December 28th — It was the destination wedding we all looked forward to, and it was finally here!
Nearly 100 guests joined Fred’s brother, Jeff, and sister-in-law, Debbie, as they hosted the wonderful wedding celebration of their daughter, Kara, to her beau, Kyle.
The immediate Jolly clan, 22 in number if I counted right, plus lots of other friends and family members took over many rooms at the beachfront hotel, not to mention a couple of party rooms at different times for other parties held in the days leading up to the big wedding day, and we all had a fabulous time living it up in the sunshine in Ft. Myers Beach!
The wedding day was a perfectly sunny one, and many beach goers took a pause when we all began to gather in the beachfront wedding area in the late afternoon. As Kara began walking down the sandy aisle, made extra special with the flower petals her two sweetheart nieces, Lauren & Kaelin, tossed out right before her entrance, the crowd erupted in loud applause – it was spontaneously awesome!
The ceremony was officiated by a local officiant, Miss Betty, with beautiful musical accompaniment from cousins, Mike & Karin, and their girls. Nine lovely bridesmaids, including sisters, cousins, and friends, and six groomsmen with two ushers, including a brother and brother-in-law, more cousins, and friends, donned blue and green wedding attire which was absolutely perfect for the beach wedding. Careful planning and attention to detail ensured the day went off without a hitch – indeed, it was a lovely day in every way!
Hover your cursor over the photo, below, and click on the arrows to see pictures of the beachfront wedding celebration:
Note no pictures are being shared from the post-wedding reception and party. Suffice it to say, it was another wonderful part of the destination wedding experience, complete with delicious food, funny and touching speeches (you were really in jail, Kara?!?) a first-rate DJ who kept us dancing for hours on the dance floor, and a bar tab that would do any wedding party proud! If this wasn’t enough, rumor has it that the 20-something- / 30-something-age cousins and an I’m-not-revealing-his-age older uncle (Tom) all found their way across the street to a taco stand, then to another bar, then the beach, and that bed checks around 4:30 a.m. found that not everyone was back in them at that late, or rather very early, hour of the next morning! A JOLLY day and night, indeed…!
So CONGRATULATIONS, Kara & Kyle! It’s going to be difficult to top this Jolly wedding…!!!
And to all the rest of our Jolly family out there, we love you! We are all so blessed to be part of this big, happy family….
Laura thanks for the lovely pictures. I’m sitting at my desk here at work and reading your blog and looking over this wonderful day! So appreciated your help!!! Thanks again!!!
A great day it was…! So happy to have helped in a small way. xo–L