athletes, and family members. It was really neat to see their comraderie and to watch them have such a great time together. A little later, we noticed that Isaac really wanted to dance. He just seems to feel music, and he''s practiced few moves at home,so I encouraged him. He was reluctant, but eventually a woman noticed him and dragged him onto the dance floor. He hesitated for just a few minutes and then seemed to loosen up and relax. And he just kept dancing...one song turned into two and then into six. I was amazed that he wasn't self-conscious in front of his audience, but they were good to him, giving him space and attention and encouraging him. His performance was really memorable!
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| This photo shows Jimmer being "wowed" by Ike. Below, Ike does his stuff. The primary onlookers are , L to R: Brandon Davies, TJ Fredette, Jimmer, and Cami Peterson |
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