Congratulations Paul and Brooke!!!
All dressed and excited to see Uncle Paul make an Aunt out of Brooke Nicole Furmanski!
We arrived at the temple early enough to see this cute couple all stressed out and emotional! Their last single moment.
We left our kids in the waiting room of the temple with a book. They were so good! The sealing was awesome. Gary Coleman did a beautiful job of describing the process of going through the temple and reminding the cute couple of the promises and covenants they were making. There wasn't a dry eye in the room.
Next, we headed outside to enjoy some sunshine and a few pictures.
We smiled till our cheeks hurt then headed over to the Eaglewood church building for a wedding luncheon. We had baked ziti, a delightful tossed salad, a variety of artisan breads, and the choice of Reese's puffs cereal. For dessert, because what's a meal without dessert, was a mixed fruit dessert cake (insert mouthwatering emoticon here). In lieu of a program, my mom put together please cards for each guest to fill out. It said something like: I am Brooke/Paul's ____{relation}, I have known him/her for ____{#} years. By knowing Brooke/Paul, I have learned… The guest then filled out what they have learned from Brooke or Paul. There were some very kind, sweet, sarcastic, entertaining, funny, questionable… Comments. Then, each table selected a person to read the comments for that specific table. It was a lot of fun. When I got time for the head table to read their cards, the dads both said a few sweet words, and Paul even have the opportunity to show off his yo-yo skills! Then, we watched a video that Paul put together, a "wedding video", if you will. It was so fun to watch, I wish it had gone on forever!
Brooks family headed over to decorate the reception center while Paul's family cleaned up the luncheon. With about an hour until we had to be at the reception center for the ring ceremony, BJ and I decided to go see if they need help with decoration/set up. The reception was at the rice Eccles Stadium. The perfect place for the avid "U" fans. When we got there, everything was pretty much set up how they wanted it. As Brooke was in the brides room getting ready, Paul and a few guys went out on the field and tossed the old pigskin around.
I've seen a lot of ring ceremonies in my life. Not as many in real life as on TV, but this one was by far the best! It started with the cute Ashlyn and Kaylee escorting their uncle Paul down the aisle. But they didn't just walk, did the "Monkeys" walk, (if they even know that's what it was)! Then the cute little flower girls did their job just right, dropping their petals down the aisle. Then it came time for the bridesmaids and groomsmen to make their way down the aisle. They all added their own personal touch. For example, Ben and Jake (the best man) dinner model walk down the aisle....But in the most cheesy hilarious way imaginable. Then a couple of bridesmaids followed suit, followed by John and Rich, who struck a pose then Rich jumped on John's back as John galloped the rest of the way down the aisle. Then a couple more bridesmaids, then Matt and BJ doing their best to keep a straight face as they struck poses at increments down the aisle. It was hilarious!! Then the beautiful Brooke was led by her dad, stopping halfway to correct their footing, to her patiently waiting husband!
After the ring ceremony, guests started arriving to greet Mr. & Mrs. Castleberry. (But not before a few more pictures!)
The party, as it is henceforth and forever to be known, was going great! Guests arrived in great throngs to greet the happy couple and their parents. But time neared for the real party to start. So the DJ warmed up his mic and the crowd all at the same time. He had the guests "play a game" by passing a dollar bill around the table. When the music stopped, the holder of the bill was required to be the server of foods and drinks throughout the next hour to all inhabitants of their table. That was the kick-off. The Dj interjected a few times throughout the night drawing guests to the dance floor and inviting them to enjoy the party. After the bride/groom, then father/daughter dance he invited all married couples to the floor. With a full dance floor he started the music then excused all couples who had been married less than one year, (the bride and groom were exempt from the dismissings) then after another minute of dancing those married less than 5 years were asked to step off the floor, then 10, then 15... At this point there were only half-a-dozen couples left on the floor, Bj and I included (going on 16 years!). Then 20, 25, 30, 35, 40... Two couples left: my mom and Dad (40 years) and Mark and Care Zaugg (45 years). The Dj came on the floor and handed them the mic and asked them to share words of advice, which boiled down to "patience, perseverance & communication".
A sweet "aaawwwww" swept through the crowd and then the beat started up. Brooke and Paul led the night as they danced to their playlist of fast upbeat songs, (not all of them appropriate for all ages ;)... But any song with a beat was played and the dance floor took a beating! (My old bones were aching!!)
The party finally came to a cheerful end as the bride and groom ran through a tunnel of flying rose petals out to their "decorated" get-a-way car where they headed to a downtown hotel before their Tropical honeymoon.
We helped with a couple housekeeping items then took our sleepy and hungry crew to Hires before they dreamed their way home.
We absolutely love Brooke and the person she lets Paul be. She joins him in his silly moods and loves him in spite of his over-sarcastic communication style. We are so excited for the rest of forever that we get to have her in our family.
More pics on Pinterest and Facebook #cberrywedding
