Wedding number 1 of 2.

Have you ever been to a wedding reception with a bounce house?! Until this weekend, we hadn't either. But now that we have, the bar is set pretty high for these kids.

Of course if you had 25 nieces and nephews on one side alone...

...and over 35 when you put the two families together,

You might consider the addition of a bounce house nearly essential! (And yes, in case you predicted it, we did end up with one kid at the ER before the night was over.)

Chelsea and Taylor's Carnival themed wedding reception, with their teal and red color scheme was pulled off to perfection.  Complete with a popcorn machine, cotton candy station, and hot dog man.

A self-serve candy station for all to enjoy and take as a parting gift on their way out.  

Or to enjoy mid-party.  Whatever suits your fancy that evening.

Did I mention the balloon lady?  She entertained young and old alike as well. 

Dancing with her dad was the highlight of the evening for Ruby.  She was so moved by the beauty of the night that it was enough for her to declare to me that she hoped her wedding would be "just like this one!".  And that of course, she would be marrying daddy because she loves him so much. 

 

And still somehow despite the 194 pictures I have just sorted through,  I still don't feel like any single shot can capture the love and happiness that is nearly tangible the whole time we are all together with our cousins and family.  It was a beautiful occasion, and we are so grateful we got to share in a bit of their happiness:

 

Happy new life Chelsea and Taylor!  We had a blast. 

P.S.  Honorable mentions go out to the grapefruits which had fallen off the trees and entertained the kids at the temple:

And the cake topper, handmade by Aunt Brooke, which was so darling I can't stop thinking about it, and probably deserves a blog post of it's very own, I love it that much!  

And that's a wrap.  4 days and counting until wedding number 2!  Stay tuned...