Out of all of the undertakings for the vow renewal, there was one that I spent by far the most time on and was undeniably the most nervous about….

The First Dance.

The hubby didn’t have to do much to prep for the vow renewal… much except for one thing.  He agreed to learn to dance.  So for 18 months, twice a week, we took lessons at Chicago Dance and we learned to waltz.  Our coach and I and choreographed a 2 minute Viennese Waltz to “You and Me” by Lifehouse, one of our favorite bands.  I, having been a figure skater and dancer, was not at all worried about the performance, but the hubby has never performed in his life, and up until we took the floor at the beginning of the reception, we had never danced the routine in public, so you can imagine my apprehension (and his!).

{Jessica Claire}

Something magical was in the air, because we got through the dance with flying colors – and it was by far one of my favorite moments of the night. Here we are after the first dance – me looking incredibly happy and relieved and the hubby looking sheepish and slightly proud of his success:

{Mark Brooke}

After our work was over, we watched the pros do it.  We brought in two ballroom instructors to perform between courses and also teach steps during the reception.  Needless to say, we were glad we danced first. :)

{Mark Brooke}

Then we ate…

{Jessica Claire}

{Jessica Claire}

… and partied…

{Jessica Claire}

{Mark Brooke}

{Jessica Claire}

{Jessica Claire}

… and ate some more – yes you spy a gelato bar!

{Jessica Claire}

Then it was time for the best part of the night.  Our Same Day Edit.  Rainer and the crew of Simply Cinematic worked tirelessly through the reception to put together our video – and it was absolutely perfect.

{Michael Norwood}

This is Rainer.  He’s the man.

{Mark Brooke}

And last but not least, we counted down to 2009!

{Jessica Claire}

{Jessica Claire}

{Jessica Claire}

{Mark Brooke}

And when all was said and done, this is what was left:

{Jessica Claire}

And everyone took the trolley back to their hotels to sleep – because the next day, we had brunch!

{guest photo}

Look out for the last of my recaps, the day after brunch, next week!